Symptomatic carpal tunnel syndrome after orthotopic liver transplantation: a retrospective analysis.
BACKGROUND
Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is an entrapment neuropathy of the median nerve and has been reported after renal transplantation; there are no reports of CTS after liver transplantation.


METHODS
The incidence of and the risk factors for CTS were assessed in 1350 liver allograft recipients.


RESULTS
Seventeen women and two men with CTS were identified. Women developed symptoms at a median time of 6.8 months, and all but one received transplants because of primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC). All 17 patients were taking cyclosporine. The only risk factor for CTS was the pretransplant diagnosis of PBC (6.7% of 240 PBC patients surviving 6 months or more compared with 0.4% of 717 patients who received grafts for other indications).


CONCLUSIONS
CTS may occur in patients early after liver transplantation; because in many cases the symptoms were attributed to cyclosporine neurotoxicity, the diagnosis should be considered, especially in patients who received grafts because of PBC.
Grant
A J
AJ
Liver Transplant Unit, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham, England.
Buckels
J A
JA
Neuberger
J
J
D000368:Aged; D002349:Carpal Tunnel Syndrome / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D016031:Liver Transplantation; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous