Which examination is used to assess nerve tension in the upper limb for radiculopathy?

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Upper limb neurodynamic (nerve tension) testing is what clinicians use to evaluate how the nerves in the arm respond to controlled tension, helping to identify radiculopathy. Upper limb neural tension tests (ULTT/ULNT) bias specific nerves—the median, radial, and ulnar nerves—by moving the neck and limbs to place the neural tissue under stretch. A reproduction of symptoms or increased sensitivity with these tensions suggests neural involvement along the nerve pathways, supporting radiculopathy or peripheral nerve irritation rather than solely a joint or muscle issue. Other tests in this context—cervical distraction and similar maneuvers—focus more on relieving or ruling out compression, while Spurling primarily provokes symptoms through foraminal compression. So, the ULTT/ULNT is the examination that directly assesses nerve tension in the upper limb.