Self-Reliance and Postoperative Hand Recovery After Simultaneous, Bilateral Endoscopic Carpal Tunnel Release: A Prospective Study.

Purpose Outcomes and recovery of endoscopic carpal tunnel release (ECTR) have been broadly examined in studies. The total recovery time can potentially be reduced by performing simultaneous, bilateral ECTR. In this study we prospectively investigated days to self-reliance. As secondary outcomes, we investigated direct postoperative recovery of hand function and pre and postoperative symptom severity after simultaneous, bilateral ECTR. Methods In this single-center prospective case series, we included all patients willing to participate after undergoing bilateral ECTR between December 2015 and July 2019. Every patient recorded days to self-reliance (when a patient could perform basic activities of daily living without the need for assistance from another person) and completed a preoperative and postoperative Boston Carpal Tunnel Questionnaire (BCTQ) evaluating postoperative hand function and pre and postoperative symptom severity. Results In total, 81 patients received simultaneous, bilateral ECTR. Median days until self-reliance was 4; mean number of days was 4.9. Concerning BCTQ scores, postoperative functional status increased significantly each day, and mean BCTQ score decreased gradually from intense difficulty to little difficulty in daily tasks over a period of 7 days. Preoperative BCTQ symptom severity showed significant improvement compared to postoperative symptoms, evolving from medium to slight symptoms. Conclusions Simultaneous, bilateral ECTR offers recovery to self-reliance in 4 to 5 days with a gradual and significant increase of hand function in the following postoperative days. Type of study/level of evidence Therapeutic II.