Ankles jerk — yes, but how?

Williams, David B

doi:10.5694/mja16.00355

Topics

Eliciting an ankle jerk is not a trivial task. It requires the skills of an experienced bell-ringer, an expert golfer and a mechanical engineer. The experience of the examiner and the positioning of the patient are two factors contributing to the accuracy of reported findings.1,2 Accurate findings can provide invaluable clinical information.

1 Department of Neurology, John Hunter Hospital, Newcastle, NSW
2 Faculty of Health, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW

Correspondence: dvdbwilliams@gmail.com

Acknowledgements:

I thank future colleague Joshua Diamoy for his assistance in creating the photographs and video.

Competing interests:

No relevant disclosures.

Series editors
Balakrishnan (Kichu) R Nair
Simon O’Connor

1. O’Keeffe ST, Smith T, Valacio R, et al. A comparison of two techniques for ankle jerk assessment in elderly subjects. Lancet 1994; 344: 319-320.
2. Oluwole OSA, Odebode TO, Komolafe MO. Effect of lower limb position on ankle jerk assessment. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2001; 70: 266-267.
3. Burke D, Gandevia SC, McKeon B. The afferent volleys responsible for spinal proprioceptive reflexes in man. J Physiol 1983; 339: 535-552.
4. O’Brien MD. Ankle jerk assessment. Lancet 1995; 345: 331.

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