Pediatric peripheral neuropathy in proteus syndrome

Proteus syndrome is a rare congenital disorder comprised of subcutaneous and internal hamartomas, pigmented skin nevi, skull exostoses, hemihypertrophy, and macrodactyly of the hands and feet. A 5-year-old girl diagnosed with Proteus syndrome presented with distal median compression neuropathy with the primary complaint of severe pain involving the left hand. Surgical exploration of the hand revealed a lipofibromatous hamartoma of the median nerve. The transverse carpal ligament was released and epineurectomy of the median nerve was performed. The patient remains symptom free at the 9-month follow-up. This report is the first description of a hamartoma directly involving a peripheral nerve in Proteus syndrome. Decompression of the nerve with the removal of the fibrofatty neural sheath resulted in the resolution of the symptoms in this patient. The surgeon should consider this approach as a potential first line of treatment before a more radical resection of the nerve is contemplated.