ABSTRACT
Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), or median nerve compression at
the wrist, is the most common peripheral compressive neuro-
pathy of the upper extremity with an overall prevalence of
1% to 5% in the United States (1-3). Prevalence estimates for the
industrial population range as high as 15% (4-6), whereas the
annual incidence of CTS is 1.0 to 3.46 per 1000 person years in
the general population (6-9). CTS is most common in middle-
age, occurring more often in women thanmen (10,11). Increased
body mass index has also shown to be correlated with CTS
risk (12).
