Patients' Perspective on Carpal Tunnel Release with WALANT or Intravenous Regional Anesthesia.

BACKGROUND: The authors conducted a prospective study to compare patients' intraoperative experience of open carpal tunnel release under "wide awake, local anesthesia, no tourniquet" (WALANT) on the one hand and intravenous regional anesthesia on the other. The authors hypothesized that WALANT would offer a better intraoperative experience than intravenous regional anesthesia.

METHODS: Twenty-four patients with bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome had one hand operated on using WALANT and the contralateral hand with the intravenous regional anesthesia method. At the postoperative second hour, patients completed a questionnaire to quantify their pain levels on a numerical rating scale and compare the operation with dental procedures. They were also asked about their expectations and feelings about reoperation with the anesthesia methods. The results were compared for the two anesthesia methods.

RESULTS: There were no significant differences between numerical rating scale pain values during anesthetic administration or for surgical site pain on the WALANT and intravenous regional anesthesia sides. Patients reported moderate tourniquet pain for intravenous regional anesthesia sides. For WALANT sides, a significantly higher number of patients reported carpal tunnel release to be an easier procedure than dental procedures (91.6 percent WALANT and 37.5 percent intravenous regional anesthesia). For WALANT sides, a significantly higher number of patients reported carpal tunnel release to be an easier procedure than they expected (91.6 percent WALANT and 50 percent intravenous regional anesthesia). For the reoperation, 83.3 percent of patients preferred WALANT, 8.3 percent preferred intravenous regional anesthesia, and 8.3 percent reported no preference.

CONCLUSIONS: WALANT offered a better intraoperative experience. Tourniquet pain, preoperative preparation basics, and the extended anesthesia duration are likely the major drawbacks of the intravenous regional anesthesia method.