Pronator teres test assesses entrapment of which nerve?

• A. Ulnar nerve
• B. Radial nerve
• C. Median nerve
• D. Axillary nerve

Answer: (C)

The test is looking for entrapment of the median nerve at the elbow where it passes between the two heads of the pronator teres. When the forearm is pronated against resistance, if the nerve is compressed in this location, symptoms—typically pain or paresthesias in the median-nerve distribution of the forearm and hand—are reproduced. The median nerve runs between the two heads of pronator teres, so this site is a plausible point of compression, hence the test specifically targets median nerve entrapment. The other nerves would produce symptoms in different nerve distributions and are not localized to the pronator teres region, so they aren’t as likely to be reproduced with this maneuver.