Maudsley’s test of the elbow joint:

• This Maudsley’s test is also known as the Lateral epicondylitis test.
• This Maudsley’s test is passively performed by the examiner.
• This Maudsley’s test orthopaedic & clinical test is applied by to doctor/therapist when the patient is doing complaint of the pain of the lateral side of the elbow joint.

• Epicondylitis is represented by the degenerative process which is involving the origin of the extensor tendons at the lateral side of the elbow & the group of flexor-pronator muscles at the medial side of the elbow joint.
• This Epicondylitis is occurs thought that repetitive stress & overuse of the elbow which is lead to tendinitis with microtrauma & tearing of tearing which is progress to the full-thickness of tendon tear.
• Lateral & medial epicondylitis are common in disorders are affecting the upper limb extremity.
• Epicondylitis is produce pain & functional impairment & typically results from specific occupational & sports-related activities.
• Lateral epicondylitis of the elbow which is described by the Morris as the lawn of tennis elbow in 1882 but now the most commonly termed the tennis elbow, occurs in patients who have performed any activity which involves the repeated supination & pronation movement of the forearm when the elbow in the extension position.

What is the Purpose of Maudsley’s test?

• This Maudsley’s test is used to check the tennis elbow or lateral epicondylitis of the elbow joint.
• Lateral epicondylitis means tennis elbow is most occurs is in the player of the tennis game.

How do you perform the Maudsley’s Test?

• The starting position of the patient for the test is the sitting position.
• The examiner [ therapist ] resists extension movement of the third digit of the hand distal to the proximal interphalangeal joint, stressing the extensor digitorum muscle & tendon.

What is the result of Maudsley’s Test?

A positive test is indicated by pain over the lateral epicondyle of the humerus bone.

What is Evidence of Maudsley’s Test?

• A study which is investigated for the Maudsley’s Test & give to the result :
• Diagnostic accuracy of this Maudsley’s test = 88%
• Sensitivity of this Maudsley’s test =85%
• This positive predictive value is in correlation with Ultrasonography.
• But this test is failed to produce negative clinical results into 4 subjects so it is indicating to 0% poor probability of detecting disease in free individuals.

• Another study for the Maudsley’s Test showed :
• In common finding in tennis elbow means is a pain in Lateral epicondylitis when the region of the lateral epicondyle of the elbow during the resisted extension movement of the middle finger.
• This test is hypothesized for the pain is due to the disease in the extensor digitorum communis muscle, rather than the compression of the nerve of radial nerve/disease within the extensor carpi radialis brevis muscle.