Queckenstedt's maneuver is a clinical test, formerly used for diagnosing

spinal stenosis Spinal stenosis is an abnormal narrowing of the spinal canal or neural foramen that results in pressure on the spinal cord or nerve roots. Symptoms may include pain, numbness, or weakness in the arms or legs. Symptoms are typically gradual in on ...

. The test is performed by placing the patient in the lateral decubitus position, thereafter the clinician performs a

lumbar puncture Lumbar puncture (LP), also known as a spinal tap, is a medical procedure in which a needle is inserted into the spinal canal, most commonly to collect cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) for diagnostic testing. The main reason for a lumbar puncture is to ...

. The opening pressure is measured. Then, the clinician's assistant compresses both

jugular veins The jugular veins are veins that take deoxygenated blood from the head back to the heart via the superior vena cava. The internal jugular vein descends next to the internal carotid artery and continues posteriorly to the sternocleidomastoid mus ...

(if increased

intracranial pressure Intracranial pressure (ICP) is the pressure exerted by fluids such as cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) inside the skull and on the brain tissue. ICP is measured in millimeters of mercury (mmHg) and at rest, is normally 7–15 Millimeter of mercury, mmHg ...

is not suspected then one may exert pressure on both external jugular veins but usually pressure is first exerted on the abdomen, this pressure causes an engorgement of spinal veins and in turn rapidly increases

cerebrospinal fluid Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is a clear, colorless body fluid found within the tissue that surrounds the brain and spinal cord of all vertebrates. CSF is produced by specialised ependymal cells in the choroid plexus of the ventricles of the bra ...

pressure), which leads to a rise in the intracranial pressure. Given normal anatomy, the intracranial pressure will be reflected as a rapidly rising pressure measured from the lumbar needle, within 10–12 seconds. If there is a

stenosis A stenosis (from Ancient Greek στενός, "narrow") is an abnormal narrowing in a blood vessel or other tubular organ or structure such as foramina and canals. It is also sometimes called a stricture (as in urethral stricture). ''Stricture'' ...

in the spine, there will be a damped, delayed response in the lumbar pressure, thus a positive Queckenstedt's maneuver. Nowadays this test has been made mostly superfluous by superior imaging modalities like

MRI Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to form pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes of the body. MRI scanners use strong magnetic fields, magnetic field gradients, and radio waves ...

and

CAT The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members of ...

. The test is named after

Hans Heinrich Georg Queckenstedt Hans Heinrich Georg Queckenstedt (1876 in Leipzig-Reudnitz – 8 November 1918 in Bertrix) was a German neurologist remembered for describing Queckenstedt's phenomenon. He graduated from the University of Leipzig in 1900, having studied und ...

who described it in 1916.Queckenstedt HHG. Zur Diagnose der Rückenmarkskompression. Deutsche Zeitschrift für Nervenheilkunde, 1916;55: 325–333.

References

Physical examination {{med-sign-stub

See also

References