Tarsal tunnel syndrome in patients with lumbar disc degeneration: a preliminary study

An idea of double-crush syndrome, introduced by Upton and McComas, is a concept considered for cervical disc disease and the carpal tunnel syndrome. The aim of this study was to examine the occurrence of the tarsal tunnel syndrome among patients surgically treated for lumbar disc disease. Electroneurographical examination was performed in 53 in-patients of the Department of Neurosurgery, Medical University of Bialystok, who were admitted for surgical treatment of lumbar disc herniation. In 9 of 53 patients, the terminal latency of the response in the tibial nerve was elongated and the amplitude was depressed to exceed the normal reference range of these parameters, thus diagnosing the tarsal tunnel syndrome. A significant sub-group of patients with lumbar disc disease subject to surgical treatment suffer also from impairment of the tibial nerve at the level of the tarsal tunnel. This is likely to affect the results of surgical treatment of disc disease: failed back surgery ought to be considered in respect of this finding.