Complex regional pain syndrome

Chronic regional pain disorder following injury or surgery, characterised by disproportionate pain, sensory disturbance, autonomic dysregulation (skin colour, temperature, sweating), motor or trophic changes, and restricted range of motion. Diagnosis is by Budapest criteria. Reported in less than 5 per cent of cases after Dupuytren's surgery across all modalities.

Related terms

• Procedure

  Limited fasciectomy

  Open surgical excision of the diseased palmar and digital fascia through a Bruner-zigzag or longitudinal-Z-plasty incision, with preservation of normal fibres. The contemporary operative workhorse for Dupuytren's contracture. Lower five-year recurrence than percutaneous needle fasciotomy at the cost of greater up-front morbidity, longer recovery, and a higher rate of nerve and vessel injury.

• Procedure

  Percutaneous needle fasciotomy

  Office-based percutaneous division of the Dupuytren cord with a small-bore (typically 25-gauge) needle under skin-wheal local anaesthesia, indicated for palpable pretendinous-cord contracture in selected primary disease. Reintroduced in the late 1970s by the French rheumatologist Lermusiaux. Shorter recovery and higher recurrence than limited fasciectomy.

Articles mentioning this term

1. Patient information · 26 September 2026

   Thumb-base arthritis

   Thumb-base (CMC) arthritis: symptoms, splints, exercises, injections, and how trapeziectomy compares with joint replacement in recovery, strength and risk.

2. Patient information · 26 September 2026

   Trigger finger

   Why a finger catches or locks, who gets trigger finger, and how it is treated: splints, steroid injections and a small day-case operation.

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