SynthesisThe Journal of hand surgery, European volume2024
Steroid versus placebo injections and wrist splints in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.
Synthesis in The Journal of hand surgery, European volume, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 6 citations in OpenAlex.
- Rising Use of Ultrasound-Guided Carpal Tunnel Injections: National Trends, Drivers of Utilization, and Outcomes.Journal of hand surgery global online · 2026Article
- Management Patterns, Outcomes, and Timing Differences in Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Treatment: A Retrospective Review at a Single Institution from 2019-2024.Orthopedic reviews · 2026Article
- Review
- Potential misinformation in websites on carpal tunnel syndrome.PEC innovation · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
A network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials compared the effectiveness of corticosteroid injections with placebo injections and wrist splints for carpal tunnel syndrome, focusing on symptom relief and median nerve conduction velocity. Within 3 months of the corticosteroid injection, there was a modest statistically significant difference in symptom relief compared to placebo injections and wrist splints, as measured by the Symptom Severity Subscore of the Boston Carpal Tunnel Questionnaire; however, this did not meet the minimum clinically important difference. Pain reduction with corticosteroids was slightly better than with wrist splints, but it also failed to reach clinical significance. Electrodiagnostic assessments showed transient changes in distal motor and sensory latencies in favour of corticosteroids at 3 months, but these changes were not evident at 6 months. The best current evidence suggests that corticosteroid injections provide minimal transient improvement in nerve conduction and symptomatology compared with placebo or wrist splints.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.