Dynamic Functional Assessment of Hand Motion Using an Animation Glove: The Effect of Stenosing Tenosynovitis.

Background: The aim of the present study is to determine whether an animation glove can be utilized to provide a reliable and reproducible assessment of dynamic hand function and whether this assessment is altered in the setting of hand pathology.

Methods: Ten subjects without known hand pathology and 11 subjects with known stenosing tenosynovitis were assessed on tasks involving hand function at varied speeds, including forceful and gradual making of a fist and the quick and slow grip of a baseball using an animation glove to record range of motion and measures of velocity (CyberGlove II).

Results: In normal subjects, peak extension and flexion velocity of the index and middle finger was highest in the metacarpophalangeal and lowest in the distal interphalangeal; however, the converse was true in the ring finger.