Estudio comparativo entre la descompresión simple y la transposición nerviosa en el tratamiento del síndrome del túnel cubital

Résumé

Introduction and objectives Surgical treatment of moderate to severe cubital tunnel syndrome is elective. A general agreement regarding the best technique is far from being achieved. In this work we aim to compare simple decompression with subfascial transposition. Methods This is a descriptive study of 67 consecutive patients diagnosed with cubital tunnel syndrome surgically treated at a single institution from january 2006 to december 2016. They were distributed according to the type of surgery: simple decompression or transposition. Demographic, clinical and electrophysiological data were recorded. Main outcome variable was improvement or the lack of it at one year of treatment. Results There were 37 male (55.2%) and 30 female (44.8%), without any difference between the two groups regarding age, gender or laterality. According to Dellon’s classification, 14 had mild symptoms (20.9%), 29 (35.8%) moderate and 29 (43.3%) severe, without any significant difference. Electrophysiological results were similar too. 16 patients (84.2%, n = 19) from the decompression group improved. Of those treated with transposition, 39 showed improvement (81.3%, n = 48). There were no significant differences in the results after surgery according to surgical technique. There were not differences between preoperative data and results after surgery classified by procedure. Conclusion Transposition associated with decompression is not superior to simple decompression in our cohort. Surgical time and complications related to transposition tend to be more frequent, so it would be recommended simple decompression in primary cubital tunnel syndrome.