MERALGIA PARESTHETICA SYNDROME AS A COMPLICATION OF TRANSFEMORAL CORONARY ANGIOGRAPHY

Meralgia paresthetica syndrome is a rare neuropathic disease that usually occurs spontaneously and is occasionally caused by compression of the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve. The most important clinical features include sensory loss, numbness and dysesthesia in the area of innervation of the anterolateral femoral cutaneous nerve, as well as pain sensation during walking. These signs and symptoms disappear within 6 months and seldom require surgery. During the past 2 years, 1,550 patients undergoing transfemoral coronary angiography in affiliated cardiology centers of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences were prospectively identified and examined for meralgia paresthetica following the procedure. Of 26 suspected cases, five cases of unilateral meralgia paresthetica were confirmed using electromyography and nerve conduction velocity study. Transfemoral coronary angiography is an increasingly used modality that may cause meralgia paresthetica syndrome. Keywords • lateral femoral cutaneous nerve • meralgia paresthetica • transfemora