Which diagnosis is associated with compression of a nerve at the wrist?

Which diagnosis is associated with compression of a nerve at the wrist?

• A. Ganglion
• B. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
• C. De Quervain's Tenosynovitis
• D. Tennis Elbow

Answer: (B)

Compression of a nerve at the wrist most classically refers to the median nerve being pinched as it travels through the carpal tunnel. The carpal tunnel is a narrow passage in the wrist formed by the carpal bones on the back and the transverse carpal ligament on the front, and the median nerve plus several flexor tendons pass through it. When swelling or overuse narrows this space, the median nerve’s function is disrupted, leading to numbness, tingling, or pain in the thumb, index finger, middle finger, and the radial half of the ring finger. Night symptoms and weakness of the thenar muscles can also occur. This pattern is what defines carpal tunnel syndrome. The other wrist conditions aren’t primarily about nerve compression at the wrist: a ganglion is a fluid-filled cyst that can irritate nearby structures but is not defined by nerve compression itself; De Quervain’s tenosynovitis is inflammation of the tendons at the base of the thumb causing radial-wrist pain with thumb movement; tennis elbow is tendinopathy at the elbow causing pain there, not due to compression of a nerve at the wrist.

Compression of a nerve at the wrist most classically refers to the median nerve being pinched as it travels through the carpal tunnel. The carpal tunnel is a narrow passage in the wrist formed by the carpal bones on the back and the transverse carpal ligament on the front, and the median nerve plus several flexor tendons pass through it. When swelling or overuse narrows this space, the median nerve’s function is disrupted, leading to numbness, tingling, or pain in the thumb, index finger, middle finger, and the radial half of the ring finger. Night symptoms and weakness of the thenar muscles can also occur. This pattern is what defines carpal tunnel syndrome.

The other wrist conditions aren’t primarily about nerve compression at the wrist: a ganglion is a fluid-filled cyst that can irritate nearby structures but is not defined by nerve compression itself; De Quervain’s tenosynovitis is inflammation of the tendons at the base of the thumb causing radial-wrist pain with thumb movement; tennis elbow is tendinopathy at the elbow causing pain there, not due to compression of a nerve at the wrist.