Brudzinski’s Sign
Original Editor Oyemi Sillo
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Description[edit | edit source]
Brudzinski's sign is one of the physically demonstrable symptoms of meningitis. Severe neck stiffness causes a patient's hips and knees to flex when the neck is flexed.[1][2]
Purpose[edit | edit source]
Indicates meningeal irritation.[3]
Technique
In a quiet environment with the client resting in a supine position:
- Gently grasp the patient's head from behind and place the other hand on the patient's chest
- Gently flex the neck, bringing chin to chest
- Positive sign is involuntary flexing of hips and knees (an involuntary reaction to lessen the stretch on the inflamed meninges)
Evidence[4][edit | edit source]
Sensitivity: 5; Specificity: 95; Positive likelihood ratio: 0.97; Negative likelihood ratio: 1.0
See test diagnostics page for an explanation of statistics.
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/imagepages/19069.htm
- ↑ Manmohan Mehndiratta, Rajeev Nayak, Hitesh Garg, Munish Kumar, and Sanjay Pandey (2012). Appraisal of Kernig's and Brudzinski's sign in meningitis.Ann Indian Acad Neurol. 2012 Oct-Dec; 15(4): 287–288. doi: 10.4103/0972-2327.104337
- ↑ Introduction to Emergency Medicine edited by Elizabeth Mitchell, Ron Medzon. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2005
- ↑ Karen E. Thomas, Rodrigo Hasbun, James Jekel, Vincent J. Quagliarello. The Diagnostic Accuracy of Kernig's Sign, Brudzinski's Sign, and Nuchal Rigidity in Adults with Suspected Meningitis. Clin Infect Dis. (2002) 35 (1): 46-52.
