Musculoskeletal · UKMLA & AKT
Cervical radiculopathy
A free high-yield preview for the UKMLA Applied Knowledge Test, covering how to recognise this condition. The full SA Note notes add investigations, management and complications, with practice questions on this topic.
Key high-yield points
- Unilateral arm pain - dermatomal, radiating from neck to shoulder and arm
- Paraesthesia/numbness - in the relevant dermatome
- Muscle weakness - in the relevant myotome
- Diminished reflexes - biceps C5/C6, brachioradialis C5/C6, triceps C7
- Worsening with extension and ipsilateral rotation - narrows the foramen and reproduces symptoms
Key differentiator from shoulder pathology: cervical radiculopathy has a dermatomal distribution, neck movement reproduces symptoms, and the arm squeeze test (squeezing the mid-upper arm) elicits pain - unlike rotator cuff or subacromial pathology where pain is localised to the shoulder with a painful arc on abduction and intact neurology.
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