Recruiting

Incision Comparison

Sponsor:

Washington University School of Medicine

Code:

NCT07516652

Conditions

Trigger Finger

Stenosing Tenosynovitis

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18+

Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

Interventions

Open A1 Pulley Release

Study Details

Brief summary:

The goal of this clinical trial is to compare two different skin incisions used in surgery to treat trigger finger in adult patients. Trigger finger occurs when a finger gets stuck or locks because of swelling of the sheath around the tendons the help move the fingers. The main questions it aims to answer are (1) Does the type of skin cut affect how well the hand works 6 weeks after surgery? (2) Does the type of skin cut affect pain levels, scar healing, and how quickly people return to their normal activities? Orthopaedic surgeons will compare a straight incision along the finger (longitudinal incision) to a incision across the crease in the palm (transverse incision) to see if one type of incision results in better recovery, less pain, a better scar, and higher patient satisfaction with the procedure. Participants who have trigger finger and are indicated for surgery will have surgery to release the pulley in their finger using one of the two types of incisions (assigned by chance). Participants will fill out questionnaires about their hand function and pain before surgery and at follow-up visits. Participants will have their scar checked and rated at about 2, 6, and 12 weeks after surgery, and report on their pain for the first few days after surgery and when they can return to work and move their finger without pain.

Conditions

Trigger Finger

Stenosing Tenosynovitis

Study ID

NCT07516652

Start date

Apr 1, 2026

Status verified date

Mar, 2026

Completion date

Mar 30, 2028

Anticipated

Primary completion date

Apr 1, 2027

Anticipated

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18+

Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Adult patients (age ≥ 18 years)
  • Diagnosed with trigger finger (stenosing tenosynovitis) of a finger (excluding the thumb)
  • Written informed consent obtained

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Revision surgery
  • Previous surgery on the affected finger
  • Patients refusing consent

Study Design

Enrollment

200 participants

Anticipated

Allocation

Randomized

Intervention Model

Parallel Assignment

Primary purpose

Treatment

Interventions and Outcome Measures

Arms

experimental: Longitudinal Incision

Participants randomized to this arm will undergo standard open A1 pulley release for trigger finger using a longitudinal incision along the axis of the finger.

experimental: Transverse Incision

Participants randomized to this arm will undergo standard open A1 pulley release for trigger finger using a transverse incision placed in the distal palmar crease.

Interventions

Open A1 Pulley Release

Surgical release of the first annular (A1) pulley to treat stenosing tenosynovitis (trigger finger). Participants receive either a longitudinal or transverse incision based on their randomized arm assignment. All other aspects of surgical technique and post-operative care are standardized.

Primary outcome measure

  • PROMIS Upper Extremity Score [ Time Frame: Approximately 6 weeks post-operatively ]

Central Contacts and Locations

Central contacts

Locations

The University of Chicago Medicine

Recruiting

Chicago, Illinois, United States, 60537

Contacts

Oluwafemi Afolabi, Administrative Specialist

773-702-6254oluwafemi.afolabi@bsd.uchicago.edu

Principal Investigator:

Jennifer Wolf, MD

Washington University and Barnes-Jewish Orthopedic Center

Recruiting

St Louis, Missouri, United States, 63110

Contacts

Principal Investigator:

Jason Strelzow, MD

More Information

Sponsor

Washington University School of Medicine

Last update posted

Apr 8, 2026

Last verified

Mar, 2026

Keywords

  • trigger finger
  • stenosing tenosynovitis
  • A1 pulley release
  • longitudinal incision
  • hand surgery
  • randomized controlled trial
  • scar outcomes
  • PROMIS
  • patient-reported outcomes

Trial information was received from ClinicalTrials.gov and was last updated on 2026-09-09. This information was provided to ClinicalTrials.gov by Washington University School of Medicine on 2026-04-08.