Muscles strength is very important for all of our functional activities, from heavy work such as hiking stairs or a slope to fine work such as sewing or writing on a keyboard. When losing feeling in a part of your body can be more disabling, burning off muscle power always has consequences for our function and our independence, especially even as we get much elderly when our power levels decline anyhow. We may lose muscle power for a wide variety of reasons: disuse; pain; damage; disease or neurological condition. Physiotherapists are skilled at the assessment of muscle power and in developing strengthening ways to restore electricity within the patient's capacity.
The Oxford Scale is the rating system employed by physiotherapists for the analysis and recording of muscle power when required. Expertise of muscle anatomy is essential so that the joint can be placed effectively and the tendons and muscle palpated so whether there is any muscle action can be judged. The muscle is rated on the Oxford Scale in one to five and written down as 2/5 or 4/5, at times with an advantage or minus sign to demonstrate the muscle has more or less strength but not enough to go down or in the scale. The physiotherapist ensures the joint is in the optimum position to permit the muscle to function easily as well as for easy visualisation of the tendon and muscle.
If you have no muscle activity, either obvious or with the physiotherapist feeling the tendon and muscle abdomen after several attempts by the individual to perform the muscle action then the muscle is graded as zero. A small muscle contraction such as a twitch, without the joint activity, is rated as one. When the muscle can do its joint action but without the push of gravity resisting the movement then this is graded as two, but the joint needs to be in the right position for correct screening. If the muscle can perform its typical action against the force of gravity then it is rated as three. The is bending the elbow although standing up, where the biceps is working against gravity.
To be scored as 4/5 on the Oxford Scale a muscle must have the ability to move the joint through full range against resistance and the law of gravity. The physiotherapist will make a decision what degree of level of resistance is reasonable for this test, bearing in brain the characteristics of the individual such as age, gender, activity levels and medical status. The normal score of 5/5 is given only when the muscle can move the joint painlessly to the level that the tester seems is totally adequate, given the personal status of the patient. Full electricity for a younger, strong man will be very different for children or old person.
If the patient can raise their arm up above the head to some level but not very firmly nor to full range, the physiotherapist might rank that as 3/5 for the deltoid muscle but because it is not full it might be rated 3-/5. If the muscle will take good manual resistance but will not appear to be normal for that patient then the grading could be 4+/5.
This grading level allows the physiotherapist Singapore to try all the appropriate muscles and record them in the patient's notes, permitting progress to be charted against time as the strength improves. This can be very useful in tracking the progress of patients recoveries or documenting their neurological status such as in spine personal injury.
Physiotherapists commence muscle conditioning techniques in a position where gravity is taken away, allowing a weak muscle to be repetitively practiced. As the patient's capacity increases they can perform more functional activities of daily life which fortifies the muscles in a co-ordinated way which demonstrates normality. Next, resistance against muscle action is increased as muscle strength boosts in response to the level of intensity of resistance and not merely replication. High intensity causes muscle fibre breakdown which fixes with increased size and power until the next intensity workout repeats the process. Progression can now be relocated to functional exercise with bodyweight resistance as energetic movement is more useful.
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