Facet impingement restricts motion in all of the following directions EXCEPT

Facet impingement restricts motion in all of the following directions EXCEPT

• A. Flexion, extension, rotation, or side bending
• B. Abduction
• C. Dorsiflexion
• D. Inversion

Answer: (B)

Facet joints in the spine guide and limit movement, and they become impinged when those joints are loaded together, which most notably occurs with extension, rotation, and side bending. These motions push the facet surfaces against one another, restricting how far you can move in those directions. Flexion, by contrast, tends to open the facet joints rather than compress them, so it’s not typically restricted by facet impingement. Abduction is not a spinal motion governed by the facet joints (it’s a limb movement outside the spine’s facet mechanics), and dorsiflexion/inversion are ankle/foot motions, not spinal motions. So the movement that isn’t limited by facet impingement among the options is abduction.

Facet joints in the spine guide and limit movement, and they become impinged when those joints are loaded together, which most notably occurs with extension, rotation, and side bending. These motions push the facet surfaces against one another, restricting how far you can move in those directions. Flexion, by contrast, tends to open the facet joints rather than compress them, so it’s not typically restricted by facet impingement. Abduction is not a spinal motion governed by the facet joints (it’s a limb movement outside the spine’s facet mechanics), and dorsiflexion/inversion are ankle/foot motions, not spinal motions. So the movement that isn’t limited by facet impingement among the options is abduction.