PRESSURE DYNAMICS OF THE CARNAL TUNNEL AND FLEXOR COMPARTMENT OF THE FOREARM

Although carpal tunnel pressures have been observed to increase as a r esult of repetitive flexion and extension of the wrist, and forearm co mpartment pressures have been shown to rise during and after muscle ac tivity, the relationship between those two observations has not been s tudied. The flexor compartments of five cadavers were perfused with sa line to determine whether elevated pressure in the flexor compartment of the forearm is transmitted to the carpal tunnel. The pressure in th e carpal tunnel after the infusion was significantly different from th e pressure in the flexor compartment of the forearm. Furthermore, pres sures recorded in the carpal tunnel at the conclusion of the study wer e not statistically different from the preinfusion pressures. While th e carpal tunnel may appear to be an open compartment anatomically, it functions as a relatively closed compartment with respect to transfer of pressure from the flexor compartment of the forearm under condition s that mimic elevated tissue pressure.