CORRELATION OF SPURLING TEST WITH MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING FINDINGS IN PATIENTS WITH CERVICAL DISK HERNIATION

Abstract

Objective: To determine the diagnostic accuracy of the Spurling test in detecting nerve root compression confirmed by magnetic resonance imaging in patients with cervical disc herniation. Study Design: Cross sectional validation study Study Setting and Duration: Department of Neurosurgery Hayatabad Medical Complex, Peshawar, from 9-11 2025—9-04-2026. Methodology: This study was conducted on eighty patients aged 18 to 65 years with cervical disc herniation confirmed on MRI and symptoms lasting at least four weeks were selected. Patients with previous cervical spine surgery, infection, tumour, paralysis/numbness, pregnancy and contraindications to MRI were excluded. The Spurling test was performed for all patients. All patients underwent cervical spine MRI. Diagnostic accuracy was calculated for Spurling test for the detection of nerve root compression. SPSS 25 was used for data analysis. A 2x2 contingency table was used for diagnostic accuracy. Results: The study included 80 patients, 49 (61.2%) were male and 31 (38.8%) were female. The median age of the cohort was 50.5 years. Nerve root compression on MRI was present in 60 patients (75.0%). The Spurling test was positive in 41 patients (51.2%). The sensitivity of the Spurling test was 66.67%, specificity was 95.0%. The diagnostic accuracy of the Spurling test was 73.75%. Conclusion: The Spurling test in the current study exhibited high specificity and excellent positive predictive value for detecting nerve root compression in patients with cervical disc herniation.