Heel Tap Test |
Examination type |
Bony Integrity |
Patient & Body Segment Positioning |
Patient should be lying on their back on a table
with their feet and legs relaxed |
Examiner Position |
At the end of the table holding the patients toes
with one hand and the other ready to strike the heel of the foot
in hand |
Tissues
Being Tested |
Integrity
of the tibia and the fibula. |
Positive Test |
If pain occurs in the lower leg, it is a positive
test |
Interpretation |
This could mean that there is a fracture of the
either the fibula or the tibia. |
Common errors in
performing exam |
The
examiner needs to make sure that the patient is in the correct
position to be relaxed. This means the patient can not be
sitting up or have their head bent up, this could give the
examiner a false positive test. Examiner needs to tell the
patient to be specific in telling where the pain is. |
Factors possibly
resulting in misinterpretation |
Some very
sensitive people might feel pain with only an ankle sprain.
They might feel pain if a ligament is torn or a contusion to the
fat pad on the heel exists. They might also feel pain with
the test if the interosseous membrane between the tibia and
fibula is torn or stretched. |
Related tests |
Compression test, Hoffa’s test & Squeeze test |
References |
Booher, James M., & Thibodeau Gary
A. (2000). Athletic Injury Assessment Fourth Edition.
U.S.A.: McGraw-Hill Companies, INC.
Magee, David J.
(2002). Orthopedic Physical Assessment. Philadelphia, PA:
Elsevier. |
Links: |
http://www.kaganorthopedic.com/safety8.htm
http://distanceeducation.ua.edu/hat257/Chapter6Final.htm
How the Test is Performed
DESCRIPTION OF
TEST BEING PERFORMED
The patient should be completely
relaxed with their head back and their hands on their chest.
The examiner should grab the toe of the foot of the injured leg with
one hand. The examiner should then use the heel of the other
hand to hit the heel of the foot being held and the examiner should
strike with varying degrees of firmness. |
MOUSE OVER PICTURE
TO VIEW MOVIE |
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