Arm Motor Ability Test
What It Measures
The Arm Motor Ability Test (AMAT) looks at how well someone can use a weaker arm for real household tasks after a stroke. The person works through everyday activities — eating with a spoon, cutting meat, opening a jar, combing hair, tying a shoelace, using the telephone — while the therapist times and rates each one.
The 13 compound tasks break down into 28 smaller task components, and each component is scored twice: once on a 0-to-5 functional ability scale for how much the affected arm actually does the work, and once on a 0-to-5 quality of movement scale for how normal the movement looks. Rating both separately is what distinguishes an arm that finishes the job awkwardly from one that cannot start it.
Further Reading
Additional Notes
Learn More: Several versions exist. The AMAT-13, the AMAT-10, and the Ohio Modified Arm-Motor Ability Test (OMAAT). A 2011 review recommended the 10-item version with functional ability rated alone as the standard going forward.
