Evaluation and Assessment
Frame the clinical question first
Assessment items rarely ask you to recite a norm. They place a finding in context: is a structure injured, is function changing, or is the plan working? Pick the instrument that answers that question, then interpret the value against the right reference - the contralateral limb, an age- and sex-matched norm, or the patient's own baseline.
Measurement details that get tested
Grip dynamometry (Jamar, second handle position, seated, shoulder adducted and neutrally rotated, elbow 90°, forearm neutral, wrist 0–30° extension), averaging three trials that agree within about 10%; the dominant hand typically grips roughly 10% harder. Semmes–Weinstein monofilaments are a threshold test, with commonly taught cutoffs: 2.83 normal light touch, 3.61 diminished light touch, 4.31 diminished protective sensation, 4.56 loss of protective sensation, 6.65 deep pressure only. Static two-point discrimination of about 5–6 mm or less at the fingertip is generally normal; moving 2PD is finer.
Traps
Confusing Tinel (percussion over the nerve) with Phalen (60 seconds of wrist flexion) and Durkan (30 seconds of carpal compression). Calling a large AROM–PROM gap "stiffness" when it suggests adhesion or tendon rupture. Grading a digit on flexion while ignoring extension deficits. Choosing a body-function measure such as ROM when the question actually asks about activity or participation - there, DASH/QuickDASH, PRWE, or the Michigan Hand Questionnaire fits better.
Worked example
Six months after zone II flexor repair: MCP 0–85°, PIP −15° to 60°, DIP −5° to 40°. Total active motion = (85 + 60 + 40) − (15 + 5) = 165°. Against a contralateral 255°, that is 65% - a good result. Report the denominator, not just the raw number.