The shoulder abduction relief test, also called Bakody's test, is a medical maneuver used to evaluate for

cervical radiculopathy Radiculopathy (; ), also commonly referred to as pinched nerve, refers to a set of conditions in which one or more nerves are affected and do not work properly (a neuropathy). Radiculopathy can result in pain (radicular pain), weakness, altered se ...

. Specifically, this test is used to evaluate for nerve root compression at C5-C7. It is often used when a patient presents with

neck pain The neck is the part of the body in many vertebrates that connects the head to the torso. It supports the weight of the head and protects the nerves that transmit sensory and motor information between the brain and the rest of the body. Addition ...

that radiates down the

ipsilateral Standard anatomical terms of location are used to describe unambiguously the anatomy of humans and other animals. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position prov ...

upper extremity. The patient's shoulder is abducted by lifting the affected arm above their head either actively or passively. A decrease in radicular symptoms upon shoulder abduction would be considered a positive Bakody's sign and is indicative of

nerve root A nerve root () is the initial segment of a nerve leaving the central nervous system. Nerve roots can be classified as: * Cranial nerve roots: the initial or proximal segment of one of the twelve pairs of cranial nerves leaving the central nervous s ...

compression. __TOC__

Mechanism

Reduced tension at the nerve root upon shoulder abduction has been identified as the probable mechanism that leads to relief of the pain. Studies on the effect of shoulder abduction on neuroforaminal pressures have provided some support for this claim.

Accuracy

A 2007 meta-analysis described the shoulder abduction relief test as having low to moderate sensitivity and moderate to high specificity. Another study in 1981 found that 15 of 22 patients with unremitting radicular pain reported relief with shoulder abduction.

References

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