Deep tendon reflexes are produced in the four upper and lower extremities of the human body. Physicians test these muscle reflexes with medical instruments to assess the functioning of the central and peripheral nervous systems. The resulting response indicates an array of beneficial information about the health of the brain, nerves, and spinal cord.

How exactly does this assessment work? Which type of tool is necessary to use for examination? Read more in our quick guide to assessing reflexes with a reflex hammer.

Ensuring Proper Assessment: Patient Relaxation

Assessing reflexes with a reflex hammer requires coordination between two people, typically a physician and a patient. Doctors must tap a targeted tendon or muscle with the hammer tool at the right location to perform a screening examination correctly.

If normal, this briskly applied pressure sends signals to the muscle to immediately contract—the contraction occurs due to a person's neuron reflex arc. Examiners conventionally rate the responding reflex from no response to abnormal response. Healthcare professionals must relax or distract patients at the time of assessment to ensure the accurate recording of responses.

Maintaining Appropriate Swing Speed and Positioning

Valid assessment is only possible with the appropriate techniques. Users of reflex hammers should be aware of the correct approaches to take when testing these critical reflexes. The best positioning for patients is either sitting on an exam table, chair, or the side of the bed. Applying force at the wrong angle will not attain the correct reflex arc nor lead to an adequate tendon stretch and response.

Speed is another technical approach to take into consideration. A swing that is too slow will not even produce a normal response in a healthy person. Ergo, assessing reflexes with a medical hammer requires a fast enough swing speed to strike the tendon perpendicularly and elicit the sought-after movement.

Using High-Quality Reflex Instruments

As essential medical tools, reflex hammers have a handle for steady gripping and a rubber or metal head for exerting pressure. Some instrument styles are smaller and lighter for using less force. Others are weightier and require gravity to apply greater force onto a muscle or tendon. Either way, professional users of these tools must utilize a quality instrument with the proper head weight to yield better assessment results.

These relatively unassuming devices have a long and valuable history in health care. High-quality hammers for professional use can be purchased from online retailers and medical supply companies. A wide range of medical reflex hammers is available today for evoking a fast and automatic response. Explore popular and easy-to-use models from top manufacturers on our website for deep tendon reflex assessment applications.