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I am an occupational therapy student. I have to do a research project by the end of my program. What would you suggest to measure the effect of treatment on the arm?

A valid and reliable, easy-to-use tool is the Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand (DASH) questionnaire. It's in several languages
http://www.dash.iwh.on.ca. The patient answers 30 questions about the arm and hand.

The items ask how hard it is to perform physical activities because of the arm, shoulder, or hand problem. The severity of pain, activity-related pain, tingling, weakness and stiffness are also measured. DASH measures how much arm problems affect social activities, work, sleep, and self-image.

The test is scored with numbers. A final test score of zero means there is no disability.
The greatest disability is scored as 100. The DASH can be used to measure pain and activity levels before and after treatment.

If you would like to see how other therapists have used this tool, just go to Google and type in "disabilities of the arm, shoulder, and hand."

Reference: 

Charles S. Day, MD, et al. Basal Joint Osteoarthritis of the Thumb: A Prospective Trial of Steroid Injection and Splinting. In The Journal of Hand Surgery. March 2004. Vol. 29A. No. 2. Pp. 247-251.

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