Monkey grip

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Monkey grip is the slang term for a manual gripping technique. Here, the object to be gripped is not grasped like pliers with the thumb and opposite fingers, but the thumb lies together with the remaining fingers on one side.

Monkey grip on the golden monkey (although it does have an opposable thumb)
Monkey grip in humans

The name of the handle is derived from the hand of the monkey . The hand of these animals is different from that of humans. The thumb is shorter. The animals usually grab an object with their thumbs and all fingers together. For human babies, the monkey grip is the first method of grasping used from around four months of age.

If this type of grip is avoided for activities such as stretching gymnastics in favor of a firmer grip, it is explicitly recommended for other activities:

  • A typical application example of the monkey handle is to start combustion engines with the help of a hand crank . Using the monkey handle prevents hand injuries if the crank is kicked back, as the crank can slide out of the hand more easily.
  • In the field of fire and rescue services , the monkey handle is also a common type of carrying and grip. This is used, for example, when moving portable ladders , cranking older portable pumps or with the Rautek handle for rescuing people. This can prevent the helper's thumbs from being pressed onto the patient's ribs.
  • When handling technical devices, this grip is required according to the accident prevention regulations in order to avoid injuries.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Monkey hand in babies ( Memento from March 23, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
  2. ↑ Rescuing from the danger zone ( Memento from August 5, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
  3. ^ THW course: Transporting the injured. (PDF) Retrieved August 21, 2019 .

Web links