Name: Shoulder Abduction Test for Cervical Radiculopathy
Uploaded: 2023-04-26T01:01:54.000Z
Duration: 4 min 51 s
Description: This video demonstrates how to perform the Shoulder Abduction Test, a physical assessment used to diagnose cervical radiculopathy. Learn how to properly identify and assess patient symptoms to improve patient outcomes.

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https://stream.mux.com/qOcwV02WzqsmMZhx01xNFz4Ty00iPwW8wC1kRWdVm1qxFc.m3u8

This video demonstrates how to perform the Shoulder Abduction Test, a physical assessment used to diagnose cervical radiculopathy. Learn how to properly identify and assess patient symptoms to improve patient outcomes.

Introduction to Shoulder Abduction Test for Cervical Radiculopathy

Patient Symptoms and Preliminary Assessment

Execution and Significance of the Shoulder Abduction Test

Correlation Between Daily Activities and Cervical Radiculopathy Signs

Review and Interpretation of Test Results

Shoulder Abduction Test for Cervical Radiculopathy

This is Brent of the Brookbush Institute, and in this video I'm going to show you the shoulder abduction test for cervical radiculopathy. I'm going to have my friend Yvette come out, she's going to help me demonstrate. This is a fairly simple test, but it's a test that I think has transference to things you might see in the individuals daily activity. So I want you to keep your eyes out for this one, here's how this works. Somebody comes in with cervical radiculopathy signs. So maybe on our subjective exam Yvette was complaining about some right-sided neck pain. Maybe she has some tingling tight stuff, maybe some cramping in one of her arm muscles, right like you know how like sometimes cervical radiculopathy patients get that unremitting fatigue feeling right, and she's getting some tingling in her fingertips. So we know some nerve involvement is happening and we know the neck is involved because that's where she's got this pretty harsh pain. The test itself goes like this, hey in this position any change in your symptoms? (No). So you still feel all the stuff? Okay that's that's unfortunate. Do me a favor, if you do this, how does that feel? (Better). That feels better, okay that's a positive test, that's it, that's it. This is the shoulder abduction test, not a complicated test, a specific test though. So if you get a positive, research shows that actually that's a pretty good indicator that we have cervical radiculopathy, not very sensitive so don't give much weight to the no, but let's do that one more time and think about this for a second. Can you move that one more time for me. So can you imagine if we do this, she just took a bunch of tension off her brachial plexus. She probably took some tension off a couple of the nerves in her arm just by kind of bending at the elbow, going into a little bit of of elevation at the scapula. The rest of this is all in a nice relaxed position, so if I take some tension off these nerves you can imagine how symptoms should go down. Now here's what I was talking about with keeping in mind with daily activity, how many people have you seen walk in to the clinic or maybe just even around a restaurant, or even at home and the first thing they want to do when they sit down is what? So if somebody comes in with neck pain and their first position they want to get into when they try to relax is this, I would think in the back of your head wow that could be a cervical radiculopathy sign. I'm not saying catastrophize this, that doesn't mean that everybody who rocks is like this has cervical problems, that is not what I'm saying at all, but if someone comes into your clinic with neck pain and you were not thinking cervical radiculopathy before, maybe seeing somebody do this as their relaxation position is a good indicator for you to do your cervical radiculopathy cluster. So that we do get a good indication of whether that is the diagnosis that we're working with, because that might change the way we treat just a little bit. All right so again just a quick review, super easy, you're going to assess the patient's symptoms in sitting and try to be consistent about the way you sit, like I would make Yvette sit with pretty decent posture here, I wouldn't let her slouch, and then I would ask her how her symptoms are in this position. If she's a fairly irritable cervical radiculopathy, she has some pretty good symptoms we're still pretty acute with this, chances are just sitting here is going to be a little rough. Alright and then all I am going to have you do, hey do me a favor Yvette can you just put your hand on top of your head, so I'm unweighting some of the nerves, unstretching stretching some of the nerves from brachial plexus on down; and if she goes hey does that help at all, and that helps her symptoms, and be careful with the question you ask, the symptoms you were talking about when you walked in. So this is the right-sided neck pain, is that better? Yeah it is, yeah and then the nerve stuff is a little bit? Yeah, right so that's that's a positive. If her symptoms go down that's a positive. If you have any questions about this test, this very easy test, please leave me a comment in the in the box below, and I'll talk with you again soon

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Special tests for cervical radiculopathy, cervicogenic headache, and Canadian cervical spine (C-spine) rules. The Wainner's Clinical Prediction Rule for Cervical Radiculopathy, Spurling's Compression Test, Upper Limb Tension Test, Distraction Test, Shoulder Abduction Test, Cervical Flexion, and Rotation Test, and Canadian C-spine Rules for "red flags". The reliability, specificity, sensitivity, validity, safety, and screening for neck pain, headaches, and radiculopathy.

Shoulder Abduction Test for Cervical Radiculopathy

Cervical Distraction Test

Modified Sharp Purser Test

Upper Limb Tension Tests (ULTT)

Wainner's Clinical Prediction Rule for Cervical Radiculopathy

Alar Ligament Stability Test

Anterior Stability Test of the Atlanto-occipital Joint

Tectorial Membrane and Posterior Atlanto-occipital Membrane

Canadian C-Spine Rules

Cervical Flexion and Rotation Test for Cervicogenic Headache

Vertebrobasilar Insufficiency (VBI) and Wallenberg's Position

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