MMT Medical Abbreviation: Manual Muscle Testing Explained

What Does MMT Mean?

MMT stands for Manual Muscle Testing.
It is a hands-on method that healthcare providers use to check how strong a muscle is.

A provider asks the patient to move a body part while applying gentle resistance. The goal is to see how well the muscle works.

Why Providers Use MMT

MMT helps measure changes in strength over time.
It tells the care team:

• How strong a muscle is
• Whether weakness affects movement
• If therapy or treatment is working
• When it is safe to progress exercises

Physical therapists, occupational therapists, neurologists, and orthopedic specialists all use MMT.

For example, a study showed that MMT total scores had excellent intra- and inter-rater reliability in assessing muscle weakness in inflammatory myopathy patients

MMT Grading Scale

MMT uses a simple numerical scale from 0 to 5:

• 0: No contraction
• 1: Flicker of movement
• 2: Movement without gravity
• 3: Movement against gravity
• 4: Movement against some resistance
• 5: Full strength against resistance

This scale helps track progress clearly and consistently.

Where You Might See MMT

You may see MMT in:

• Physical therapy evaluations
• Rehabilitation progress reports
• Neurological exams
• Orthopedic injury assessments
• Post-surgery recovery notes

It is one of the most common tools used to measure muscle strength.

MMT vs Other Strength Assessments

Other assessments exist, but they serve different purposes:

• Hand-held dynamometry: Uses a device to measure exact force.
• Functional tests: Measure how well someone performs daily activities.
• Range-of-motion tests: Measure how far a joint moves.

MMT is still widely used because it is fast, simple, and requires no equipment.