Tools and Resources: Instrumentation for Upper Extremity Impairment Assessment

Abstract

Abstract The primary methods of evaluating impairment in the upper extremity are range of motion testing and neurological examination. For certain conditions that do not cause motion or neurological deficits yet leave the extremity significantly impaired, the editors of the AMA Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment (AMA Guides), Fourth Edition, provided Section 3.1m, Impairment Due to Other Disorders of the Upper Extremity. The AMA Guides emphasizes that the criteria described in these “other disorders” should be applied only when the other criteria have not adequately encompassed the extent of the impairments. The evaluator must carefully read the criteria for rating each derangement to ensure the rating is correct and not duplicative. Table 26, Upper Extremity Impairment Due to Carpal Instability Patterns, includes values based on radiographic findings, and Table 27, Impairment of the Upper Extremity after Arthroplasty of Specific Bones or Joints, features ratings for resection arthroplasty and implant arthroplasty. Tables 28, 29, and 30 for musculotendinous impairments require that the percent of digit impairment be multiplied by the relative value of the digit according to Table 18. The AMA Guides does not assign a large role to functional measurements such as pinch and grip strength tests because they are influenced by subjective factors that are difficult to control.