Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and Gout

THE CARPAL tunnel syndrome is a pathological entity manifested by motor and sensory abnormalities distal to the wrist because of compression of the MEDian nerve within the carpal tunnel. This syndrome was probably first described by Paget1in the midnineteenth century. Slowly over the years isolated reports of this syndrome, particularly by Marie and Foix,2in 1913, and Moersch3in 1938, were published in the literature. However, the entity was firmly established and commonly recognized only within the last two decades, due to the contributions of Brain et al,4Phalen et al,5Love,6and Kendall.7 Among the causes of carpal tunnel syndrome are included major trauma, postimmobilization neuropathy, osteoarthritis, occupational microtrauma, nonspecific thickening of the anterior carpal ligament, rheumatoid arthritis, amyloid, multiple myeloma,8Leri's pleonosteosis,9acromegaly,10myxedema, pregnancy, congestive heart failure, carpal ganglion,11shoulder-hand syndrome, and nonspecific tenosynovitis.12