Foundational Testing
The type of motion that is produced externally, such as by the healthcare provider or medical device (Short, 2022).
What is Passive Range of Motion (PROM)?
This gentle tapping motion is conducted at the carpal tunnel of the patient; If positive, the patient will experience tingling, numbness, and/or pain in various fingers such as the thumb, index, middle, and radial aspect of the ring (Pendleton & Schultz-Krohn, 2025).
What is the Tinel's Sign (for Carpal Tunnel)?
This test challenges the patient, with their vision occluded, to identify where they felt sensation by pointing to it's location with their non-testing hand (OTGreddie, 2017).
What is the Localization of Touch Test?
This test focuses on manual and finger dexterity by challenging the patient to place and remove 9 pegs from the holes on the board a quickly as possible (Mobilis Rolyan, n.d.).
What is the 9-Hole Peg Test?
With their arm abducted to 90 degrees, the patient is instructed to actively lower their arm down to their side; If positive, the patient will experience pain and/or "drop" their arm in an uncontrolled manner (Pendleton & Schultz-Krohn, 2025).
What is the Drop Arm Test?
The type of motion that is produced by the patient, without assistance (Short, 2022).
What is Active Range of Motion (AROM)?
This test has the patient positioned in a "prayer" position, pushing the hands together into wrist extension with the elbows out and shoulders relaxed; If positive, the patient will experience tingling, numbness, and/or pain in various fingers such as the thumb, index, middle, and radial aspect of the ring (Pendleton & Schultz-Krohn, 2025).
What is the Phalen's Test?
This test challenges the patient, with vision occluded, to verbally identify whether the sensation they felt was "dull" or "sharp" (Kaye, 2023).
What is the Sharp/Dull Test?
This test combines fine motor manipulation with stereognosis by challenging the patient, both with and without vision occluded, to move small objects from the table to the container a quickly as possible (Pendleton & Schultz-Krohn, 2025).
What is the Modified Moberg Pickup Test?
Also known as the Elbow Flexion Test, the patient will hold their elbows full flexion and wrists in full extension; If positive, the patient will be unable to hold this position, and/or experience tingling, numbness, and/or pain in various fingers such as the ulnar aspect of the ring and the pinkie (Pendleton & Schultz-Krohn, 2025).
What is the Emoji Test?
An assessment to determine the strength of specific motions produced by specific muscles at different joints of the body (Short, 2022).
What is Manual Muscle Testing (MMT)?
Also known as the Carpal Compression Test, the combination of wrist flexion and compression of the median nerve make this test more sensitive than other provocative tests for carpal tunnel; If positive, the patient will experience tingling, numbness, and/or pain in various fingers including the thumb, index, middle, and radial aspect of the ring (Pendleton & Schultz-Krohn, 2025).
What is the Reverse Phalen's Test?
This stationary test targets the slow-adapting nerve fibers by challenging the patient, with their vision occluded, to identify whether the sensation they felt originated from 1 or 2 points (Pendleton & Schultz-Krohn, 2025).
What is the 2-Point Discrimination Test (Static)?
This test focuses on rapid fine motor manipulation of small pins, challenging the patient to transfer 3 pins into each of the holes in the board as quickly as possible (Lafayette Instruments, n.d.-a).
What is the O'Connor Finger Dexterity Test?
This gentle tapping motion is conducted at the cubital tunnel of the patient; If positive, the patient will experience tingling, numbness, and/or pain in various fingers such as the ulnar aspect of ring and pinkie (Pendleton & Schultz-Krohn, 2025).
What is the Tinel's Sign (for Cubital Tunnel)?
This device is used to measure pinch strength by evaluating 3 different pinching techniques: Pincer, Lateral, and Tripod (Pendleton & Schultz-Krohn, 2025).
What is a Pinch Meter/Gauge?
With their arm lifted to 90 degrees in a modified scapular plane, the patient will "empty-the-can" by internally rotating their arm with gentle resistance on the distal forearm; If positive, the patient will experience shoulder weakness and/or pain (Wietlisbach, 2020).
What is the Empty-Can Test?
This moving test targets the quick-adapting nerve fibers by challenging the patient, with their vision occluded, to identify whether the sensation they felt originated from 1 or 2 points (Pendleton & Schultz-Krohn, 2025).
What is the 2-Point Discrimination Test (Dynamic)?
This test focuses on gross UE movements as well as finger dexterity through numerous tasks involving pins, washers, and collars (Lafayette Instruments, n.d.-b).
What is the Purdue Pegboard Test?
The patient is instructed to bend their elbow to 35 degrees and hold the arm out in from of them with gentle resistance at the distal forearm; If positive, the patient will experience pain within the anterior portion of their shoulder (Wietlisbach, 2020).
What is the Speeds Test?
This device is used to measure grip strength by taking the mean of 3 trials; The patient must be positioned with their elbow bent to 90 degrees and tucked into their trunk to reflect an accurate reading from this device (Pendleton & Schultz-Krohn, 2025).
What is a Dynamometer?
What is the Gerber's Test?
These five probes vary in the force they provide during this test, to which they are administered perpendicular to the patient's skin until the filament is bent; The patient is then challenged, with their vision occluded, to identify if they felt the sensation of this tool (Pendleton & Schultz-Krohn, 2025).
What are the Semmes Weinstein Monofilaments?
This test focuses on rapid hand-eye coordination in combination with arm-hand dexterity through numerous tasks involving the manipulation of small plastic disks (Lafayette Instruments, 1998).
What is the Minnesota Manual Dexterity Test?
This modified "empty-the-can" motion is translated across the midline by having the patient horizontally adduct across the chest, with gentle resistance on at the distal forearm; If positive, the patient will experience pain (Cleveland Clinic, 2023).
What is the O'Brien's Test?