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Study finds limited evidence for effective rehabilitation for carpal tunnel syndrome
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Australian researchers reviewed 20 clinical trials for various rehabilitation treatments after carpal tunnel syndrome surgery and found limited evidence to suggest their efficacy vs. placebo and other interventions.
“There is limited and, in general, low quality evidence for the benefit of the reviewed interventions,” Susan Peters, BOccThy (Hons), and colleagues wrote in the study abstract. “People who have had [carpal tunnel syndrome] CTS surgery should be informed about the limited evidence of the effectiveness of postoperative rehabilitation interventions.”
The rehabilitation methods studied included exercise, dressings, immobilization using a wrist orthosis, ice therapy, controlled cold therapy, laser therapy, multimodal hand rehabilitation, arnica, scar desensitization and electrical modalities, according to the abstract. The trials compared rehabilitation to standard care, another treatment, placebo or no treatment control groups.
“Until the results of more high quality trials that assess the effectiveness and safety of various rehabilitation treatments have been reported, the decision to provide rehabilitation following CTS surgery should be based on the clinician’s expertise, the patient’s preferences and the context of the rehabilitation environment,” Peters and colleagues wrote.
Disclosure: Orthopedics Today was unable to confirm relevant financial disclosures.
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