Fact · Accessibility and health
Scottish NHS guidance says that in a nerve root problem in the neck the numbness is dermatomal, following a band of skin, and the weakness is myotomal, following a group of muscles.
Checked against its source on October 16, 2026
In the source's own words
“The numbness is dermatomal in distribution and the weakness is myotomal.”
Nerve root/radicular pain +/- radiculopathy, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, Right Decisions (MSK Index), n.d., Definition and presentation.
Open the original- What it measures
- The guidance covers radicular pain, which is pain from a nerve root in the neck or back. It describes the pattern a clinician looks for when examining the arm.
- What it does not show
- The guidance describes the pattern in general terms. Individual cases vary, and a clinician checks the pattern against the examination rather than the description alone.