Home Self-Assessment Guide: Simple Tests for Common Injuries

Before seeing a healthcare provider, you might want to understand what's happening in your body. While self-assessment can't replace professional diagnosis, these simple tests can help you describe your symptoms better and understand your condition.

Important: These tests provide information, not diagnosis. Positive tests suggest potential issues but require professional confirmation. Negative tests don't rule out problems. When in doubt, seek professional evaluation.

Understanding Self-Assessment

What Self-Tests Can Do

• Help you describe symptoms more precisely
• Guide you toward appropriate care
• Track changes over time
• Identify obvious limitations
• Give you vocabulary for provider conversations

What Self-Tests Cannot Do

• Provide definitive diagnosis
• Rule out serious conditions
• Replace professional examination
• Detect all problems
• Tell you exactly what's wrong

When to Skip Self-Testing and Seek Care

• Severe pain
• Obvious deformity
• Inability to bear weight
• Significant swelling
• Numbness or weakness
• Symptoms after trauma
• Fever with joint pain
• Symptoms that are worsening rapidly

Shoulder Self-Assessment

Range of Motion Check

Forward flexion:

1. Stand facing a mirror
2. Raise both arms forward and overhead
3. Compare sides—should reach similar height
4. Note any pain or limitation

Abduction:

1. Stand with arms at sides
2. Raise arms out to sides and overhead
3. Compare sides for symmetry
4. Note where limitation or pain occurs

Hand behind back:

1. Reach hand behind back, up toward shoulder blades
2. Compare how high each hand reaches
3. Significant difference suggests limitation

What it tells you:

• Limitation suggests possible rotator cuff, frozen shoulder, or impingement
• Pain at specific angles helps identify structures involved
• Asymmetry between sides indicates a problem

Painful Arc Test

How to do it:

1. Stand with arms at sides
2. Slowly raise affected arm out to side
3. Note if pain occurs between 60-120 degrees (mid-range)
4. Pain may decrease as you go higher

What it suggests:

• Pain in the "arc" suggests subacromial impingement or rotator cuff involvement

Empty Can Test (Supraspinatus)

How to do it:

1. Raise arms to 90 degrees, slightly forward
2. Turn thumbs down (like emptying a can)
3. Have someone push down gently on your wrists, or resist against a wall
4. Note pain or weakness compared to other side

What it suggests:

• Pain or weakness suggests supraspinatus (rotator cuff) involvement

Cross-Body Adduction

How to do it:

1. Raise arm to 90 degrees in front
2. Bring arm across body toward opposite shoulder
3. Note pain location

What it suggests:

• Pain at top of shoulder suggests AC joint problem
• Pain in front of shoulder suggests other issues

Knee Self-Assessment

Swelling Check

How to do it:

1. Sit with legs extended
2. Compare both knees visually
3. Feel around kneecap for fluid
4. Look for loss of normal contours

What it suggests:

• Swelling indicates inflammation, injury, or effusion
• Requires evaluation if significant

Range of Motion

Flexion:

1. Sit on edge of chair
2. Bend knee as far as possible
3. Measure using hand spans from heel to buttock
4. Compare to other side

Extension:

1. Sit with leg extended on chair
2. Try to straighten knee completely
3. Look for gap under knee
4. Compare sides

What it suggests:

• Limitation after injury needs evaluation
• Inability to fully extend is concerning

Patellar Grind Test

How to do it:

1. Sit with leg extended
2. Press down gently on kneecap
3. Slide kneecap up and down
4. Note if painful or grinding

What it suggests:

• Pain and grinding suggests patellofemoral issues
• Very common finding, not always significant

Single Leg Balance

How to do it:

1. Stand on affected leg
2. Hold for 30 seconds
3. Compare stability to other side
4. Note knee position (does it bow in?)

What it suggests:

• Instability or poor control suggests muscle weakness or balance issues
• Knee caving in suggests quad/hip weakness

Stairs Test

How to do it:

1. Walk up and down several stairs
2. Note pain with ascending vs. descending
3. Pay attention to where pain occurs

What it suggests:

• Pain going UP often suggests muscle weakness
• Pain going DOWN often suggests patellofemoral or quad tendon issues

Back Self-Assessment

Forward Bending

How to do it:

1. Stand with feet together
2. Slowly bend forward reaching toward toes
3. Note pain location (back vs. leg)
4. Note where limitation occurs

What it suggests:

• Back pain that stays in back suggests mechanical back pain
• Pain shooting down leg suggests nerve involvement
• Inability to bend suggests significant limitation

Extension (Backward Bending)

How to do it:

1. Stand with hands on lower back
2. Gently lean backward
3. Note if pain increases or decreases

What it suggests:

• Pain with extension may suggest stenosis or facet involvement
• Relief with extension may suggest disc problem
• Neither is diagnostic alone

Slump Test (Modified)

How to do it:

1. Sit on edge of chair, slouch forward
2. Tuck chin to chest
3. Straighten one leg while staying slumped
4. Point toes toward ceiling
5. Note if this reproduces leg symptoms

What it suggests:

• Leg pain/symptoms reproduced suggests nerve tension
• Common in sciatica/radiculopathy

Straight Leg Raise

How to do it:

1. Lie on back with legs straight
2. Keep knee straight, raise one leg
3. Note angle when pain occurs
4. Note where pain goes (back vs. leg)

What it suggests:

• Leg pain before 60 degrees suggests nerve root irritation
• Back pain only is less specific
• Compare to other side

