Compression and entrapment syndromes

Family physicians are often confronted by patients who present with pain, numbness and weakness. Such complaints, when confined to a single extremity, most particularly to a restricted portion of the extremity, may indicate focal dysfunction of peripheral nerve structures arising from compression and/or entrapment, to which such nerves are selectively vulnerable. The authors of this article consider the paramount clinical features that allow the clinician to arrive at a correct diagnosis, reviews major points in differential diagnosis, and suggest appropriate management strategies.