The frequency of the palmaris longus tendon in patients who have undergone carpal tunnel release surgery: A...

The presence of palmaris longus (PL) tendon negatively affects carpal tunnel syndrome. The objective of this study was to evaluate the frequency of PL in patients who undergone carpal tunnel release (CTR). Seventy patients with CTR and tightly matched 70 controls were included in this study. All participants were evaluated for demographics, and patients were also evaluated for postoperative features. The Boston Carpal Tunnel Questionnaire (BCTQ) was used to assess the symptoms and functions in patients with CTR. Schaeffer test was used to assess the presence/absence of PL. In this study, 140 hands from 140 participants (70 patients and 70 controls) were evaluated. The patients and the control group were matched for age (P = .602), gender (P = 1.0), weight (P = .598), height (P = .105), body mass index (P = .739), employment status (P = 1.0) and the hand evaluated (right/left) (P = 1.0). However, the ratios of the presence/absence of PL were significantly different in patients with CTR [66 (94.29%)/4 (5.71%) vs 56 (80.0%)/14 (20.0%)] (P = .021). The postoperative scores for patients with CTR were as follows: Postoperative duration (months): 30.36 ± 27.48 (2.0-111.0); BCTQ symptom severity: 1.44 ± 0.49 (1.0-4.0); and the BCTQ functional status: 1.55 ± 0.49 (1.0-3.63). This study demonstrated a higher frequency of palmaris longus presence in patients who underwent carpal tunnel release compared to matched controls. Studies on the topic are limited, and further investigations are needed.