Sensory level finding
This patient has a sensory level to pinprick below the umbilicus, at about the T9 dermatome.
[Doctor] Can you tell me if this is sharp or dull?
[Patient] Sharp.
[Doctor] Is this is sharp or dull?
[Patient] Sharp.
[Doctor] Is this is sharp or dull?
[Patient] Dull.
[Doctor] Is this is sharp or dull?
[Patient] Sharp.
[Doctor] Is this is sharp or dull?
[Patient] Sharp.
[Doctor] Is this is sharp or dull?
[Patient] Dull.
[Doctor] Is this is sharp?
[Patient] No.
[Doctor] Okay, you let me know when you start feeling it sharp.
[Patient] Okay.
[Patient] Sharp.
[Doctor] Okay. "Is this sharp?
[Patient] No.
[Doctor] Okay, let me know when you start feeling it sharp.
[Patient] Okay... Sharp.
About sensory loss
Sensory level refers to decreased sensation below a dermatome, usually cervical or thoracic. One tests for a sensory level by marching the stimulus, such as pinprick or vibration, up or down the trunk. The location where the patient perceives a change in the quality of the sensation is called the patient’s dermatomal “sensory level.” Sensory levels are usually bilateral.
Localization
Sensory levels occur due to lesions involving the spinal cord. Interruption of sensory pathways of the spinal cord produce sensory loss below the dermatomal level of the lesion. A sensory level is often associated with other signs of spinal cord dysfunction or myelopathy, such as paraparesis or quadriparesis and autonomic dysfunctions, such as bowel, bladder and sexual dysfunction.