Some attitudes and beliefs to look out for are. Psychosocial factors may be contributing to a patient’s persistent pain and disability, or that may contribute to the transition of an acute condition to a chronic, disabling condition. Yellow flags are factors that increase a patient’s risk for developing long-term disability. If there has been trauma, follow the Canadian C-Spine Rule. Severe limitation during neck active range of motion (AROM) in all directions.Constant pain, not relieved with best rest.The chart below highlights some of the most common red flag conditions for patients with neck pain. A thorough medical history and possibly the use of a medical screening form is the initial step in the screening process. Patients with neck pain should be questioned for the presence of red flags. Outcome measures such as the Neck Disability Index or Patient-Specific Functional Scale can also be used at this stage (See outcome measures section) When taking the patients history it is also important to ask if they have pain or symptoms in other regions such as their thoracic spine or shoulder. The narrative given by the patient contains much of the information needed to rule out red flags and guide the cervical examination. Listen carefully to the patient’s past medical history (PMH) and history of present illness (HPI). Taking a detailed patient history is important. Identify other contributing factors that might affect deviations form expected clinical course of neck pain.Identify movement dysfunction, impaired motor control, sensorimotor impairment, and related connective and nerve tissue dysfunction and if possible rule in or out particular conditions.Rule out any serious pathological condition that may require referral to a medical practitioner for further investigation or surgical intervention.To do this there are three essential elements of the examination: A component of this decision is determining whether the patient is, in fact, appropriate for physical therapy management.

A primary goal of diagnosis is to match the patient’s clinical presentation with the most efficacious treatment approach.

Cervical nerve testing