Comparing the effectiveness of manual neural mobilization and conventional physiotherapy and rehabilitation among patient with carpal tunnel syndrome

The aim of this study is to compare the effectiveness of manual neural mobilization and conventional physiotherapy and rehabilitation among patient with CTS. The study was performed between January 7th and June 1st of 2019 in Kocaeli. The study included 22 volunteer women with carpal tunnel syndrome aged between 30 to 60 years. The Group 1 (n=11; 50,45 ± 5.83 years) received manual neural mobilization and home exercises 5 times a week for three weeks. The Group 2 (n=11; 49,81 ± 8,75) received conventional physiotherapy and rehabilitation and home exercises 5 times a week for three weeks. All patients were evaluated before the intervention and after three weeks of treatment. The pain status of patients was evaluated by Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and also handgrip with Jamar hand dynamometer and pinch strength with Jamar hydrolic pinch gauge was assessed by the investigator. Besides, Boston Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Questionnaire was used to assess symptom severity and functional status. Furthermore, World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire was used to assess quality of life patient with CTS. The main outcome of this study is that both treatment options are effective in reducing pain, increasing hand grip strength, alleviating symptoms, improving functional activities and also quality of life. According to our results, there was no statistically meaningful difference between these two treatment options except some parameters. In terms of left hand grip strength patients who treated with conventional physiotherapy and rehabilitation had statistically shown more improvement than patients who treated with manual neural mobilization. In addition, manual neural mobilization improved functional activity compared to conventional physiotherapy and rehabilitation. In conclusion, the present study revealed that manual neural mobilization and conventional physiotherapy and rehabilitation were effective in treating mild to moderate level of patients with CTS. Key words: manual neural mobilization, conventional physiotherapy, carpal tunnel syndrome