The Effects of Different Treatment Procedures Applied to Trigger Finger on Recurrence

Abstract

Introduction: To investigate the effects of two different treatment methods on the recurrence rates within one year and on clinical and functional outcomes in patients with trigger finger (TF) complaints. Methods: The files of 137 patients diagnosed with TF at our clinic between 2018 and 2022, who received two different treatments administered by two different physicians, were retrospectively reviewed. After applying the exclusion criteria, the study included 111 patients, of whom 66 underwent surgical release and were designated as group I, and 55 received steroid injections and were designated as group II. The Wolfe grading system was used to evaluate the severity of TF, and the Visual Analog Scale was employed to measure pain levels. Clinical and functional outcomes were assessed at the third and sixth months, and one year after treatment to evaluate the effect of each procedure on the development of recurrence. Results: In group II, the distribution of grade II and grade IIIa recurrence in the first three and six months was found to be statistically significantly higher than in group I (p=0.005 and p=0.045, respectively). In the first year, the distribution of grade II, grade IIIa, and grade IIIb recurrences in group II was also significantly higher statistically compared to group I (p=0.007). No statistically significant difference was observed between group I and group II in terms of the distribution of improvement from baseline to the third and sixth months after treatment (p=0.295 and p=0.118, respectively). All patients in both group I and group II who experienced recurrence were treated surgically. Conclusion: Although the ease of application and rapid effectiveness of steroid injection may appear advantageous compared to surgical methods in the treatment of TF, the high recurrence rates after the first six months negatively affect the potential for sustained success with steroid injection treatment.