THE SENSITIVITY AND SPECIFICITY OF ULTRASOUND FOR THE DIAGNOSIS OF CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME: A META-ANALYSIS
Filed under Diagnoses
Fowler, J. R., Gaughan J. P., & Ilyas, A.M. (2011). The sensitivity and specificity of ultrasound for the diagnosis of carpal tunnel syndrome: A meta-analysis. Clinical Orthopedics and Related Research, 469(4), 1089-1094.
The Skinny –The authors sought out to determine the sensitivity and specificity of ultrasound therapy for the diagnosis of carpal tunnel syndrome using three scenarios. 1.) using all studies regardless of reference standard 2.) using all studies with electrodiagnostic as the reference standards and 3.) using all studies with clinical diagnosis as the gold standard.
In the Weeds – The authors found a total of 19 articles that were included in the review. Remember, sensitivity indicates a true positive rate and specificity indicates a true-negative rate.
They found the sensitivity and specificity of ultrasound was 77.6% (71.6%-83.6%) and 86.8% (78.9%-94.8%), respectively.
They found the sensitivity and specificity of electrodiagnostic testing to be 80.2% (71.3-89.0) and 78.7% (66.4-91.1, respectively).
Bringing it Home– Ultrasound showed a higher specificity but electrodiagnostic had a slightly higher sensitivity. Although ultrasound may not replace electrodiagnostic testing as the most sensitive tool for diagnosing carpal tunnel, it may be a feasible alternative to electrodiagnostic testing as a first line confirmatory test.
Overall a very nicely done study however it was not without its limitation. There was a lack of heterogeneity among the studies reviewed. Both, ultrasound and electrodiagnostic testing it very operator dependent. The upside of ultrasound is it can be performed very quickly, it is often less expensive, and off course it is essentially pain-free.
–
More To Read
Hand Pain in Pregnancy and the New Parent
By: Rachel Reed The transition to parenting can be difficult on a mother or parent’s body, especially when considering the increase in repetitive hand use required to care for a baby. The most common upper extremity conditions that develop during pregnancy and postpartum are carpal tunnel syndrome and de Quervain’s tenosynovitis (Wagner, 2019). Frequently, new…
Prevention and Management of Upper Extremity injuries in Modern Mass Production
Injuries and Upper Extremty Pitts, G., Custer, M., Foister, R. D., & Uhl, T. (2021). The hand therapist’s role in the preventionand management of upper extremity injuries in the modern mass production industrial setting.Journal of Hand Therapy, 34(2), 237–249. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jht.2021.04.019 By: Kaylen Kallander The Skinny: This study included four case studies to determine the impact…
The Importance of Purposeful Activities Following Surgical Repair of a Distal RadiusFracture
By: Kelsey Melton Collis, J. M., Mayland, E. C., Wright-St Clair, V., Rashid, U., Kayes, N., & Signal, N.(2022). An evaluation of wrist and forearm movement during purposeful activities andrange of movement exercises after surgical repair of a distal radius fracture: A randomizedcrossover study. Journal of Hand Therapy. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jht.2022.07.009 The Skinny: This randomized crossover study…
An evaluation of wrist and forearm range of motion during purposeful activities and exercises for distal radius fracture
An evaluation of wrist and forearm movement during purposeful activities and range of movement exercises after surgical repair of a distal radius fracture: A randomized crossover study Collis, J., Mayland, E., Wright-St Clair, V., Rashid, U., Kayes, N., & Signal, N. 2022. An evaluation of wrist and forearm movement during purposeful activities and range of…
Sign-up to Get Updates Straight to Your Inbox!
Sign up with us and we will send you regular blog posts on everything hand therapy, notices every time we upload new videos and tutorials, along with handout, protocols, and other useful information.