Median nerve decompression after Colles's fracture.

Compression of the median nerve after Colles’s fracture has been well documented. The causes of compression that have been identified include haematoma within the carpal tunnel (Seddon 1975; Watson-Jones 1 976), hyperextension at the time of the injUry with direct nerve damage (Kirchman 1910; Sterling and Habermann 1973), and healing with excessive callus formation and malunion (Zachary 1945). The purpose of this paper is to draw attention to a previously unreported cause of compression: namely, haematoma and subsequent fibrosis beneath the deep fascia at the level of the fracture site, well away from the carpal tunnel. The investigation began when a patient presented with the condition and this led to the clinical review of three other patients who had undergone carpal tunnel decompression for this complication during 1976; nerve conduction studies were undertaken by an independent neurologist. A second exploration was necessary in one case.