ABDOMINAL-WALL PAIN IN PREGNANT-WOMEN CAUSED BY THORACIC LATERAL CUTANEOUS NERVE ENTRAPMENT

Three pregnant women presented with disabling lower abdominal wall pai n unresponsive to conventional therapies. The striking similarities am ong the clinical signs and symptoms prompted a review of the literatur e and led to the suspicion of thoracic lateral cutaneous nerve entrapm ent, a syndrome reported in other conditions, including after surgery, but not during pregnancy. Treatment by nerve block with local anesthe tics was rapidly and completely successful in relieving the symptoms. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd.