Hand grip strength of interventional surgeons: A systematic review

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

• Five studies reporting hand grip strength of interventional surgeons were included • Pooled mean power grip strength was calculated as 338N for women and 446N for men • Significant differences found between women interventional surgeons and normative values • There is a lack of data reporting on hand grip strength of interventional surgeons Catheter-based cardiovascular devices used by interventional cardiologists are complex and often require both high grip forces and precise dexterity to operate. A lack of understanding of interventional cardiologist’s hand grip strength capabilities contributes to suboptimal medical device design. A systematic review of the literature was conducted in January 2025 investigating hand grip strength of interventional cardiologists, and related interventional specialities. Studies published on Scopus, WebOfScience, PubMed and Google Scholar were included in the search. Screening was conducted by two independent reviewers. Full text review and extractions were conducted by one reviewer, subject to cross-check from the second reviewer. Risk of bias was assessed using Critical Appraisal Skills Programme for Cross Sectional Studies. The protocol was registered on PROSPERO (CRD42025646450). The initial search identified 904 citations, with 14 studies eligible for full-text review and five included in the final analysis. The search strategy targeted all grasp types, however only studies reporting upon power grip were found. The results from this review were used to calculate a pooled mean power grip strength of interventional surgeons for both men and women. When compared to the values referenced in AAMI HE75 - Human Factors Engineering guidance, an independent t-test found that the grip strengths were statistically different for women (t = -7.404, p < 0.05) but not for men (t= 1.018, p > 0.05). There is a gap in the existing literature regarding hand grip strength for interventional cardiologists, and more generally interventional surgeons. Reference data for women in AAMI HE75 does not align with actual grip strength of interventional surgeons reported in the literature. Further investigation is needed to determine whether normative data from the general population can be used when designing devices for interventional surgeons.

May warrant sex-specific grip norms for interventional device design; challenges AAMI HE75 references.