Thursday, December 21, 2006

Lower Leg - Homan Sign

Homan's sign is used to determine the presence of a deep vein thrombophlebitis. The patient lies prone on the table with the knee fully extended. The examiner passively dorsiflexes the patient's ankle while palpating the calf. Pain in the calf and/or pain with palpation is considered a positive test.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

A positive is a resistance felt by the examiner, NOT pain.

Karnatika said...

I have one article (2001)http://www.turner-white.com/pdf/hp_mar01_homan.pdf that states the unreliable nature of the Homan's sign method for determination of DVT. Are there any other articles that are more current than the aforementioned?