Anterior cutaneous nerve entrapment syndrome : epidemiology and surgical management

Chronic abdominal pain is sometimes caused by entrapment of a small cutaneous nerve at the ventral portion of the abdomen (anterior cutaneous nerve entrapment syndrome = ACNES). There is hardly any information available about this unknown syndrome. The incidence of ACNES and the effectiveness of treatment options have never been examined, for instance. This dissertation shows that 1 out of 50 patients presenting with acute abdominal pain to the emergency department suffers from ACNES. In the Netherlands, approximately 10,000 new cases of ACNES are diagnosed each year. Nine out of 10 patients experience considerable pain relief or become pain free following injections or minor surgery. Early diagnosis will lead to a massive reduction in health care costs.