[The so-called turnip-harvester palsy--a rare differential diagnosis today]

This is a report on a student of biology of 25 years of age who presented with left-sided pareses in the innervated area of the n. peronaeus communis after having remained in a squatting position for several hours for withdrawing and processing water samples. Aspects of differential diagnosis are discussed with particular reference to the so-called turnip-harvester's pressure palsy syndrome, a neuropathy triggered by occupational stress caused by out-dated plucking or digup methods for beets and potatoes. This syndrome is now rare, and the authors deliberate on its etiology.