Detection of skin temperature differences using palpation by manual physical therapists and lay individuals

Objectives-To evaluate the accuracy of detection of temperature differences among skin sites of lay individuals and manual physical therapists.Methods- Forty-four manual physical therapists and 44 lay individuals were recruited. Subjects palpated two temperature-controlled surfaces that ranged in te...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inThe Journal of manual & manipulative therapy Vol. 26; no. 2; pp. 97 - 101
Main Authors Levine, David, Walker, J. Randy, Marcellin-Little, Denis J., Goulet, Ron, Ru, Hongyu
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published England Taylor & Francis 15.03.2018
Subjects
manual therapy
Original Research Papers
palpation
physical therapist
Skin temperature
physical therapist
manual therapy
Skin temperature
palpation
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Summary:Objectives-To evaluate the accuracy of detection of temperature differences among skin sites of lay individuals and manual physical therapists.Methods- Forty-four manual physical therapists and 44 lay individuals were recruited. Subjects palpated two temperature-controlled surfaces that ranged in temperature between 30 and 35 °C and varied randomly by 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 °C for 10 s. The subjects were then asked to identify the warmer pad.Results- Accuracy increased with larger temperature differences. Accuracy of detection of 1 and 3 °C temperature differences was higher in manual physical therapists than lay individuals.Discussion- Palpation can be used to accurately detecting temperature differences between sites and is more accurately performed by an experienced practitioner. Level of Evidence: 3b
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
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ISSN:1066-9817
2042-6186
DOI:10.1080/10669817.2018.1427908