Median nerve excursion during endoscopic carpal tunnel release.
OBJECTIVE
Restriction of the excursion of the nerve has been accepted as a pathogenetic element in carpal tunnel syndrome. The goal of this article was to evaluate the median nerve excursion in the carpal tunnel measured as a function of wrist position before and after endoscopic carpal tunnel release (ECTR) on 28 hands of 22 patients.


METHODS
The position of cylindrical stainless steel markers embedded within the median nerve was measured by a direct radiographic technique. Each upper extremity was examined in three wrist positions. Then, endoscopic release with Menon's technique was performed, and the measurements were repeated.


RESULTS
In this prospective clinical study, most (93%) of the patients experienced resolution of their symptoms. Before and after ECTR, median nerve excursion was linear and was affected by wrist position. Before ECTR, when the wrist was moved from the end of dorsiflexion to the end of palmar flexion, the median nerve underwent a mean total excursion of 28.8 mm at the wrist. A comparison of the before and after ECTR excursion showed no statistical differences in the amount of motion.


CONCLUSIONS
The single-portal ECTR does not seem to influence the median nerve excursion for the wrist positions studied in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome. The results from this in vivo study showed longitudinal gliding of the median nerve twice as great as in in vitro studies.
Tuzuner
Serdar
S
Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology, Akdeniz University School of Medicine, Antalya, Turkey. tuzuner@akdeniz.edu.tr
Ozkaynak
Sibel
S
Acikbas
Cem
C
Yildirim
Aydin
A
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002349:Carpal Tunnel Syndrome / Q000601:surgery*; D019299:Decompression, Surgical / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008475:Median Nerve / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000601:surgery*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology*; D044583:Neuroendoscopy; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011859:Radiography; D014953:Wrist / Q000503:physiopathology