A rare case of Glomus Tumor of the Thenar Eminence of the Hand Misdiagnosed as Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

INTRODUCTION: Glomus body is an apparatus present in the skin at the arterio-venous junction whose main function is to control the body temperature. Hyperplasia of the glomus body results in an entity called glomus tumor. Masson described this entity first in 1924, as a tumor of the neuromyoarterial body. Due to its symptoms, it is of ten misdiagnosed and wrongly treated which adds burden to the patient. CASE REPORT: We report a rare case of glomus tumor presenting at an unusal site that is the thenar eminence of the palm. He had been misdiagnosed and wrongly treated for carpal tunnel syndrome. The tumor was surgically excised and diagnosis was confirmed by histopathological studies. We present this case for its rarity, unusual presentation and it being a cause for misdiagnosis. CONCLUSION: The common sites of glomus tumors are the finger tips or under the nail. Many such cases have been reported in the literature. We present this case because of its unusual site of presentation and a cause of misdiagnosis. The authors feel that this report could offer a learning experience to orthopaedic surgeons when similar patients present to them to avoid adding burden to the already anxious patient.