Lumbar Segmental Mobility (rotation)
Posted on 24. Apr, 2010 by Don in Orthopedics
Loading ...Purpose
Used to determine the amount of segmental rotation in the lumbar spine. Can also be used as a treatment if hypomobility found.
Technique
Patient positioned sidelying.
Clinician makes sure the patient is close to the edge of the table and in a neutral spine position.
With female patients, a towel roll is needed for proper neutral spine alignment. Clinician places towel roll under the iliac crest to achieve neutral spine.Clinician stands facing the patient.
Clinician palpates end of ribcage to help find T12-L1 spinous process.
Clinician places his caudal hand on the inferior side of the spinous process.
Clinician uses cranial hand to grab patient’s arm and roll patient’s spine down to L1. Clinician knows he is at the correct starting point when he feels the spinous process from above rotate into the fingers of his caudal hand.
Clinician’s cranial hand then loops through patient’s top arm and palpates upper side of the L1 spinous process.
Clinician’s caudal hand is on the spinous process below.
Clinician’s cranial hand rotates the patient until the Clinician feels the approximation of the segment.
Clinician then moves his cranial hand down to the upper side of the L2 spinous process and his caudal hand down to the spinous process below.
Clinician repeats the technique as he moves caudally down the lumbar spine to L5.
Patient is asked to sidelye on the other side to test rotation in the other direction.
Clinician follows the same technique to test segmental rotation in the other direction.
References
- Dutton, M. (2008). Orthopaedic: Examination, evaluation, and intervention (2nd ed.). New York, NY: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
- Kaltenborn, F.M. (2009). Manual mobilization of the joints: The spine volume I I (5th ed.). Minneapolis, MN: OPTP.
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