Surgery for thumb (trapeziometacarpal joint) osteoarthritis

Surgery has been used to treat persistent pain and dysfunction at the base of the thumb. However, there is no evidence to suggest that any one surgical procedure is superior to another.

To investigate the effect of surgery in reducing pain and improving physical function, patient global assessment, range of motion, and strength in people with trapeziometacarpal osteoarthritis at 12 months. Additionally, it was the reviewers intention to investigate whether there was any improvement or deterioration in outcomes between the 12 months review and a 5 year follow-up.

We searched the the following databases in the Cochrane Library 2004, Issue 4: Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, and the Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects (DARE) as well as MEDLINE (1966-Dec 2004), CINAHL (1982-Dec 2004), AMED (1985-Dec 2004), and EMBASE (1974-Dec 2004). Database searches were supplemented by hand searching conference proceedings and reference lists from reviews and papers.

Studies were included if they were: randomised, quasi-randomised or controlled trials; intervention was surgery; and pain, physical function, patient global assessment, range of motion, or strength was measured as an outcome.

Two independent reviewers examined the identified studies according to the inclusion criteria. Included studies were assessed for methodological quality and then data, including adverse effects, was extracted and cross-checked. Authors were contacted to provide missing information.

Seven studies involving 384 participants were included. Studies of five surgical procedures were identified (trapeziectomy, trapeziectomy with interpositional arthroplasty, trapeziectomy with ligament reconstruction, trapeziectomy with ligament reconstruction and tendon interposition (LRTI), and joint replacement). All studies reported results of a mixed group of participants with Stage II-IV osteoarthritis, with a range of improvement across all stages of 27 to 57 mm on a 0-100 VAS scale for pain and 18-24 mm on a 0-100 VAS scale for physical function. No procedure demonstrated any superiority over another in terms of pain, physical function, patient global assessment, range of motion or strength. However, participants who underwent trapeziectomy had 16% fewer adverse effects (p=0<.001) than the other commonly-used procedures studied in this review; conversely, those who underwent trapeziectomy with ligament reconstruction and tendon interposition had 11% more (p=0.03) (including scar tenderness, tendon adhesion or rupture, sensory change, or Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (Type 1).

No one procedure produced greater strength than any other. Although this also appears to be the case for pain and physical function, there was insufficient evidence to be conclusive. Trapeziectomy is safer and has fewer complications than the other procedures studied in this review, and conversely trapeziectomy with LRTI has more.