Medical Devices and Technology Group (MEDITEG), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), Johor, Malaysia.
Bio-signal Processing Group (BSP), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), Johor, Malaysia.
Eval Health Prof. 2019 Mar;42(1):103-113. doi: 10.1177/0163278717727568. Epub 2017 Sep 4.
An accurate measurement of intrinsic hand muscle strength (IHMS) is required by clinicians for effective clinical decision-making, diagnosis of certain diseases, and evaluation of the outcome of treatment. In practice, the clinicians use Intrins-o-meter and Rotterdam Intrinsic Hand Myometer for IHMS measurement. These are quite bulky, expensive, and possess poor interobserver reliability (37-52%) and sensitivity. The purpose of this study was to develop an alternative lightweight, accurate, cost-effective force measurement device with a simple electronic circuit and test its suitability for IHMS measurement. The device was constructed with ketjenblack/deproteinized natural rubber sensor, 1-MΩ potential divider, and Arduino Uno through the custom-written software. Then, the device was calibrated and tested for accuracy and repeatability within the force range of finger muscles (100 N). The 95% limit of agreement in accuracy from -1.95 N to 2.06 N for 10 to 100 N applied load and repeatability coefficient of ±1.91 N or 6.2% was achieved. Furthermore, the expenditure for the device construction was around US$ 53. For a practical demonstration, the device was tested among 16 participants for isometric strength measurement of the ulnar abductor and dorsal interossei. The results revealed that the performance of the device was suitable for IHMS measurement.
临床医生需要准确测量内在手部肌肉力量（IHMS），以便做出有效的临床决策、诊断某些疾病和评估治疗效果。在实践中，临床医生使用 Intrins-o-meter 和 Rotterdam 内在手部测力计来测量 IHMS。这些设备体积庞大、价格昂贵，且观察者间可靠性（37-52%）和灵敏度较差。本研究旨在开发一种替代的轻巧、准确、具有成本效益的力测量设备，该设备具有简单的电子电路，并测试其是否适合 IHMS 测量。该设备由 Ketjenblack/脱蛋白天然橡胶传感器、1-MΩ 分压器和 Arduino Uno 通过定制软件构建而成。然后，在手指肌肉的力范围内（100 N）对设备进行校准和测试，以评估其准确性和重复性。在 10 到 100 N 的应用负载范围内，准确性的 95%一致性界限为-1.95 N 至 2.06 N，重复性系数为±1.91 N 或 6.2%。此外，设备构建的支出约为 53 美元。为了进行实际演示，该设备在 16 名参与者中进行了测试，以测量尺侧腕伸肌和背侧骨间肌的等长力量。结果表明，该设备的性能适合 IHMS 测量。
