Medical Dictionary

Chvostek's sign

noun Chvos·tek's sign \ (ḵə-)ˌvȯs-ˌtek(s)- \

variants: or Chvostek sign play \(ḵə-)ˌvȯs-ˌtek-\

medical Definition of Chvostek's sign

: a twitch of the facial muscles following gentle tapping over the facial nerve in front of the ear that indicates hyperirritability of the facial nerve

Biographical Note for chvostek's sign

Chvostek \ˈḵvȯs-ˌtek\, Franz (1835–1884), Austrian surgeon. Chvostek was a military doctor and professor at a military medical school in Vienna. In 1876 he published an article in which he announced his discovery that in a patient with tetany, tapping the facial nerve in front of the ear produces a spasm of the cheek muscles. This sign of tetany now bears his name.