Arm Squeeze Test

Arm Squeeze Test is used to distinguish Cervical Nerve Root Compression from Shoulder Pain.

How do you perform the Arm Squeeze Test?

• The patient is sitting and the examiner behind him.
• The examiner squeezes the middle third of the patient’s upper arm with thumb on patient’s triceps and fingers on patient’s biceps with moderate compression (5.9 to 8.1 kg).

See Also: Spurling Test

What does a positive Arm Squeeze Test mean?

Arm Squeeze Test positive if patient reports 3 points or higher on visual analog scale (VAS) with pressure on middle third of upper arm compared with acromioclavicular joint and subacromial area.

Accuracy

A study on 305 patients with cervical nerve root compression, 903 patients with rotator cuff tear, and 350 healthy volunteers founds that the sensitivity and specificity of this test was:

• Sensitivity: 96%
• Specificity: 96 %

The diagnosis of cervical nerve root compression (C5-T1) was based on clinical examination, electromyography, x-rays, and MRI.

The Arm Squeeze Test may be useful to distinguish cervical nerve root compression from shoulder disease in case of doubtful diagnosis.

A positive result to this test may lead to cervical etiology of the shoulder pain.

Note

A visual analog scale (VAS) consists of a line, often 10 cm long, with verbal anchors at either end (e.g., “no pain” on the far left and “the most intense pain imaginable” on the far right). The patient places a mark at a point on the line corresponding to the patient’s rating of pain intensity.

The VAS has often been recommended as the measure of choice for assessment of pain intensity.

References:

1. Gumina S, Carbone S, Albino P, Gurzi M, Postacchini F. Arm Squeeze Test: a new clinical test to distinguish neck from shoulder pain. Eur Spine J. 2013 Jul;22(7):1558-63. doi: 10.1007/s00586-013-2788-3. Epub 2013 Apr 21. PMID: 23604976; PMCID: PMC3698345.
2. Netter’s Orthopaedic Clinical Examination An Evidence-Based Approach 3rd Edition Book.