Skeletal Status in Women With Carpal Tunnel Syndrome—A 1-Yr Prospective Study

Abstract

Functional deterioration due to carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) may influence the bone status of the forearm and hand. The aim of this prospective study was to establish whether CTS has an impact on bone status at distal parts of the upper limb and to monitor the longitudinal changes of that status during a 1-yr follow-up after surgical treatment. Fifteen women with CTS at mean age of 55.13 ± 9.3 yr, mean weight of 79.18 ± 20.37 kg, and mean height of 157.8 ± 6.17 cm were enrolled into the study. All women had unilateral CTS that negatively affected upper limb function and were qualified to surgical treatment. Functional status was established at baseline using Levine's scale, motor latency, and nerve conduction velocity in electrophysiologic examinations. Bone status was established using densitometric measurements (Hologic Explorer, Bedford, MA) at the forearm, spine, and hip (bone mineral density [BMD], g/cm2) and with quantitative ultrasound measurements (amplitude-dependent speed of sound, m/s) at hand phalanges (DBM Sonic, IGEA, Carpi, Italy). Longitudinal changes were established for Levine's scale score and for forearm and phalanges measurements at 3, 6, and 12 mo after surgery. Levine's scale results improved significantly over a period of observation (p < 0.0001). Longitudinal BMD measurements for ultradistal forearm have shown a decrease only for measurement at 6 mo vs baseline result (0.386 ± 0.08 g/cm2 vs 0.375 ± 0.08 g/cm2, p < 0.05) with onward increase. Amplitude-dependent speed of sound did not differ over the period of observation. Correlation analysis has shown that functional status expressed by Levine's scale was most strongly related to the longitudinal BMD measurements for ultradistal forearm at 6 mo (r = −0.52, p < 0.05). Successful surgery in patients with CTS does not lead to permanent deterioration in bone status within the affected upper limb in a 1-yr longitudinal observation.