The Mayo Clinic and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

A review of the medical records at the Mayo Clinic revealed the evolution of a common clinical condition—carpal tunnel syndrome. Initially, treatment was limited to those patients with the most severe neuropathies and derangements of wrist anatomy. As confidence with the diagnosis and therapy increased, progressively less severe anatomic deformities and then progressively less severe neurologic impairments were considered for surgical management. Documentation shows that the first surgical division of the flexor retinaculum for treatment of distal median neuropathy was performed in 1924, almost a decade earlier than previously thought.