Clinical profile of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome in Oman

OBJECTIVE: Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is the most common entrapment neuropathy with a reported incidence of 7 to 16% of the general population in Western studies. Since this has not been well studied in the Arabian peninsula, we studied 100 patients with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

METHODS: We studied 100 Omani patients with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome in our clinic. After clinical evaluation the diagnosis was confirmed by motor and sensory nerve conduction studies of the median and ulnar nerves.

RESULTS: There were 15 males and 85 females. No systemic cause was identified in the majority of thepatients. Involvement was unilateral in 23 patients and bilateral in 77 patients.

CONCLUSION: Carpel Tunnel Syndrome is common in Oman and can be easily diagnosed by clinical examination and nerve conduction studies. We found that the sensory symptoms often transgressed the median nerve distribution and tended to be bilateral for both sexes, with predominance for females.