Barlow maneuver

The Barlow maneuver is a physical examination performed on infants to screen for developmental dysplasia of the hip. It is named for T. G. Barlow, an English pediatrician, who devised this test; it was clinically tested during 1957–1962 at Hope Hospital, Salford, Lancashire.[1]

The maneuver is easily performed by adducting the hip (bringing the thigh towards the midline) while applying light pressure on the knee, directing the force posteriorly.[2] If the hip is dislocatable - that is, if the hip can be popped out of socket with this maneuver - the test is considered positive. The Ortolani maneuver is then used, to confirm the positive finding (i.e., that the hip actually dislocated).

References

  1. ↑ Barlow TG (1962). "Early diagnosis and treatment of congenital dislocation of the hip". The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery 44–B (2): 92–301.
  2. ↑ French LM, Dietz FR (July 1999). "Screening for developmental dysplasia of the hip". American Family Physician 60 (1): 177–84, 187–8. PMID 10414637.

See also