Superior pinch strength in the dominant versus nondominant hand

Abstract

We evaluated the differences in pinch strength between the thumb and each of the fingers in the dominant and nondominant hands. The subjects were 30 healthy young adult males (mean age 18.5 ± 2.6 years, mean height 174.2 ± 6.5 cm, mean weight 68.0 ± 7.9 kg) with right hand dominance. For each subject, the pinch strength between two fingers (the thumb and each of the other fingers) in the dominant and nondominant hands was measured. Significant differences between pinch strength in the dominant and nondominant hands were found for the thumb–index finger and thumb–middle finger, with the dominant hand having 18 % greater strength. The pinch strength between the thumb and each of the other fingers was ranked in the order of index finger, middle finger, ring finger, and little finger. All correlations were significant, but values for the middle and ring fingers (r = 0.95 and 0.89) were significantly larger. In conclusion, the pinch strength of the fingers most frequently used in daily life is markedly different between the dominant and nondominant hands, but their relationship is low.