Self-Perceived Hand Normality Before and After Surgical Treatment of Dupuytren Contracture

Purpose To describe patients’ self-reported hand normality before and after surgery for Dupuytren contracture and to determine whether this metric could be used as an adjunct to determine the success of surgery. Methods Preoperative and 1-year postoperative Quick–Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand and EuroQol 5-Dimensions 5-level scores were collected prospectively over 5 years. Patients were asked “How normal is your hand?” Scores were recorded on a 100-point visual analog scale. Outcomes were available for 296 patients (77%). Results Median hand normality score improved significantly from 50 to 86 after surgery. Effect size of the change in normality was 1.2 SDs. The change in normality score correlated significantly with the Quick–Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand score. No significant floor or ceiling effects were observed. Conclusions This study introduced the concept of self-perceived hand normality in Dupuytren disease. Hand normality improved after surgery for Dupuytren disease, and this score performed favorably compared with preexisting outcome measures, which suggests it may be a useful adjunct to gauge the success of surgery. Clinical relevance This study introduces the concept of self-perceived hand normality in patients undergoing surgery for Dupuytren disease and quantifies improvement observed after surgery.