Repeated electrophysiologic studies in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome following local corticosteroid injection using a novel approach.

Background: Local corticosteroid injection (LCI) for the treatment of carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), using the classic method, is usually associated with improvement in different electrophysiologic parameters of the median nerve. However, there is no correlation between the clinical response and these electrophysiologic parameters.

Objectives: To evaluate the effect of our novel approach of LCI for the treatment of CTS on repeated electrophysiologic studies of the median nerve.

Methods: Patients with symptomatic CTS with duration of symptoms of less than 1 year were offered an LCI of 12 mg methylprednisolone acetate using a novel approach and asked to repeat the electrophysiologic study one month later. Pearson correlation test was used to correlate between the difference of similar electrophysiologic parameters and duration of favorable clinical response and also between the differences among themselves.

Results: Thirteen patients completed the study and 25 hands were injected. Improvement in median distal sensory and motor latency was noted in 61% and 75% of the hands respectively. There was no correlation between duration of clinical response and the differences of either the distal latency (sensory or motor) or the amplitude. There was also no correlation between the differences of motor median distal latency and sensory median distal latency.

Conclusions: LCI at the carpal tunnel using our approach is also associated with favorable electrophysiologic results similar to what has been reported using the classic approach.