Finger Strength Measurement Device Aids Treatment of Hand Injuries

A device that measures intrinsic hand muscle strength could revolutionize the diagnosis and treatment of hand injuries and neurological disorders, including carpal tunnel syndrome.

Developed by student researchers at Rice University (Houston, TX, USA), the Peg Restrained Intrinsic Muscle Evaluator (PRIME) device consists of three elements: a pegboard restraint, a force transducer enclosure, and a personal digital assistant (PDA) custom-programmed to capture measurements. In the five-minute test, a doctor uses pegs to isolate a patient's individual fingers. Once the fingers are immobilized, the test subject can only move the required finger. A loop is then fitted around the finger, and when the patient moves it, the amount of force generated is measured. The PRIME device records the peak force, allowing clinicians to create a patient-specific time-stamped file that contains every single measurement. The PRIME device integrates with existing systems in a manner compliant with the U.S. Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

"Twenty percent of all ER admissions are hand-related. Neuromuscular disorders like spinal cord injuries, Lou Gehrig's, diabetes, multiple sclerosis -- all these diseases affect the intrinsic hand muscles,” said one of the developers, graduate student Shuai Xu, of the department of bioengineering. "Our invention can be used across the spectrum of care from diagnosis to outcome measurements.”

The inventors won first place for the PRIME device at IShow, an innovation competition for graduate and undergraduate students sponsored by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, as well as being named one of five winners in a student design competition sponsored by the U.S. National Science Foundation at the Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society (RESNA) of North America conference, held during June 2009 in New Orleans (LA, USA).

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