Skip to main content

Test Positioning

It is important to palpate bony landmarks when measuring ROM to place the axis of the goniometer in the proper position and to point the arms of goniometer towards the proper bony landmarks, too. By placing the goniometer on the bony landmark, it increases interrater and intrarater reliability. If two therapists were to measure ROM on a client, it is important that both perform the measure in the same way, using the same landmarks to ensure that the measurement is the most accurate. 

Additionally, it is important to position the client in the proper position to measure the joint. If this is not done, the client’s full available range of motion may not be recorded or measured because it could not be obtained in that specific position. For example, when measuring knee extension, a towel should be placed under the client’s ankle to allow for the full extension to be obtained. If the initial therapist performs the measurement with the towel under the ankle, but the second therapist does not, it may appear the client has not made much improvement.

“Test position” is the position that the muscle or muscle group is able to produce optimal muscle contraction. The therapist will have the patient in this position before performing the manual muscle test (MMT) so the therapist can position themselves to apply resistance against the muscles in the proper place. Additionally the therapist will be able to palpate the contracting muscles in the test position to feel when they are contracting. The resistance of the therapist should be applied distally and the proximal segment should be stabilized. If the client is not placed in the test position, it may not allow their muscles to provide the best contraction, therefore not producing the most accurate response and reading.


The gravity eliminated position is for clients who are not strong enough to move through the full range of motion against gravity. In this position, the joint moves parallel to the ground. If a patient’s MMT is recorded in gravity eliminated, the best score they could received is poor (2). Poor (2) indicates the client has full available range of motion in the gravity eliminated position.

Comments

Post a Comment


Logan and I on our first day of OT school.

Popular posts from this blog

Parkinson's and Deep Brain Stimulation

   I watched a TED Talk called “Parkinson’s, depression and the switch that might turn them off” by neurosurgeon Andres Lozano. I chose to watched this because I was unfamiliar with deep brain stimulation until we discussed it in class. I wanted to further my knowledge on this subject and the diagnoses that it can be effectively used. Neurosurgery has been around for 7000 years. Originally, people with psychiatric and neurological problems were thought to be possessed by evil spirits. In order to release the spirit, they thought they needed to cut a hole in the skull.    As we have learned, different parts of the brain control different functions. If there is a dysfunction in a specific area of the brain, there are specific functions that will be impaired. Dr. Lozano became interested in this and how deep brain stimulation can help people with various disorders. Deep brain stimulation is achieved by cutting a hole in the skull to reach an area of the brain with ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Locus of Control

     Locus of control is how a person perceives the cause of their situations in life, and can be on a continuum between internal and external.  I received 13 points out of a total of 23 points on the worksheet. I fell in about the middle of the scale between internal locus of control and external locus of control. After scoring this, it did not surprise me on how I fell within the scale. I had a hard time with many questions deciding which one I agreed with more. I believe that there is a mix of things we can control and things we cannot. Some things are just bound to happen, no matter how hard you work to avoid it.      I found this topic and how it related to the client/therapist interaction very interesting. I appreciated how the article posted for our reference discussed how as therapists we can encourage an external or internal locus of control towards our treatment of clients. I also believe it is important to encourage an internal locus o...
Post a Comment
Read more

Media Project

The most significant thing I learned from this assignment is the importance of taking the client’s values into consideration when providing therapy services. If the client does not feel like the intervention is meaningful to them, they will not be invested in it. I learned that it can sometimes be difficult to find something that relates to a client’s needs. It may require extra hours, consulting other therapists, thinking outside the box, and adapting an item to best fit each individual client. You may have to try something new with a client, because they have different values and needs than previous clients.  This assignment prepared me to think outside the box. Additionally, it allowed me to look at the whole client and what are their most important needs. For Maurice, he was afraid of becoming bored and lonely. I wanted to create something that was portable and could be kept with him at all times to prevent the feelings he was scared of. The Legen-Dairy Notebook incorp...
Post a Comment
Read more

Contact Form

Name

Email *

Message *

Translate