Changes in Sleep, Fatigue, Kinesiophobia, and Upper Extremity Function After Carpal Tunnel Release

Carpal tunnel syndrome can cause hand pain, numbness, weakness, sleep disturbance, fatigue, fear of movement, and difficulty performing daily activities. Carpal tunnel release surgery is commonly performed when symptoms are severe or do not improve with conservative treatment. However, recovery after surgery may involve changes not only in hand symptoms but also in sleep, fatigue, fear of movement, pain, and upper extremity function. The aim of this prospective observational study is to evaluate how sleep quality, fatigue, kinesiophobia, pain, carpal tunnel syndrome-related symptoms, and upper extremity function change after carpal tunnel release surgery. Adults scheduled for unilateral primary carpal tunnel release surgery as part of their routine clinical care will be invited to participate. The researchers will not assign or modify the surgical procedure, medication, rehabilitation, or other clinical treatment. Participants will be evaluated before surgery and at 4 and 8 weeks after surgery. Sleep quality will be assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Fatigue, kinesiophobia, upper extremity function, carpal tunnel syndrome-related symptoms, and pain will be assessed using the Fatigue Severity Scale, Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia, QuickDASH, Boston Carpal Tunnel Questionnaire, and Numeric Rating Scale, respectively. The study will examine changes in these outcomes over time and investigate whether improvements in sleep and fatigue are associated with reductions in pain, kinesiophobia, and carpal tunnel syndrome symptoms and with improvements in upper extremity function.