Trousseau Sign

Excerpt

Trousseau’s sign for latent tetany is most commonly positive in the setting of hypocalcemia. The sign is observable as a carpopedal spasm induced by ischemia secondary to the inflation of a sphygmomanometer cuff, commonly on an individual’s arm, to 20 mmHg over their systolic blood pressure for 3 minutes. The carpopedal spasm is visualized as flexion of the wrist, thumb, and metacarpophalangeal joints with hyperextension of the fingers.