Carpal tunnel syndrome in hemodialyzed patients.

A total of 18 hemodialyzed patients submitted to surgery for the treatment of carpal tunnel syndrome are examined. In all of the cases pre- and postoperative EMG and biopsy were performed. Six months after surgery all of the patients showed improved pain symptoms, in 66% there was good recovery of sensitivity and of the function of the hand: these results were confirmed by EMG monitoring. In all of the biopsies amyloid deposits, particularly diffused in the tendinous and nervous sheaths, were observed. At 2-year follow-up 75% of the patients showed recurrence of pain symptoms. Thus, surgery does not seem to definitively resolve symptoms.