This small study compared the dynamic and static motor capacities of each finger among elderly individuals who engaged in hobbies that involved daily use of the hands, and those that did not.

Aoki T, and Kadota K. Effects of Daily Hand Activities on Age-Related Declines of Dynamic Motor Function in Individual Fingers. Motor Control (Ahead of Print). https://doi.org/10.1123/mc.2020-0085

KEY POINTS: HAND DEXTERITY & MOTOR FUNCTION

• Aging is characterized by a decline in manual dexterity, and may be quantified by decreased grip force, decreased tapping frequency, and prolonged timing for the pegboard test.
• Reports from static motor function studies on individual fingers show that the lower maximum pinch force in older adults is greatly reduced, compared with young adults.¹
  • Pinch force is a precision grip whereby an object is pinched in three ways: lateral pinch, three-point pinch, and two-point pinch.
• ...

This transcript includes highlights from the live, interactive session of our Clinical Conversation: Alternate Grips for Upper Limb Rehab. 

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GRIP & GRASP

• Grip and Grasp Anatomy: The carpals.
  
  • The carpus is designed to increase the tension in the tendons of the fingers (both extensors and flexors) and optimise these movements.
  • The proximal row are functionally separate from the distal row.
  • Flexion of the wrist initially occurs between these two rows, with the scaphoid acting as a bridge, so that in the final stage of flexion the whole carpus moves as a single unit.
  • The same occurs in...