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Purpose: To assess if isolated atrophy of the pronator quadratus muscle indicates anterior interosseous neuropathy on ultrasound., Materials and Methods: IRB approval and written informed from every patient were obtained. A prospective study including 100 consecutive wrist and hand ultrasound studies in 77 patients (46 females and 31 males; 23 patients had bilateral studies) with a mean age of 45 years (range, 21-86 years) was performed between March 2010 and January 2012. The patients were chosen irrespective of age, sex, and body mass index. The studies were performed for several reasons, the most common being wrist pain (n=56), followed by ganglion cyst (n=11) and soft-tissue masses (n=10). Clinical histories, previous imaging studies and US examinations were evaluated to rule out anterior interosseous nerve neuropathy. US examinations were performed with a commercially available equipment. Pronator quadratus was checked for atrophy using flexor pollicis longus, flexor digitorum superficialis and profundus for comparison. Descriptive statistic was used., Results: US signs of pronator quadratus atrophy were present in 7/100 (7%) of patients. None of the patients had a bilateral atrophy of the pronator quadratus. In the patients with atrophy of the pronator quadratus, adjacent flexor muscles were normal. There was no significant difference between males and females (3 females vs 4 males) (p=0.506)., Conclusion: Increased reflectivity and loss in bulk of the pronator quadratus muscle does not always indicate anterior interosseous neuropathy on ultrasound., (Copyright © 2012. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.)

Imaging studies including ultrasound (US) and magnetic resonance imaging may be required to evaluate the median nerve in patients with suspected carpal tunnel syndrome. However, the radial and ulnar nerves contribute to sensory and motor innervations to the hand as well. Compressive, traumatic, and iatrogenic events may damage the small terminal branches of these nerves. In the hand, US is able to identify injuries of the median, ulnar, radial nerve, and terminal branches. This article presents the role of imaging to evaluate the nerves of the hand with an emphasis on US. Due to its high-resolution capabilities, US is useful to determine the location, extent, and type of nerve lesion. Moreover, US is useful for a postsurgical assessment. The anterior interosseous nerve, Guyon's tunnel syndrome, and Wartenberg's syndrome are also described., (Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.)

Neuropathies about the ankle and foot may be the cause of chronic pain and disability. In most cases, these conditions derive from mechanical or dynamic compression of a segment of a nerve within a narrow osteofibrous tunnel, an opening in a fibrous structure, or a passageway close to a ligament or a muscle. Although the evaluation of nerve disorders primarily relies on neurological examination and electrophysiology, diagnostic imaging is currently used as a complement to help define the site and etiology of nerve compression and exclude other disease possibly underlying the patient' symptoms. In this article, a review of the anatomical and pathological features of nerve entrapments in the distal lower extremity is presented on ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging, according to the nerve involved., (Thieme Medical Publishers.)