Introduction: Stenosing tenosynovitis that is characterized by the inability to flex the digit smoothly, usually leads to prolonged rehabilitation or surgery.
Study design: This case series is a retrospective cohort study.
Purpose: The aim of this case series was to evaluate the effectiveness of radial extracorporeal shockwave therapy (rESWT) for the treatment of stenosing tenosynovitis of the digital flexor tendon (trigger digit).
Methods: A retrospective analysis of 44 patients (49 fingers) treated with an individually adapted rESWT protocol was conducted. Trigger digit pain and function were evaluated at baseline and 1-, 3-, and 12-months posttreatment. Recurrence and pretreatment symptom duration were analyzed.
Results: Significant reductions in pain scores and functional improvement were found between baseline and all follow-up assessments (P<0.001). Pretreatment symptom duration was significantly correlated with the number of rESWT sessions required (r=0.776, P<0.001) and 1-year posttreatment pain score (r=0.335, P=0.019).
Conclusion: This study provides initial evidence that rESWT is an effective treatment for trigger digit, but randomised controlled trials are required to provide further evidence of this effect.

Keywords: trigger finger, trigger thumb, tendon, shockwave therapy, non-surgical therapy, conservative treatment, physiotherapy


中文翻译：

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放射体外冲击波疗法治疗手指腱鞘炎（触发指）

简介：狭窄性腱鞘炎的特征在于无法平滑地弯曲手指，通常导致长时间的康复或手术。
研究设计：本病例系列是一项回顾性队列研究。
目的：本病例系列的目的是评估放射状体外冲击波疗法（rESWT）在治疗指屈肌腱（触发指）狭窄性腱鞘炎中的有效性。
方法：回顾性分析44例患者（49根手指），这些患者接受了单独调整的rESWT方案。在基线以及治疗后1、3和12个月评估触发手指疼痛和功能。分析复发和治疗前症状持续时间。
结果：在基线和所有随访评估之间，疼痛评分和功能改善显着降低（P <0.001）。治疗前症状持续时间与所需的rESWT疗程次数（r = 0.776 ，P <0.001）和治疗后1年疼痛评分（r = 0.335，P = 0.019）显着相关。
结论：这项研究提供了初步的证据，证明rESWT是一种有效的触发数字疗法，但是还需要进行随机对照试验来提供这种效应的进一步证据。

关键词：扳机手指，扳机拇指，肌腱，冲击波治疗，非手术治疗，保守治疗，物理治疗