Risk Assessment Model for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Abstract

Because of the high prevalence of carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) in the work place, there is a need for a risk assessment model for CTS that considers more than work-related risk factors. A total of 74 subjects (39 CTS patients and 35 healthy workers without any symptoms of CTS) participated in a cross-sectional study to develop a risk assessment model for CTS based on the hypothesis that a combination of personal and work-related factors contribute to the development of CTS. Personal, psychosocial and physical risk exposure information was collected and analyzed on two groups. A pseudo-univariate analysis was used to select the competitive factors from 84 candidate variables. The final multiple logistic regression model included seven factors: age, gender, right hand wrist ratio, body mass index, previous musculoskeletal disorders at hand/wrist, skill utilization, and unbalanced hand use (high repetitiveness). The Hosmer-Lemeshow test ( H c*= 1.536, d.f. = 7, p =0.981) indicated that the derived multiple logistic regression equation adequately fit the data. The correct classification performance of the model is 91%. The logistic regression model includes more personal factors than work-related factors due to two major reasons: (1) the heavier physical workload of the healthy workers than CTS patients, or (2) a higher survival rate among healthy workers.