Percutaneous Tenotomy for the Management of Spastic Contractures in Adults: A Systematic Review

Percutaneous tenotomy is an emerging, minimally-invasive procedure to treat muscle and tendon contractures, including those resulting from spasticity. Such contractures often cause pain, functional impairment, impact quality of life and may not respond to conservative or medical therapy. Further, spastic contractures typically affect frail, older patients unsuitable for management with open surgical procedures. We undertook the first PRISMA-compliant systematic review exploring use of percutaneous tenotomy to manage contractures occurring in the context of spasticity in adults.

We searched 6 databases for primary research papers featuring an entirely adult sample undergoing percutaneous tenotomy, published in either English or French. Quality assessment was performed using the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine Scale and the Methodological Index for Non-Randomized Studies. Synthesis of included study data was performed where possible.

Six studies were included, reporting 160 patients undergoing more than 430 tenotomies to 27 different tendons. All were low quality. Synthesis of evidence across studies indicated that percutaneous tenotomy has a low complication rate and may support patients to obtain a range of post-operative goals, including improved skin hygiene, ease of patient care and joint range. However, synthesis across studies was limited by heterogenous patient assessment and poor reporting.

This review found some evidence supporting the safety and efficacy of percutaneous tenotomy in adults with contracture, but higher-quality studies are required. Further work should standardise the approach and reporting of these procedures to facilitate evidence synthesis and to develop best practice.