Standing on One Leg (Back)

How to do it:

1. Stand on one leg for 30 seconds each side
2. Note if this causes back pain
3. Note if pain is worse on one side

What it suggests:

• Pain with single leg stance may suggest SI joint or facet involvement

Hip Self-Assessment

Range of Motion Check

Hip flexion:

1. Lie on back
2. Bring knee toward chest
3. Compare how far each hip flexes
4. Note if groin or hip pain occurs

Internal/external rotation:

1. Sit with knees bent 90 degrees
2. Rotate each foot inward (external hip rotation)
3. Rotate each foot outward (internal hip rotation)
4. Compare sides

What it suggests:

• Groin pain with flexion may suggest hip joint issue
• Limited rotation compared to other side suggests hip restriction

FABER/Patrick's Test

How to do it:

1. Lie on back
2. Place ankle on opposite knee (figure-4 position)
3. Let bent knee drop toward table
4. Note pain location

What it suggests:

• Groin pain suggests hip joint involvement
• SI joint/buttock pain suggests SI joint
• Compare to other side

Thomas Test (Hip Flexor)

How to do it:

1. Lie on back at edge of bed
2. Pull one knee to chest and hold
3. Let other leg hang off edge
4. Note if hanging thigh lifts off bed

What it suggests:

• Thigh rising suggests tight hip flexors
• Very common with sitting-heavy lifestyles

Single Leg Stance (Hip)

How to do it:

1. Stand on one leg
2. Look at hip on lifted side
3. Does it drop down?

What it suggests:

• Dropping hip suggests hip abductor weakness
• Common finding that responds to exercise

Ankle Self-Assessment

Swelling Check

How to do it:

1. Compare both ankles visually
2. Feel around ankle bones
3. Note any bogginess or puffiness
4. Compare shoe fit on both feet

Range of Motion

Dorsiflexion (foot up):

1. Sit with foot on floor
2. Keep heel down, bring knee forward over toes
3. Measure how far knee passes toes
4. Compare sides

Plantarflexion (foot down):

1. Point toes down
2. Compare how far you can point
3. Note any tightness or limitation

What it suggests:

• Limited dorsiflexion is very common and affects squat depth, walking
• Significant asymmetry suggests injury or restriction

Single Leg Heel Raise

How to do it:

1. Stand on one leg
2. Rise up on toes
3. Count how many you can do
4. Compare to other side

What it suggests:

• Fewer than 20 suggests calf weakness
• Significant asymmetry suggests injury (Achilles, calf)
• Pain suggests tendon or calf issue

Anterior Drawer (Ankle)

How to do it:

1. Sit with foot relaxed
2. Hold heel with one hand
3. Gently pull foot forward
4. Compare to other side

What it suggests:

• Excessive forward movement suggests ligament laxity
• Common after ankle sprains
• May indicate instability

Wrist and Hand Self-Assessment

Grip Strength

How to do it:

1. Squeeze a rolled towel tightly
2. Compare strength between hands
3. Note if pain occurs

What it suggests:

• Weakness or pain suggests injury or overuse condition

Finkelstein Test

How to do it:

1. Make a fist with thumb inside fingers
2. Bend wrist toward pinky side
3. Note if pain occurs at base of thumb

What it suggests:

• Pain suggests de Quervain's tenosynovitis
• Common in new parents, people who use phones heavily

Phalen's Test (Carpal Tunnel Screen)

How to do it:

1. Press backs of hands together, fingers pointing down
2. Hold for 60 seconds
3. Note if numbness/tingling occurs in fingers

What it suggests:

• Symptoms in thumb, index, middle finger suggest carpal tunnel

Reverse Phalen's (Prayer Position)

How to do it:

1. Press palms together in prayer position
2. Hold for 60 seconds
3. Note symptoms

What it suggests:

• Similar to above—symptoms suggest carpal tunnel

Neck Self-Assessment

Range of Motion

Check all directions:

• Turn head right and left
• Tilt ear to each shoulder
• Look up and down
• Compare sides
• Note where limitation or pain occurs

What it suggests:

• Asymmetry suggests muscle or joint restriction
• Pain with certain movements helps identify involved structures

Spurling's Test (Modified)

How to do it:

1. Sit upright
2. Turn head toward painful side
3. Gently tilt head back (look up and toward that side)
4. Note if arm symptoms occur

What it suggests:

• Arm pain/symptoms suggests nerve root irritation
• Stop immediately if severe symptoms

Caution: Be very gentle—this compresses the neck.

Tracking Your Findings

What to Record

• Date of assessment
• Which tests positive/negative
• Pain level (0-10)
• Location of symptoms
• Comparison to last assessment
• Any changes in symptoms

Communicating with Providers

When describing findings:

• "When I raise my arm to shoulder height, I get pain in the front of my shoulder"
• "Bending forward increases my leg symptoms"
• "My knee swells after activity"

Avoid:

• "I think I have a torn rotator cuff"
• Self-diagnosing
• Asking provider to confirm your self-diagnosis

Conclusion

Self-assessment provides valuable information but isn't a substitute for professional evaluation. Use these tests to:

• Understand your body better
• Track changes over time
• Prepare for healthcare visits
• Describe symptoms accurately

When in doubt, when symptoms are severe, or when symptoms aren't improving, seek professional evaluation. Your healthcare provider has training, experience, and additional tests to properly diagnose your condition.

Know your body, but know your limits in assessing it.