Effectiveness of manual therapy in carpal tunnel syndrome: Systematic review and meta-analysis: Manual therapy in carpal tunnel syndrome

Abstract

The aim of this systematic review is to determine the effectiveness of manual therapy applied in isolation on pain, function, severity of symptoms, nerve conduction, and strength in people with carpal tunnel syndrome. A search was performed in MEDLINE, WoS, SCOPUS, PEDro, CENTRAL, LILACS and Epistemonikos. Eleven studies met the eligibility criteria and six were included in the quantitative synthesis. Pain obtained a SMD -2.00 (95% CI = -3.10, -0.90, p = <0.0004), function a MD -0.89 points (95% CI = -1.10, -0.67, p = <0.00001), DM symptom severity - 0.94 points (95% CI = -1.58, - 0.30, p = 0.004), DM sensory conduction velocity 7.14 m/s (95% CI = 1.28, 13.00, p = 0.02) , motor conduction velocity MD 1.85 m/s, (95% CI = 0.68, 3.01, p = 0.002), motor latency MD = -0.57, (95% CI = -9.96, -0.17, p = 0.005 ), grip strength MD = -0.56, 95% CI = -3.31, 2.19, p = 0.69) and pinch strength MD 0.21 (95% CI = -0.42, 0.83, p = 0.52). Finally, it is concluded that manual therapy applied in isolation is an effective option in the short term for people with mild to moderate carpal tunnel syndrome.