Question

a 45-year-old construction worker describes aching neck pain radiating to the right arm, with numbness in the little finger. the symptoms are aggravated by neck extension. which of the following is the most likely diagnosis?

carpal tunnel syndrome
peripheral neuropathy
thoracic outlet syndrome
cervical radiculopathy

Explanation:

• Carpal tunnel syndrome affects the median nerve, causing symptoms in the thumb, index, middle, and ring fingers, not the little finger.
• Peripheral neuropathy typically causes symmetric symptoms in multiple limbs, not focal radiating pain from the neck.
• Thoracic outlet syndrome causes symptoms in the arm related to compression of structures at the thoracic outlet, not neck movement-aggravated pain radiating from the neck.
• Cervical radiculopathy involves nerve root compression in the cervical spine, causing neck pain that radiates along the affected nerve distribution (here, the C8 nerve root which innervates the little finger), and symptoms worsen with neck extension which increases spinal nerve root compression.

Answer:

Cervical radiculopathy