High-resolution computed tomography of the wrist in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome.

High resolution computed tomography (CT) was used to scan the wrists of 19 patients with idiopathic carpal tunnel syndrome. Thirteen normal volunteers were used as controls. Measurements obtained from the CT images included the cross-sectional area of the carpal tunnel, the relative amount of synovium within the carpal tunnel, the attenuation coefficient of the carpal tunnel, and the thickness of the transverse carpal ligament. No significant difference in any of these measurements was found when comparing the wrists of symptomatic patients with controls. High resolution CT of the wrist does not appear to be of value in the preoperative evaluation of patients with idiopathic carpal tunnel syndrome.