The genetics of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and the case of Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad are discussed at length in one chapter of a recent book, Human Genome Epidemiology (HuGE). This chapter is freely available on the CDC's website. The chapter addresses the issues: "...are genetic risks likely to be important in these cases of CTS; and is there a scientific rationale for testing these workers?"
The authors of the article conclude that...
"There is no information indicating that equally exposed workers, with and without various genotypes, are at different risks of CTS. What data are available suggest that genetic factors play a very minor role, if any in male railroad track workers. Ultimately, some genetic factors may be found that contribute along with occupational factors to CTS but such information is not available at this time."
More literature for the ambitious at PubMed.
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The genetics of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and the case of Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad are discussed at length in one chapter of a recent book, Human Genome Epidemiology (HuGE). This chapter is freely available on the CDC's website. The chapter addresses the issues: "...are genetic risks likely to be important in these cases of CTS; and is there a scientific rationale for testing these workers?" The authors of the article conclude that... "There is no information indicating that equally exposed workers, with and without various genotypes, are at different risks of CTS. What data are available suggest that genetic factors play a very minor role, if any in male railroad track workers. Ultimately, some genetic factors may be found that contribute along with occupational factors to CTS but such information is not available at this time." More literature for the ambitious at PubMed.