diff --git a/tests/audit-navigation-auth-regressions.test.ts b/tests/audit-navigation-auth-regressions.test.ts
index c9c79904..d6f9fe48 100644
--- a/tests/audit-navigation-auth-regressions.test.ts
+++ b/tests/audit-navigation-auth-regressions.test.ts
@@ -177,8 +177,20 @@ describe("audit navigation and auth regressions", () => {
     // The viewport-driven region/tabpanel role is wired through the extracted hook, whose
     // media-query subscription carries the guard with it.
     expect(clinicalDashboardSource).toContain("useUploadDesktopLayout()");
-    expect(source("src/components/clinical-dashboard/use-upload-desktop-layout.ts")).toContain(
-      "subscribeToUploadDesktopLayout",
+    // Assert the EXPORTED hook's return wires the media-query subscription through
+    // useSyncExternalStore with the () => false server snapshot, and that the call closes
+    // right after that snapshot. Scoping to the exported function body (not the whole file)
+    // plus the `return` anchor and trailing `)` means a stale/disconnected call elsewhere, a
+    // comment or string, a present-but-unused helper, a dropped SSR fallback, or a mutated
+    // snapshot such as `() => false || getUploadDesktopLayoutSnapshot()` all fail the guard.
+    const uploadDesktopHookSource = source("src/components/clinical-dashboard/use-upload-desktop-layout.ts");
+    const useUploadDesktopLayoutBody = sourceSegment(
+      uploadDesktopHookSource,
+      "export function useUploadDesktopLayout(",
+      "}",
+    );
+    expect(useUploadDesktopLayoutBody).toMatch(
+      /return\s+useSyncExternalStore\(\s*subscribeToUploadDesktopLayout,\s*getUploadDesktopLayoutSnapshot,\s*\(\)\s*=>\s*false\s*\)/,
     );
     expect(clinicalDashboardSource).toContain('event.key === "ArrowRight"');
     expect(clinicalDashboardSource).toContain('event.key === "ArrowLeft"');