Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2020 Apr 6;54(Suppl 1):193-198.
doi: 10.1007/s43465-020-00099-2. eCollection 2020 Sep.

Anterior Interosseous Nerve Syndrome: Is it a Compressive Neuropathy?

Ki-Tae Na  1 , Dae-Hyun Jang  2 , Yoon-Min Lee  3 , Il-Jung Park  4 , Hyun-Woo Lee  1 , Sang-Uk Lee  1
Affiliations

Anterior Interosseous Nerve Syndrome: Is it a Compressive Neuropathy?

Ki-Tae Na et al. Indian J Orthop. .

Abstract

Background: Anterior interosseous nerve (AIN) syndrome is a rare disease whose pathophysiology is controversial. Despite efforts to elucidate the pathophysiology of AIN syndrome, it has not yet been resolved. We reinterpret electrodiagnostic studies, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and surgical findings to clarify the pathophysiology of AIN syndrome.

Materials and methods: In this retrospective case series, we included surgically treated 20 cases of nontraumatic AIN syndrome. Surgery was performed after a minimum of 12 weeks of conservative treatment. The clinical data and operation records were extracted from the medical records for analysis. All electrodiagnostic tests were reinterpreted by physicians with an American Board Certification in electrodiagnostic medicine. Moreover, every contrast-enhanced MRI performed during the assessment was reviewed by a musculoskeletal radiologist.

Results: Of the twenty re-analyzed cases, nine AIN syndromes (45%) showed abnormal electromyography in non-AIN innervated muscles. Sensory nerve conduction studies were normal in all cases. Five magnetic resonance images (46%) showed signal changes in non-AIN-innervated muscles. Only four cases (20%) revealed definitive compression of the AIN during surgery.

Conclusions: Electrodiagnostic study and MRI indicated that many patients with AIN syndrome exhibited a diffuse pathologic involvement of the motor component of the median nerve. We conclude that the main pathophysiology of AIN syndrome would be diffuse motor fascicle neuritis of the median nerve in the upper arm.

Keywords: Anterior interosseous nerve syndrome; Peripheral nerve; Reinterpretation.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interestThere are no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
T2-weighted magnetic resonance images showed high signal intensity within the pronator teres and flexor carpi radialis muscles
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
a Finding of operation, image shows that anterior interosseous nerve was entrapped by fibrous bands of flexor digitorum superficialis (asterisk). b Surgical release of fibrous band of flexor digitorum superficialis to decompress the anterior interosseous nerve. A anterior interosseous nerve, M median nerve
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Park IJ, Roh YT, Jeong C, Kim HM. Spontaneous anterior interosseous nerve syndrome: Clinical analysis of eleven surgical cases. Journal of Plastic Surgery and Hand Surgery. 2013;47:519–523. - PubMed
    1. Fearn CB, Goodfellow JW. Anterior interosseous nerve palsy. Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery. British Volume. 1965;47:91–93. doi: 10.1302/0301-620X.47B1.91. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Spinner M. The anterior interosseous-nerve syndrome, with special attention to its variations. Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery. American Volume. 1970;52:84–94. doi: 10.2106/00004623-197052010-00007. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Collins DN, Weber ER. Anterior interosseous nerve syndrome. Southern Medical Journal. 1983;76:1533–1537. doi: 10.1097/00007611-198312000-00019. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Hill NA, Howard FM, Huffer BR. The incomplete anterior interosseous nerve syndrome. The Journal of Hand Surgery. 1985;10:4–16. doi: 10.1016/S0363-5023(85)80240-9. - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources