Patient Position
- Seated or standing
- Elbow flexed to 90° and the forearm in the neutral position
Procedure Steps
- Instruct the patient to make a fist with their thumb covered-up inside.
- Examiner gently moves the hand/wrist into ulnar deviation.
Positive Sign / Significance
- Sharp pain at the distal radial wrist = De Quervain’s tenosynovitis
- Note: May be uncomfortable/painful on the asymptomatic side too. Compare the pain on the suspected side to the asymptomatic side. If equally painful, Finkelstein’s test is NOT considered positive.
Comments
- De Quervain’s tenosynovitis is an inflammation of the tendon sheath around the abductor pollicis longus (APL) and extensor pollicis brevis (EPB) tendons.
- For excellent information on the injection technique for De Quervain’s tenosynovitis, go HERE.
- De Quervain syndrome is also called, gamer’s thumb, radial styloid tenosynovitis, De Quervain’s stenosing tenosynovitis.
