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The Diagnostic Value of Carnett’s Test with Chronic Abdominal Pain: A Narrative Review

  • Chronic Pain Medicine (O Viswanath, Section Editor)
  • Published:
Current Pain and Headache Reports Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose of Review

Chronic abdominal wall pain is a poorly recognized cause of chronic abdominal pain, and patients frequently go misdiagnosed despite a battery of medical tests. The Carnett’s test is a diagnostic tool used to distinguish between abdominal wall pain and visceral pain. This review synthesizes the current literature on the Carnett’s test, merges the viewpoints of diverse writers, and evaluates and reports on the Carnett’s test’s applicability.

Recent Findings

Several clinical investigations have established the usefulness of the Carnett’s test in the diagnosis of chronic abdominal wall pain. Furthermore, the Carnett’s test is quite useful in determining the depth of the mass and detecting psychogenic abdominal pain. However, its diagnostic use for acute abdominal pain is limited.

Summary

The Carnett’s test is a simple and safe point-of-care diagnostic technique, with several studies supporting its usefulness. Early detection of abdominal wall pain is critical for chronic abdominal wall pain therapy. Carnett’s test is very useful in patients with chronic, unexplained local abdominal discomfort who are compliant and do not have a clear rationale for surgery.

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Data Availability

No datasets were generated or analysed during the current study.

References

Papers of particular interest, published recently, have been highlighted as: • Of importance

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Funding

This work was supported by grants from Jilin Province Science and Technology Department project (20200201557JC), Jilin Province Science and Technology Department project (YDZJ202201ZYTS208), and Jilin Provincial Health Department project (2022LC073).

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Author notes

  1. Xiao-Xiao Sun and Heng Liu contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pain, Yanbian University Hospital, Yanji, Jilin Province, China

    Xiao-Xiao Sun, Mei-Rui Li, Qing-hua Yan & Guang-Jian Zhang

  2. School of Nursing, Qingdao University, Qingdao, Shandong Province, China

    Heng Liu

  3. Department of Anatomy, Basic Medical Sciences of Yanbian University, Yanji, Jilin Province, China

    Xiang-Zheng Qin

Authors
  1. Xiao-Xiao Sun
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  2. Heng Liu
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  4. Mei-Rui Li
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  5. Qing-hua Yan
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  6. Guang-Jian Zhang
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Contributions

Xiao-Xiao Sun and Heng Liu were responsible for the study conception, design, and drafting of the manuscript. Xiao-Xiao Sun, Mei-Rui Li, and Qing-hua Yan collated data. Guang-Jian Zhang and Heng Liu conducted data analyses. Xiang-Zheng Qin and Guang-Jian Zhang were responsible for supervision. All authors made critical revisions to the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Guang-Jian Zhang.

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Sun, XX., Liu, H., Qin, XZ. et al. The Diagnostic Value of Carnett’s Test with Chronic Abdominal Pain: A Narrative Review. Curr Pain Headache Rep 28, 251–257 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11916-024-01223-9

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