Don’t blacklist surgery for common hand conditions, says royal college

NHS England should not restrict access to surgery for carpal tunnel syndrome, Dupuytren’s contracture, trigger finger, or wrist ganglion, the Royal College of Surgeons has urged.

In July, NHS England proposed cutting funding for 17 procedures it considered unnecessary, to save money and eliminate unwarranted clinical variation around the country.1 The list included a range of procedures, such as injections for non-specific low back pain without sciatica, knee arthroscopy for patients with osteoarthritis, breast reduction, and surgery for snoring.

NHS England said that these 17 …