Slipping rib syndrome.

Slipping rib syndrome is a rare and underdiagnosed condition. Since approximately one third of the cases reported to date have involved patients considered to be psychoneurotic and/or who have undergone psychiatric evaluation, a conservative treatment approach is recommended. Many patients respond to simple reassurance, and in others, a single intercostal nerve block provides lasting relief. In the case reported here, radicular pain, a history of injury to the affected side, noncontributory findings on ancillary investigations, a positive response to the hooking maneuver, and relief of pain after intercostal nerve block led to the diagnosis.