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Efficacy Study of Local Steroid Injection and Wrist Splinting for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

NCT02140632 · Status: COMPLETED · Phase: PHASE4 · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 50

Last updated 2016-09-01

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Carpal tunnel syndrome is caused by the compression of median nerve at the wrist where it passes through a narrow space called carpal tunnel formed by the wrist bones, ligaments and tendons. The common symptoms include numbness and pain over the areas supplied by the median nerve namely the thumb, the index finger, the middle finger and the outer part of the ring finger. There can be loss of sensation, weakness or muscle atrophy in severe cases. The functions of the affected hands may be greatly impaired.

Carpal tunnel syndrome is very common. It can lead to significant economic impact both to the affected individual and the society either by the direct treatment cost and indirectly from the working ability loss. Despite the vast burden, there is no consensus regarding its treatment so far. Surgery is generally effective and often reserved for severe cases. There are many nonsurgical treatment options. Local steroid injection and wrist splinting are among the commonest and with more evidence. Local steroid injection into the carpal tunnel can reduce the inflammation and swelling. Wrist splinting can maintain the wrist at its neutral position where the pressure at the carpal tunnel is the least. However, there are only very few studies comparing these two treatments directly.

Patients complaining of finger numbness who have been confirmed to have carpal tunnel syndrome by nerve conduction test are invited to participate in the study. The patients who agreed to be recruited are asked about their basic informations and the details of the carpal tunnel syndrome symptoms. Their hands will be examined. They are asked to fill in a questionnaire specific for assessing the symptom severity and the functional status of patients with carpal tunnel syndrome. They will then be assigned to one of the two treatment groups randomly and receive the respective treatment. They need to come back for follow-up at one month and to fill in the questionnaire again.

The study hypothesis is local steroid injection is more effective than wrist splinting in treating carpal tunnel syndrome.

Conditions

  • Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
  • Local Steroid Injection
  • Wrist Splinting

Interventions

PROCEDURE

Local methylprednisolone acetate and lidnocaine injection

DEVICE

wrist splinting

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Kwong Wah Hospital

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Ho So, MBBS · Kwong Wah Hospital

Study Design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Model
PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2013-12-31
Primary Completion
2015-12-31
Completion
2015-12-31

Countries

  • China

Study Locations

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT02140632 on ClinicalTrials.gov