| Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is the most common entrapment neuropathy in humans. The gold standard for diagnosing CTS is considered to be nerve conduction studies (NCS). However, there are patients who complain of a lot of symptoms with minimal findings in NCS. One of the reasons for this discrepancy is that the NCS just assess the large myelinated fibers. The objective of the present study is to evaluate the small sensory fibers in different stages of CTS. 58 CTS subjects and 44 healthy control subjects were recruited. The thermal and heat pain thresholds were assessed in the CTS and control groups, by the quantitative sensory testing (QST) using the CASE IV machine. Cold and warm threshold was increased in all three stages of CTS. Heat pain threshold was increase in severe CTS patients. We concluded that small sensory fibers are affected in early stages of CTS. |
