A Review Study: Clinical Assessment of Patients With Thoracic Outlet Syndrome

Thoracic outlet syndrome is one of the most controversial topics in clinical medicine due to its difficult assessment and management. The appropriate treatment depends on accurate and comprehensive assessment. This study aimed to review the current assessments of these patients.
This study was conducted by review of the articles published between 1990 and 2014. Search was conducted by keywords such as assessment, evaluation, outcome measure, tool, thoracic outlet syndrome, non-surgical treatments, conservative, and rehabilitation. In this regard, internal and external databases, including PubMed, OVID, ProQuest, Web of science, Elsevier, OT seeker, SID, Magiran, Iran Medex, Medlib, and Google scholar were used.
The results showed that the most common assessments for these patients in a clinical and research setting included a thorough review of history and subjective evaluation. No specific tools were found for patients with thoracic outlet syndrome but 5 generic outcome measures were suggested to measure the outcome of interventions in these patients.
At present, comprehensive evaluation of patients with thoracic outlet syndrome needs different assessments and using the generic questionnaire that is designed for people with orthopedic conditions. Therefore, a comprehensive assessment tool with a holistic view and specific for patients with thoracic outlet syndrome is necessary.