Test Positioning

In the OT setting, measurement of joint ROM is used to screen clients who have experienced trauma or have a disease that has had a negative impact on their joint structures and tissues. It is the job of an OT to establish their client’s baseline abilities (and later re-assess), in order to document progress or lack thereof. The significance of bony landmarks for ROM is to help the therapist identify the location of other body structures, such a muscles. Also, proper positioning of the client and the testing tool is important. When using a goniometer; the axis and arms must be place in the precise location on the body to ensure accuracy and reliability.

There are several purposes for Manual muscle testing (MMT), depending on the setting and context, and is used by a variety of healthcare professionals (e.g., occupational therapists, physical therapists, chiropractors, etc.). When using MMT, the therapist might be assessing the maximum force a muscle is capable of generating or trying to identify neurological responses, through submaximal testing. This will help the therapist determine a patient's progress during therapy.


In most cases, the muscle movements being tested will go against gravity, i.e. up and/or away from the floor). In order to make the movement “gravity eliminated”, the OT needs to make the movement parallel to the floor. This might be necessary if a client has some sort of generalized weakness, muscle/nerve impairments, or low exercise tolerance due to an injury or disease.


The significance of measuring ROM is so that an OT can gauge the client’s deficits in abilities and work to increase their abilities over time. Otherwise, deficits in abilities and capabilities may lead to impaired occupational functioning (e.g., independently eating a meal).

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3259988/#s0005title
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=J_9qZW4iz-M