Comparative Outcomes of Open Surgical Excision for Dorsal and Volar Wrist Ganglion Cysts: A Minimum 2-Year Follow-Up Study
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Cysts: A Minimum 2-Year Follow-Up StudyG anglion cysts are benign soft tissue tumors which are filled with jelly-like fluid.They are the most common tumors of the hand and wrist.They are typically seen in the second and fourth decades of life.[1,2] They are cystic lesions arising from the joint capsule or tendon sheath.[3,4] The prevalence of wrist pain in patients with ganglion cysts is 19%, while more than half remain asymptomatic.[5] Dorsal wrist ganglions are more common than volar wrist ganglions.[6][7][8] Dorsal ganglions are connected to the joint via a pedicle, which may originate from a variety of other areas on the dorsal surface, including the scapholunate ligament, tendon sheath, or wrist capsule.[2,5,9] Volar wrist ganglions exit through a pedicle from the radioscaphoidscapholunate interval, scaphotrapezial joint, or metacarpotrapezial joint, or they can originate from the tendon sheath.[5,7] Objectives: The aim of this study is to evaluate and compare the minimum 2-year functional outcomes, clinical scores and complications of patients in whom we performed open volar and dorsal ganglion cyst excision.Methods: Patients were divided into two groups based on cyst location: dorsal and volar.The surgical outcomes were analyzed, encompassing the size and localization of the cyst, wrist ROM (range of motion), VAS (visual analogue scale) for pain, QDASH (quick disability arm shoulder hand) questionnaire, and PRWE (patient rated wrist evaluation) scale.Additionally, complications and recurrence rates were examined.Results: A total of 53 patients were evaluated in the study, including 34 dorsal ganglion cysts (19 women, 56%) and 19 volar ganglion cysts (15 women, 79%).The mean age of the patients was 34.1 years (range: 18 to 68), and the mean follow-up period was 73.8 months (range: 26 to 136).The surgical duration was longer for volar cysts (p=0.01).For extension, the change in ROM was 3.9±6.3degrees in volar cysts (p=0.01),whereas in dorsal cysts, this change was measured as 2.0±6.0 degrees (p=0.05).The increase in wrist flexion in the postoperative period was significantly higher in volar ganglion cysts (p<0.01).There were no statistically significant differences between the two groups for QDASH, PRWE, and VAS scores (p>0.05).Recurrence and complication rates were approximately 2-fold higher in volar cysts.Conclusion: Open surgical excision is a successful treatment method for wrist ganglion cysts based on middle and long-term outcomes, with high patient satisfaction and low recurrence and complication rates.
Author: Kadir Uzel
Institution: Istanbul Medipol University
Language: English
Subfield: Surgery
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W4411930992