Guyon's canal
Citation, DOI, disclosures and article data
At the time the article was created Juliana K. Yee had no recorded disclosures.
View Juliana K. Yee's current disclosuresAt the time the article was last revised Yvette Mellam had no financial relationships to ineligible companies to disclose.
View Yvette Mellam's current disclosures- Ulnar canal
- Guyon's tunnel
- Ulnar tunnel
- Guyon canal
- Canal of Guyon
Guyon’s canal (also known as ulnar tunnel or canal) is a fibro-osseous tunnel at the anterior aspect of the wrist. It is superficial and slightly proximal to the flexor retinaculum. It is approximately 4 cm in length, spanning from the proximal aspect of the pisiform to the hook of hamate.
On this page:
Gross anatomy
Boundaries
medial (ulnar aspect): pisiform bone, flexor carpi ulnaris tendon, abductor digiti minimi muscle
lateral (radial aspect): hook of hamate
superficial (roof): palmar carpal ligament
deep (floor): flexor retinaculum, pisohamate ligament, hypothenar muscles
Contents
ulnar nerve: bifurcates within the canal into the deep (more radial) and superficial (more ulnar) branches
veins associated with the ulnar nerve
fat
At the level of the hook of hamate, the canal bifurcates into two channels: the first channel contains the superficial ulnar nerve and ulnar artery, and the second channel contains the deep ulnar nerve. These are separated by either the fibrous arch of the flexor digiti minimi brevis, or the muscle itself attaching to the hook of hamate.
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Variant anatomy
The abductor digiti minimi muscle can occasionally have an anomalous presence in Guyon’s canal. It was present in 25% of a sampled population and can cause compression leading to Guyon's canal syndrome 1.
History and etymology
Described and named by Jean Casimir Felix Guyon (1831-1920), a French anatomist and urologist in 1861 5.
Related pathology
References
- 1. Zeiss J, Jakab E, Khimji T, Imbriglia J. The ulnar tunnel at the wrist (Guyon's canal): normal MR anatomy and variants. (1992) AJR. American journal of roentgenology. 158 (5): 1081-5. doi:10.2214/ajr.158.5.1566671 - Pubmed
- 2. Pecina MM, Markiewitz AD, Krmpotic-Nemanic J. Tunnel Syndromes. CRC Press. (2001) ISBN:0849309522. Read it at Google Books - Find it at Amazon
- 3. Bachuora A, Jacoby SM. Ulnar Tunnel Syndrome. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery Faculty Papers. Paper 43. (2012) Read relevant article
- 4. www.wheelessonline.com. Tunnel of Guyon. Read relevant article. Accessed on 15/03/2016
- 5. Loukas M, Linganna S, Jordan R. Jean Casimir Félix Guyon--urologist and anatomist. (2007) Clinical anatomy (New York, N.Y.). 20 (1): 1-2. doi:10.1002/ca.20411 - Pubmed
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