De Quervain's Tenosynovitis: As Seen from the Perspective of the Patient

Patient preferences and expectations following both nonsurgical and operative treatment of de Quervain's tenosynovitis are unclear. In this study, we aim to better delineate patient preferences for initial management of de Quervain's tenosynovitis. For patients considering surgical treatment, we hope to identify which factors of surgical care are most important for patients to receive counseling.

An online crowdsourcing platform, Amazon Mechanical Turk, was used to recruit study participants. Study participants were then led through a clinical scenario pertaining to de Quervain's tenosynovitis. They were then asked a series of questions regarding initial treatment options, important factors to consider during surgery, and postoperative expectations. A Likert scale was used for responses. Descriptive statistics and one-way analysis of variance were used to assess survey responses.

In total, 199 survey responses were included, and 84% of respondents chose nonsurgical modalities for initial treatment of de Quervain's tenosynovitis. Survey items asking about the importance of cost, risks of surgery, expected recovery time, and expected pain level following surgery revealed that all factors were considered important to respondents. There were no differences between groups in the one-way analysis of variance.

Providers should remain cognizant that patients presenting with de Quervain's tenosynovitis may favor initial nonsurgical management. The vast majority of respondents rated the importance of cost, risks of surgery, expected recovery time, and expected pain level as having some level of importance when considering surgical care. When discussing outcomes of surgery, respondents were nearly divided on what would be considered a successful outcome of surgery. This suggests that treating physicians may benefit from clarifying expected outcomes during surgical discussions.

Diagnostics IIb.