Very Early Outcomes in Endoscopic Versus Open Carpal Tunnel Release

January 16, 2026 updated by: Stanford University
We are looking at whether there is a difference in pain and function in the very early period when comparing carpal tunnel release performed by the endoscopic technique versus the open technique.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

The purpose of our study is to examine the very early (<2 weeks post-op) outcomes of endoscopic versus open carpal tunnel releases (CTR). We will call patients on post-operative days 3, 7 and 14 and collect Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation (SANE), Patient Related Wrist and Hand Evaluation (PRWHE), Visual Analog Scale (VAS) pain and return to work status at each time frame to see if there is any difference between the two procedures.

Study Type

Observational

Enrollment (Actual)

113

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • California
      • Palo Alto, California, United States, 93405
        • Stanford University

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Patients 18 years of age or older, diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome and indicated to undergo carpal tunnel release with one of the three participating hand surgeons.

Carpal tunnel syndrome was diagnosed using the physical exam, including two-point discrimination, Phalen's test, Durkan's nerve compression test, and Tinel's sign in all study participants. All patients included in the study demonstrated a CTS-6 score over 12. An electromyography (EMG) of the median nerve was performed when determined to be necessary by either the treating surgeon or referring physician.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Patients 18 years of age or older
  • Diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome and indicated to undergo carpal tunnel release with one of the three participating hand surgeons were included in this study.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients younger than 18 years old
  • Pregnant women
  • Revision carpal tunnel surgery, or patients who underwent any other type of surgery concomitantly with the carpal tunnel release.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort
Intervention / Treatment
Endoscopic Carpal Tunnel Release
Patients who underwent endoscopic carpal tunnel release
Procedure: Carpal Tunnel Release
Description: An open incision was made over the proximal palm to access and visualize transverse carpal tunnel, then divided it completely surgically. In the endoscopic technique, a small incision is made over the distal wrist and a camera and blade are within the wrist, then the transverse carpal ligament is divide from inside the palm
Open Carpal Tunnel Release
Patients who underwent open carpal tunnel release
Procedure: Carpal Tunnel Release
Description: An open incision was made over the proximal palm to access and visualize transverse carpal tunnel, then divided it completely surgically. In the endoscopic technique, a small incision is made over the distal wrist and a camera and blade are within the wrist, then the transverse carpal ligament is divide from inside the palm

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Post-operative pain
Time Frame: This was assessed at post-operative days 3, 7, and 14
This was evaluated by administering the Patient Related Wrist and Hand Evaluation (PRWHE) questionnaire as well as obtaining a pain score using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS).
This was assessed at post-operative days 3, 7, and 14
Function
Time Frame: Function was assessed at post-operative days 3, 7 and 14.
Patients were first asked to assess the function of their operative hand and wrist using the Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation (SANE) tool. Function was also assessed by administering the Patient Related Wrist and Hand Evaluation (PRWHE) questionnaire.
Function was assessed at post-operative days 3, 7 and 14.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Return to Work Status
Time Frame: Return to work status was assessed at post-operative days 3, 7, and 14.
Of those study patients who were not retired, we assessed if and when patients returned to work.
Return to work status was assessed at post-operative days 3, 7, and 14.

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Stanford University

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Jeffrey Yao, MD, Stanford Department of Orthopedic Surgery
  • Study Director: Robert J Reitz, MD, Stanford Department of Orthopedic Surgery

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

March 1, 2022

Primary Completion (Actual)

June 30, 2024

Study Completion (Actual)

June 30, 2024

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

January 16, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 16, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

January 23, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

January 23, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 16, 2026

Last Verified

January 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 64461

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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