The Journal of hand surgery, European volume
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J Hand Surg Eur Vol · Aug 2009
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyThe effect of miniscalpel-needle versus steroid injection for trigger thumb release.
This study compared the result of percutaneous release using a miniscalpel-needle and steroid injection in 93 trigger thumbs in 83 patients. The patients were randomly assigned to either miniscalpel-needle percutaneous release (group A) or steroid injection (group B). Visual analogue pain scales and patients' satisfaction were evaluated at baseline, 1 and 12 months. ⋯ Forty-four of the 46 trigger thumbs in group A and 12 of 47 trigger thumbs in group B had satisfactory results at 12 months. No digital nerve injury occurred in either group. Percutaneous release with a miniscalpel-needle had a higher success rate than steroid injection.