Outcomes of Carpal Tunnel Surgery With and Without Supervised Postoperative Therapy

Open Compared With 2-Portal Endoscopic Carpal Tunnel Release: A 5-Year Follow-Up of a Randomized Controlled Trial

“…It is not known whether routine therapy after carpal tunnel release may decrease the incidence of persistent pain, but a randomized study that compared a 2-week supervised therapy program with only instructions on exercises after short-incision carpal tunnel release showed no difference in postoperative pain (visual analog scale) 6 months after surgery. 16 As previously reported, 3 the short-term outcomes of this randomized trial showed small benefit of endoscopic release with regard to postoperative pain; the largest benefit was recorded at 3 months (mean difference of 13.3 points on a 100-point pain scale), but there was no difference in length of absence from work after surgery. Also, no difference in the complication rate was shown, although this finding should be interpreted cautiously because, considering that the complication rate for both methods is relatively low, this trial was not large enough to address complications primarily.…”

Can the outcome of open carpal tunnel release be predicted?: a review of the literature

“…Pomerance and Fine 44 found no difference in return to work times between those with or without postoperative physiotherapy. Furthermore, there was no significant difference in grip strength, pinch strength or pain postoperatively between the two groups.…”

Comparison of short wrist transverse open and limited open techniques for carpal tunnel release: a randomized controlled trial of two incisions

“…The incidence of scar discomfort was 2.5% 2 years after surgery. It is not known whether routine supervised therapy after CTR may decrease the incidence of persistent pain (Pomerance and Fine, 2007).…”