Learning effects of repetitive administration of the Southampton Hand Assessment Procedure in
novice prosthetic users
Sammanfattning
OBJECTIVE: The Southampton Hand Assessment Procedure (SHAP) evaluates the functionality of
normal, injured or prosthetic hands. The aim was to evaluate the learning effects of SHAP tasks and
the appropriateness of the time limits applied per task in novice prosthetic users.
METHODS: Right-handed unimpaired volunteers (n = 24, mean age 21.8 years) completed 8 SHAP
sessions over 5 consecutive days using a prosthetic simulator. The execution times of SHAP tasks
were transformed into 6 prehensile patterns, the functionality profile, and the index of function, a
general functionality score. Learning effects in task times were analysed using multilevel analysis.
RESULTS: Learning effects occurred in all SHAP tasks. Tasks, sex, sessions, tasks-sessions
interaction, and the first session of the day contributed (p < 0.01) to the execution times. Tasks were
performed more slowly by females and more slowly on the first session of the day. In several tasks
time limits were exceeded by > 25% of participants in at least the first 3 sessions, which affected the
calculation of the functionality profile and index of function scores.
CONCLUSION: The learning effects of SHAP in novice prosthetic users require consideration when
conducting a reliability study. SHAP scores in novice prosthetic-hand users are confounded by
learning effects and exceeded time limits.