Diagnosis of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: The Role of RANTES

Abstract

Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is regarded as most frequent entrapment neuropathy in upper extremities with high prevalence in females. It is a multi-factorial disease that had signs and symptoms due to compression of median nerve at the carpal tunnel in wrist, although may be asymptomatic. Immune system has been recognized as the main factor of neuropathic pain. Regulated on Activation, Normal T cell Expressed and Secreted (RANTES) is among the cytokines that revealed a dysregulated pattern of neuropathy specific cytokine profile in CTS and, in human, it is encoded by CCL5 gene. Sixty-four patients suffering from CTS were enrolled in this controlled cross sectional study. For all, nerve conduction study was performed to prove the diagnosis of CTS and to classify its severity. The mean age of all patients was 44.9±7.8 years, 89.1 % were female, 40.7% had mild type CTS and 40.7 % had right side CTS. 5 ml blood was obtained from each participant to measure the level of serum RANTES using specific ELISA kit. There was significant high RANTES levels in CTS patients when compared with its reference value. We conclude that RANTES level increases in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome and can be used as a predictor for its diagnosis despite its proposed neuroprotective role.