No abstract

Ultrasound assists in the diagnosis of CTS using the median nerve diameter cut-off point of 10 mm(2) (DT) and 9 mm(2) (IT) and several additional findings.

BackgroundThe aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of two diagnostic tests routinely used for diagnosing carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS)—ultrasonography (US) and nerve conduction studies (NCS)—by comparing their accuracy based on surgical results, with the remission of paresthesia as the reference standard.MethodsWe enrolled 115 patients, all of the female gender with a high probability of a clinical diagnosis of CTS. All patients underwent US and NCS for a diagnosis and subsequent surgical treatment. As a primary outcome, the accuracy of the US and NCS diagnoses was measured by comparing their diagnoses compared with those determined by the surgical outcomes. Their accuracy was secondarily evaluated based on before and after scores of the Boston Carpal Tunnel Questionnaire (BCTQ).ResultsOverall, 104 patients (90.4%) were diagnosed with CTS by the surgical reference standard, 97 (84.3%) by NCS, and 90 (78.3%) by US. The concordance of NCS and surgical treatment (p < 0.001; kappa = 0.648) was superior to that of US and surgical treatment (p < 0.001; kappa = 0.423). The sensitivity and specificity of US and NCS were similar (p = 1.000 and p = 0.152, respectively: McNemar’s test). The BCTQ scores were lower after surgery in patients diagnosed by both US and NCS (p < 0.001and p < 0.001, respectively: analysis of variance).ConclusionsUS and NCS effectively diagnosed CTS with good sensitivity but were not effective enough to rule out a suspicion of CTS.Trial registrationThis study was registered at September, 10 th, 2015, and the registration number was NCT02553811.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12891-018-2036-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Resumo Objetivo Avaliar a prevalência de variações anatômicas encontradas em pacientes com síndrome do túnel do carpo submetidos a liberação cirúrgica por via aberta clássica. Métodos Foram incluídos um total de 115 pacientes com alta probabilidade de diagnóstico clínico de síndrome do túnel do carpo, com indicação para o tratamento cirúrgico. Estes pacientes realizaram eletroneuromiografia e ultrassonografia para confirmação diagnóstica. Foram submetidos ao tratamento cirúrgico por via aberta clássica, no qual foi realizado um inventário completo da ferida operatória na busca e visualização de variações anatômicas intra e extra túnel do carpo. Resultados A prevalência total das variações anatômicas intra e extra túnel do carpo encontradas neste estudo foi de 63,5% (intervalo de confiança [IC]95%: 54,5–72,4%). A prevalência do músculo transverso do carpo foi de 57,4% (IC95%: 47,8–66,6%), do nervo mediano bífido associado à artéria mediana persistente foi de 1,7% (IC95%: 0,0–4,2%) e do nervo mediano bífido associado à artéria mediana persistente e ao músculo transverso do carpo foi de 1,7% (IC95%: 0,0–4,2%). Conclusão A variação anatômica extra túnel do carpo mais prevalente foi o músculo transverso do carpo e a variação anatômica intra túnel do carpo mais prevalente foi o nervo mediano bífido associado à artéria mediana persistente. O achado cirúrgico de uma variação anatômica extra túnel do carpo, como o músculo transverso do carpo, pode nos indicar a presença de outras variações anatômicas intra túnel do carpo associadas, como nervo mediano bífido, artéria mediana persistente e variações anatômicas do ramo recorrente do nervo mediano.