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Effects of high-intensity laser therapy on pain, functional status, hand grip strength, and median nerve cross-sectional area by ultrasonography in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome

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Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of high intensity laser therapy (HILT) on pain, functional status, hand grip strength, and median nerve cross-sectional area by ultrasonography in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome. Sixty patients who were diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome were included in the study. The patients observed during the research were randomly divided into two groups with 30 patients in each group. Splint+ exercise and HILT (pulsed mode with a power of 8.0 W and energy density of 8 J/cm2 for 1.40 minutes for every 25 cm2, continuous mode with a power of 3.0 W and energy density of 80 J/cm2 for 11 minutes for each 25 cm2; total 10 sessions 5 days a week) were applied for 2 weeks for the first group, and splint+exercise and sham laser treatment were applied for 2 weeks for the second group. Randomization was undertaken with the assistance of a computer-generated random number table before beginning the treatment processes. The patients were evaluated with the determined scales before the treatment, at the end of the treatment, and at the 3rd month. Hydraulic hand dynamometer was used to measure hand grip strength, visual analog scale (VAS) for pain, Boston CTS Questionnaire to assess function, and ultrasonography to measure median nerve cross-sectional area. The impact of time on the change in VAS levels was found to be of statistical significance within each group of patients (p<0.001), but between-group comparisons did not yield significant results (p<0.454). The effects of time on variations in Boston CTS Questionnaire scores were found to have been of statistical significance for both groups (p<0.001), but significance was not subsequently observed when the results of the two groups were compared on a between-group basis (p=0.226 and p=0.973 for the FSS and SSS, respectively). While time had a statistically significant effect on the change in hand grip strength for both groups (p=0.000), between-group comparisons statistical significance finding in favor of HILT was found in the early period (p=0.012). The time-group association patterns of the groups showed significant difference (p=0.025). While time had a statistically significant effect on the changes in the median cross-sectional areas of the nerve for the patients of both treatment groups (p<0.001), between-group comparisons yielded no findings of statistical significance (p=0.438). The time-group relationship patterns of the groups were found to reflect statistical significance (p=0.001). In conclusion, the results of the research presented here have confirmed that hand grip strength may increase and the median nerve’s cross-sectional area may decrease upon the application of high-intensity laser for individuals experiencing CTS. However, this effect was demonstrated here only in the short-term and the evidence was not maintained through the course of follow-up of a longer duration.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Meram Medical School, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Necmettin Erbakan University, 42000, Konya, Meram, Turkey

    Fatih Yiğit & Banu Ordahan

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  1. Fatih Yiğit
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  2. Banu Ordahan
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study’s conception and design. Material preparation, data collection, and analysis were performed by Fatih YİĞİT and Banu Ordahan. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Banu Ordahan, and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Conceptualization: Banu Ordahan; methodology: Banu Ordahan; formal analysis and investigation: Banu Ordahan, Fatih Yiğit; writing – original draft preparation: Banu Ordahan; writing – review and editing: Banu Ordahan, Fatih Yiğit.

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Correspondence to Banu Ordahan.

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All procedures performed in the studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Yiğit, F., Ordahan, B. Effects of high-intensity laser therapy on pain, functional status, hand grip strength, and median nerve cross-sectional area by ultrasonography in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome. Lasers Med Sci 38, 248 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10103-023-03913-z

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