Quantitative measure of cutaneous sensation. Two-point discrimination values for the face and trunk

This study was performed to assess two-point discrimination ability for skin areas of the face and trunk. Using a compass-type instrument, I determined two-point discrimination values for three areas on the face and eight, nonoverlapping regions of the neck and trunk in a sample of 43 healthy young adult men and women. Mean values for the face ranged from 14.9 mm over the eyebrow to 10.4 mm along the lateral aspect of the mandible. Values for the neck and trunk ranged from 35.2 mm for skin of the lateral neck to 55.4 mm for the region immediately lateral to the C7 spinous process. I also found interindividual variation in two-point discrimination ability for a given skin area. Except for skin overlying the body of the mandible, where values for women were lower than those measured in men, no significant differences in discrimination ability were found between men and women. Although assessment of two-point discrimination is useful in the clinical evaluation of certain types of patients, the existence of intraindividual and interindividual differences suggests that therapists must interpret the results of these tests with caution.