Carpal Tunnel Release Under Local Anaesthesia With or Without Distal Median Nerve Block

Not Applicable

Recruiting

• Conditions: Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

• Registration Number: NCT05372393
• Lead Sponsor: Kuopio University Hospital

Brief Summary

Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is the most commonly appearing entrapment neuropathy of the upper extremity. Treatment options include both non-operative and operative methods. Surgical treatment, carpal tunnel release (CTR), involves division of the transverse carpal ligament. Surgery can be performed under axillary or intravenous block, or general anaesthesia. There are no prior randomised controlled trials (RCT) comparing local infiltration anaesthesia to local infiltration anaesthesia augmented with a distal median nerve block in CTR.

The aim of this trial is to investigate whether adding a distal median nerve block to local anaesthesia reduces the patient's perceived pain level for up to 72 hours after CTR, compared to using only local anaesthesia, i.e., an anaesthesia mixture injected solely in and around the planned incision and nerve release. The null hypothesis is that the use of distal median nerve block with local anaesthesia does not reduce pain after CTR compared to pure local anaesthesia.

PERSONNEL (carPal tunnEl ReleaSe lOcal iNfiltratioN mEdian bLockade) is a double-blinded, i.e., patient and investigators, RCT in patients with CTS. Patients will be randomly divided into two parallel trial groups, 1:1 in size to each other. Fifty-nine patients will be needed for each group to have adequate power. The primary outcome is the pain level perceived by the patient after the procedure during the first 72 hours using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). Secondary outcomes include patient-rated outcome measures, safety, the entire consumption of pain killers after the surgery during the first 72 hours postoperatively, pain of performing the anaesthesia, and pain during and after the operation.

No trial comparing local anaesthesia to local anaesthesia augmented with distal median nerve block has been published before. There is also no trial noting individual tolerance to pain. The quality of the median nerve block at the wrist has been achieved by using sensory or sensory-motor nerve stimulation and has been proven effective. This increases trust in the effectiveness of the treatment method, but it still needs to be adequately proven which is the goal of this trial.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Study First Submitted: 2022-05-09
• Study First Submitted QC: 2022-05-09
• Study First Posted: 2022-05-12
• Study Start: 2022-09-21
• Status Verified: 2025-09
• Last Update Submitted: 2025-09-15
• Last Update Posted: 2025-09-19
• Primary Completion: 2025-12
• Study Completion: 2026-04-01

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: RECRUITING
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 118

Inclusion Criteria

• ≥18 years of age
• CTS verified by nerve conduction studies
• Symptoms suitable for CTS

Exclusion Criteria

• Recurrent CTS
• Peripheral neuropathies
• Known allergy to the trial drugs
• Profound cognitive impairment
• Pregnancy

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
The pain level perceived by the patient after the procedure using Visual Analogue Scale (VAS)	Postoperatively during the first 72 hours after the operation	The investigators measure the pain level perceived by the patient after the procedure every fourth hour while awake until third night postoperatively using VAS. The first assessment is performed four hours after the surgery. The mean VAS is calculated from all time points over the 72-hour period. The Visual analogue Scale for pain is a straight line with one end meaning no pain and the other end meaning the worst pain imaginable.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Total pain during the injection of the anaesthetic solution (VAS)	Immediately after the infiltration of anaesthetic solution	The investigators ask the patients to evaluate the total pain that the infiltration of the anaesthetic solution caused using Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). The Visual Analogue Scale for pain is a straight line with one end meaning no pain and the other end meaning the worst pain imaginable.
Burning pain (VAS)	Immediately after the infiltration of anaesthetic solution	The investigators ask the patients to evaluate the burning pain that the infiltration of the anaesthetic solution caused using Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). The Visual Analogue Scale for pain is a straight line with one end meaning no pain and the other end meaning the worst pain imaginable.
Pressure pain (VAS)	Immediately after the infiltration of anaesthetic solution	The investigators ask the patients to evaluate the pressure pain that the infiltration of the anaesthetic solution caused using Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). The Visual Analogue Scale for pain is a straight line with one end meaning no pain and the other end meaning the worst pain imaginable.
Needle sting pain (VAS)	Immediately after the infiltration of anaesthetic solution	The investigators ask the patients to evaluate the needle sting pain that the infiltration of the anaesthetic solution caused using Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). The Visual Analogue Scale for pain is a straight line with one end meaning no pain and the other end meaning the worst pain imaginable.
Duration of anaesthesia	Postoperatively during the first 72 hours after the operation	The investigators assess the length of the anaesthesia by asking the patients to fill an online form when they first time feel pain in the operation field or have to use pain killers.
Self-reported symptom severity and functional status	Before and 3 months postoperatively	The investigators ask the patients to evaluate their symptoms using Boston Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Questionnaire (BCTQ) score. It consists of the Symptom Severity Scale (SSS) containing 11 questions, and it uses a five-point Likert rating scale from 1 (no symptoms) to 5 (most severe symptoms), and Functional Status Scale (FSS), which has 8 questions assessing the degree of complaints on a five-point Likert scale from 1 (no symptoms) to 5 (most severe symptoms). Mean sum scores of both scales are calculated and used for analysis.
Worst pain during the operation (VAS)	Immediately after the operation	The investigators ask the patients to evaluate the worst pain during the operation using Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). The Visual Analogue Scale for pain is a straight line with one end meaning no pain and the other end meaning the worst pain imaginable.
Expected pain (VAS)	Before the infiltration of the anaesthetic solution	The investigators ask the patient to evaluate the pain during the infiltration of the anaestetic solution using Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). The Visual Analogue Scale for pain is a straight line with one end meaning no pain and the other end meaning the worst pain imaginable.
Patient satisfaction	3 months postoperatively	Patients evaluate how likely they would recommend the procedure to a fellow man using Net Promoter Score (NPS). Net Promoter Score is a measurement taken from asking patients how likely they are to recommend the procedure to others on a scale of 0-10. The higher score the better outcome.
Adverse events (AE)	3 months postoperatively	Health care professional assessment
Amount of perceived needle stings	Immediately after the infiltration of anaesthetic solution	The investigators ask the patient to report how many needle stings they felt when the anaesthesia was performed.
Consumption of pain killers	Postoperatively during the first 72 hours after the operation	The investigators record the consumption of pain killers after surgery

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Kuopio University hospital, Department of Orthopaedics, Traumatology and Hand Surgery; 🇫🇮 Kuopio, Northern Savonia, Finland