Simultaneous Bilateral Carpal and Cubital Tunnel Releases: Quadruple Tunnel Release.

Abstract

The authors retrospectively reviewed the first 30 patients who underwent bilateral simultaneous carpal and cubital releases (quadruple tunnel release). Patients were asked to complete a questionnaire over the phone regarding their satisfaction with the procedures and willingness to make the same choice of bilateral carpal and cubital releases simultaneously, as well as the time to return to unrestricted use. Of 24 patients who responded to the questionnaire, 23 (95.8%) were satisfied or highly satisfied with their care, and 23 (95.8%) would again choose to have release of the 4 tunnels simultaneously. Time to unrestricted use in this patient cohort averaged 27 days. Quadruple tunnel release is technically feasible and well tolerated. This procedure has the potential to save considerable amounts of recuperation time and is less expensive than performing 4 individual procedures for patients who have bilateral carpal and bilateral cubital tunnel syndrome. [Orthopedics. 2020;43(6):e592-e594.].