Many times a day, in our clinical practice we go through the process of 'screening the spine' for an isolated extremity problem. We may ask about spinal pain/history and look at spinal range of motion or maybe palpate the spine. Often, after a quick check we move onto the extremity: we’ve ‘cleared the spine’. But how sure are we that this is the case? On what are we basing this daily decision? If the spine is implicated, will there always be spinal pain? loss of range? production of extemity pain on palpation? On what are we basing these decisions? Research, clinical experience or assumptions?