heel to shin (heel to knee) test

Introduction

A test for dysmetria.

Clinical significance

• cerebellar disease:
  • jerky, inaccurate movement with an action tremor during the slide down the shin
• posterior column disease:
  • difficulty finding the contralateral knee with the shin, accompanied by a weaving motion down the skin or falling off the shin

Procedure

• with the patient supine & the legs extended, ask the patient to touch the left heel to the right knee, then slide the heel down the shin along the anterior surface of the tibia to the ankle
• repeat the test using the contralateral heel/knee.

More general terms

• physical examination technique