Surgeries for carpal tunnel syndrome

• In the period 2015–2023, 7,000 to 8,000 operations were performed annually
• There is significant geographic variation in the rates between catchment areas, and the variation is considered unwarranted
• In the catchment areas of UNN and Førde HF, the rates have increased sharply over the past three years

An average of approximately 7,400 operations for carpal tunnel syndrome are performed annually. The annual number of operations was minimally affected by the pandemic. There was a slight decrease for women in 2020, and 2021 was a peak year for both sexes compared to the other years in the period 2015–2023.

There is significant geographic variation in operation rates. In the catchment areas with the highest rates, approximately three times as many operations per 1,000 inhabitants are performed compared to the areas with the lowest rates. In 2023, the number of operations per 1,000 inhabitants ranged from 0.9 in Lovisenberg to 2.7 in Nordland.

The Oslo area (OUS, Lovisenberg, and Diakonhjemmet HF) consistently has the lowest rates throughout the period. Innlandet and Østfold HF have had the highest rates during the period. The low rate in Østfold HF in 2023 is likely due to incomplete reporting from private specialists. In the catchment areas of UNN and Førde HF, rates have risen sharply over the past three years.

Women undergo surgery more often than men, and the proportion of surgeries performed on women was 61 % in 2023.

The analysis is based on data from the Norwegian Patient Registry (NPR) for specialist healthcare services. The data includes activity in public hospitals, publicly funded private hospitals, and specialists in private practice under public funding contacts.

The sample consists of patients aged 17 years or older registered with a primary or secondary diagnosis of G56.0 in combination with:

• For hospitals - procedure codes ACC51, NDE11, NDE12, NDM19, NDM49, or NDL50
• For contracted specialists - the same procedure codes as for hospitals OR tariff code 140i

The place of treatment is divided into three categories:

• Local public, treated at one of the hospitals in the catchment area
• Other public, treated at a public hospital outside the catchment area
• Private, treated by a private hospital or a private specialist

Surgeries for carpal tunnel syndrome are mainly performed on adults. On average, only 3 surgeries per year are performed on children under the age of 17.

In order to compare the catchment areas and between years, the rates have been adjusted for gender and age. The adjustment was done using the direct method with the population in 2023 as the reference population.

SKDE is solely responsible for the interpretation and presentation of the data provided by NPR. FHI/NPR is not responsible for analyses or interpretations based on the data.

All of the data used in the charts for this analysis can be downloaded as a CSV file.