Arm Squeeze Test

Purpose[edit | edit source]

This is a new clinical test that may be useful to distinguish between Cervical radiculopathy from other shoulder related pathology[1]

Technique[edit | edit source]

  • The examiner stands behind the patient
  • then squeezes the middle third of the patient's upper arm with thumb (examiner) on patient's triceps while the rest of the fingers is on the patient's biceps
  • With a moderate compression (5.9 to 8.1kg)

It is positive if the patient reports 3 or higher on VAS with pressure on middle third of upper arm compared with acromioclavicular joint and subacromial area.[1][2]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Gumina, S., Carbone, S., Albino, P., Gurzi, M., & Postacchini, F. (2013). Arm Squeeze Test: a new clinical test to distinguish neck from shoulder pain. European Spine Journal, 22(7), 1558–1563. http://doi.org/10.1007/s00586-013-2788-3
  2. Joshua Cleland, Shane Koppenhaver Jonathan Su (2015). Netter's Orthopaedic Clinical Examination, 3rd Edition Pg 122