Table 3. Summary of data in studies included in the systematic review.
| # | Authors and year | No. of patients in conservative group/no. of cases | Males (no. [%])/females (no. [%]) | Mean age in years (range) | Severity of the included cases a | Mean FU in years (range) | No. of cases improved (%)/no. of patients not improved (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Injections | |||||||
| 1 | Alblas et al, 2012 8 | 8/9 | 4 (50)/4 (50) | 53 (43–67) | U | 0.25 (NA) | 5 (56)/4 (44) |
| 2 | Chen et al, 2020 20 | 33/33 | 11 (33)/22 (67) | 56 (32–77) | Mild-to-moderate | 0.5 (NA) | 17 (52)/16 (48) |
| 3 | Choi et al, 2015 9 | 10/10 | 7 (70)/3 (30) | 63 (57–58) | U | 0.1 (NA) | NA (significant drop in VAS) |
| 4 | Gronbeck et al, 2021 10 | NA/56 | NA | 47 (NA) | Mild | NA (0.1–0.25) | 38 (68)/18 (32) |
| 5 | Pechan and Kredba, 1980 11 | 14/22 | 6 (43)/8 (57) | 41 (25–65) | Mild | 1.2 (0.5–NA) | 14 (64)/8 (36) |
| 6 | Rampen et al, 2011 12 | 7/7 | 6 (86)/1 (14) | 43 (32–54) | Mild | 0.13 (NA) | 4 (57)/3 (43) |
| 7 | vanVeen et al, 2015 21 | 30/30 | 18 (60)/12 (40) | 56 (29–91) | U | 0.25 (NA) | 9 (30)/21 (70) |
| Physical therapy: | |||||||
| 8 | Oskay et al, 2010 13 | 7/7 | NA | NA (35–70) | U | 1.0 (NA) | 7 (100)/0 (0) |
| 9 | Ozkan et al, 2015 22 | 32/32 | 16 (50)/16 (50) | 44 (NA) | U | 0.25 (NA) | 22 (69)/10 (31) |
| Splint devices: | |||||||
| 10 | Dellon et al, 1993 14 | 121/121 | 23 (19)/98 (81) | 44 (15–72) | U | 4.9 (1.0–10.3) | 85 (70)/36 (30) |
| 11 | Hong et al, 1996 23 | 10/12 | 10 (100)/0 (0) | 59 (37–70) | U | 0.5 (NA) | NA (significant improvement in symptoms) |
| 12 | Michell and Sesath, 2020 15 | 15/15 | 4 (27)/11 (73) | 41 (21–84) | Mild-to-moderate | 0.15 (0.13–0.4) | 11 (73)/4 (27) |
| 13 | Seror, 1993 16 | 22/22 | 12 (55)/10 (45) | 52 (39–81) | U | 0.9 (0.3–2.5) | 22 (100)/0 (0) |
| 14 | Shah et al, 2013 17 | 19/24 | 8 (42)/11 (58) | 43 (21–72) | Mild-to-moderate | 2.0 (1.3–2.7) | 21 (88)/3 (12) |
| 15 | Svernlöv et al, 2009 24 | 51/51 | 24 (47)/27 (53) | 43 (17–72) | Mild-to-moderate | 0.5 (NA) | 51 (100)/0 (0) |
| Other: | |||||||
| 16 | Beekman et al, 2004 25 | NA/46 | NA | 51 (39–60) | U | 1.2 (6–NA) | 16 (35)/30 (65) |
| 17 | Nakamichi et al, 2009 18 | 77/80 | 56 (73)/21 (27) | 52 (19–77) | U | NA (3–NA) | 59 (74)/21 (26) |
| 18 | Omejec and Podnar, 2018 26 | 67/67 | 33 (49)/34 (51) | 47 (19–75) | U | 2.4 (2.2–3.4) | 55 (82)/12 (18) |
| 19 | Padua et al, 2002 19 | 27/30 | 11 (41)/16 (59) | 57 (32–76) | U | NA (0.5–1.6) | 12 (40)/18 (60) |
Abbreviations: FU, follow-up; NA, no information available; U, unspecified; VAS, visual analog scale.
a
The severity of the included cases was defined by the authors of the included studies.