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How to elicit Pemberton's sign:an OSCE guide

Pempertons sign is seen in retrosternal goitre
  • The  patient raises both his/her arms until they touch the ears. 
  • Hold up for sometime. 
  • Look for congestion of the face, cyanosis and distress in a retrosternal goitre.

This sign demonstrate the presence of latent pressure in the thoracic inlet
Pemberton's sign was named after Dr. Hugh Pemberton
A positive Pemberton's sign is seen in  superior vena cava syndrome (SVC), as  a result of a mass in the mediastinum. the sign is most commonly described in patients with substernal goiters where the goiter “corks off” the thoracic inlet.this maneuver is very  useful in any patient with adenopathy, tumor, or fibrosis involving the mediastinum