Study Questions Site of Carpal Tunnel Surgeries

Stephen Duquette, M.D. is a hand surgeon with the Indiana University Department of Surgery, Division of Plastic Surgery. He practices at the R.L Roudebush VA hospital in Indianapolis, Indiana. He does carpal tunnel surgeries—lots of them. He estimates that there are 50, 000 performed in the U.S. each year, making it one of the most commonly performed hand surgeries. Moreover, according to a MedicalResearch.com interview, most of these surgeries are performed in the operating rooms of hospitals, with the patients under sedation.

When Duquette noted that, in Canada, carpal tunnel releases are performed in doctor’s offices using a local anesthetic, he decided to do a comparative study. This study, as reported by Medical Research, “examined the impact of opening an office-based procedure room in a VA to perform hand surgery under local anesthesia only.” Duquette compared this procedure to the practice of “operating room carpal tunnel release though a number of performance metrics, including time to OR and complications.”

What did Duquette learn? He found that wait times from the patient’s initial consultation to surgical intervention were significantly decreased by using the procedure room when compared to the operating room. The complication rate was also the same for both groups. The procedure room proved to be ideal for the performance of carpal tunnel releases.

The final word? “This study suggests that open carpal tunnel release in an office-based setting is an equally safe and effective surgical option for people suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome. The office-based environment also decreases wait time from initial consultation to surgical intervention, which both referring clinicians and patients will appreciate, ” he wrote.