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Ultrasonographic reference values for the median nerve at the level of pronator teres muscle

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to investigate the ultrasonographic reference values for diameters and cross-sectional area (CSA) of the median nerve between the two heads of the pronator teres muscle in healthy population as well as to correlate the findings with height, weight, sex and age.

Methods

Fifty-five healthy Caucasian volunteers (110 median nerves) were included in this study. The reference range (mean ± 2 standard deviations; 2.5th–97.5th quintiles) and the upper limit of side-to-side difference of the median nerve between the two heads of the pronator teres muscle were investigated using high-frequency ultrasound. The effects of age, sex, height, handedness, and body mass index (BMI) were examined.

Results

The mean age was 39.4 ± 10.6 years (range 18–75 years). The mean ± 2SD of the median CSA was 4.9–12.9 mm2. The upper limit of normal side-to-side difference was 3.0 mm2. The differences between genders and between the dominant and non-dominant hands were not significant. The mean antero-posterior and transverse diameters were 7.2 ± 1.5 and 10.7 ± 2.4 mm, respectively. Significant correlations were observed between the dominant-side CSA and BMI (r = 0.33; p = 0.01) and age (r = 0.31; p = 0.02). The correlation between the CSA and height (r = 0.19; p = 0.16) was not significant.

Conclusions

The measurements obtained in this study are of importance for examining median nerve entrapments in the forearm using high-frequency ultrasound. Age and BMI showed to be correlated with median nerve CSA; while gender and height were not.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Neuromusculoskeletal Research Center, Firozgar Hospital, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Valieasr square, Tehran, Iran

    Arash Babaei-Ghazani, Peyman Roomizadeh, Esmaeil Nouri, Golnaz Raeisi, Naseh Yousefi & Mahdieh Asilian-mahabadi

  2. Department of Emergency Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Mohammad Moeini

Authors
  1. Arash Babaei-Ghazani
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  2. Peyman Roomizadeh
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  3. Esmaeil Nouri
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  4. Golnaz Raeisi
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  5. Naseh Yousefi
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  6. Mahdieh Asilian-mahabadi
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  7. Mohammad Moeini
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Contributions

ABG: protocol/project development; PR: protocol/project development and manuscript writing/editing; EN: data collection or management and manuscript writing/editing; GR: data collection or management; NY: data collection or management and manuscript writing/editing; MA: manuscript writing/editing; MM: data analysis. All authors read and approved the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Peyman Roomizadeh.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Babaei-Ghazani, A., Roomizadeh, P., Nouri, E. et al. Ultrasonographic reference values for the median nerve at the level of pronator teres muscle. Surg Radiol Anat 40, 1019–1024 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00276-018-2016-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00276-018-2016-2

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