Assessment of the functional abilities of the upper limbs in patients with neuromuscular diseases.

This article presents a new test for evaluating the functional state of the upper limbs (UL) in patients with neuromuscular diseases (NMD). The test consists of 14 items which in turn break down into 70 (14 x 5) separate objective assessments of each patient. The function of proximal muscle groups is determined by the first seven test items, and the function of distal muscle groups in the remaining seven items. The test was applied to 227 patients with NMD; it has proven valid, feasible, acceptable, sensitive and reliable.