Which signs are produced by tests designed to stress neural structures?

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Neurodynamic signs come from tests that purposely lengthen or glide neural tissues. When a neural structure is stressed, the nerves can irritate or signal along their path, producing symptoms that travel in the same distribution as the nerve. These signs are typically tingling, numbness, electric shocks, or burning sensations that reproduce or intensify with specific limb or neck positions that tension the nerve. This pattern—symptoms that track along a nerve’s route and change with neural tension—is what distinguishes neurodynamic signs from signs caused by local muscle or joint tissue.

Muscle palpation signs reflect tenderness in muscle tissue, not neural involvement. Pain provocation signs can occur with many structures, not specifically nerves. Vertebral signs relate to the spine itself rather than the neural pathways. The hallmark of neurodynamic signs is their alignment with nerve pathways and their sensitivity to neural tension.