Carpal tunnel syndrome and metabolic syndrome

Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is the most common entrapment neuropathy. Many factors such as diabetes mellitus, hypothyroidism, hormonal replacement therapy, corticosteroid use, rheumatoid arthritis and wrist fractures may cause CTS. Metabolic syndrome includes abdominal obesity, dyslipidemia, hyperglycemia, and hypertension that may cause CTS. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the relation between CTS and metabolic syndrome. We studied 107 (96 female and 11 male) right-handed patients who had a clinical and electrophysiologically confirmed diagnosis of CTS. We then divided the patients into two groups (patients with and without metabolic syndrome) according to the criteria of ATP III definition. Eighty (75%) of the patients with CTS had metabolic syndrome. Among the 80 patients with metabolic syndrome, CTS was found in 150 hands (43 mild, 58 moderate and 49 severe cases). Among the 27 patients without metabolic syndrome, CTS was found in 43 hands (27 mild, 14 moderate and 2 severe cases). The electrophysiological parameters (median nerve distal motor latency, median nerve motor amplitude, median nerve motor conduction velocity, median nerve sensory onset latency, median nerve sensory amplitude and median nerve sensory conduction velocity) were worse in patients with metabolic syndrome (P < 0.05). In conclusion, metabolic syndrome was found to be three times more common in patients with CTS and CTS was more severe in patients with metabolic syndrome when compared with those without metabolic syndrome.