Epidemiology of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and Trigger Finger in South Korea: A Nationwide Population-Based Study

Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) and trigger finger are representative pathologic conditions of the hand. Although several studies have evaluated the epidemiology of these diseases as nationwide population-based research, they had several limitations including old data and short study period.

We conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients aged ≥ 20 years diagnosed with CTS or trigger finger between 2009 and 2019 using the Korean Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service database. The annual incidence of these diseases was standardized based on age and sex. The proportion of patients who received corticosteroid injections or surgery within 1 year of their diagnoses was calculated annually.

The mean annual incidence of CTS was 360.26 per 100,000 person-years and that of trigger finger was 63.09 per 100,000 person-years. The annual incidence of CTS (incidence rate ratio [IRR], 0.979; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.972-0.985; p < 0.001) and trigger finger (IRR, 0.976; 95% CI, 0.967-0.985; p < 0.001) significantly decreased. The proportion of patients who received corticosteroid injections for CTS significantly increased (relative risk [RR], 1.025; 95% CI, 1.020-1.031; p < 0.001), while the number of surgeries significantly decreased (RR, 0.949; 95% CI, 0.940-0.957; p < 0.001). The proportion of patients who received corticosteroid injections for trigger finger significantly increased (RR, 1.021; 95% CI, 1.009-1.033; p < 0.001), while the number of surgeries did not change significantly (RR, 1.006; 95% CI, 0.988-1.023; p = 0.523).

In the past 10 years, the incidence of CTS and trigger finger decreased. The portion of patients who received corticosteroid injections increased for both diseases, but the portion of patients who had surgery decreased for CTS within 1 year after diagnosis. This study provides insight into the epidemiology of these diseases in an Asian population and may inform estimates of healthcare costs.