Carpal arch alteration and related clinical status after endoscopic carpal tunnel release.

One hundred eight endoscopic carpal tunnel releases were performed by a modification of the technique described by Chow. Eighty-seven of the 108 cases were evaluated for quantitative postoperative widening of the transverse carpal arch. The average postoperative widening of the transverse carpal arch was 0.17 cm (7%), with a range of 0 to 0.5 cm. Seventy percent of the patients showed 0% to 10% widening, 26% showed 10% to 20% widening, and 4% showed more than 20% widening of the transverse carpal arch. Preliminary findings show that 3 weeks after endoscopic carpal tunnel release, pinch strength was at 102% and grip strength at 86% of preoperative values. Six weeks after surgery, pinch strength was 106% and grip strength was 121% of preoperative values. The complication rate in this series was 3%. The transverse dimension of the carpal arch generally widens after endoscopic carpal tunnel release but to a lesser degree than has been reported for open carpal tunnel release. The rate of improvement of pinch and grip strength after endoscopic release is faster than that reported in the literature after open release.