Shorter thumb cast may speed recovery after arthritis surgery
NCT ID NCT04828954
First seen Jun 24, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tests whether wearing a thumb cast for 2 weeks after surgery is as good as wearing it for 6 weeks for people with thumb arthritis. About 90 adults aged 40 and older will be randomly assigned to one of the two recovery plans. Researchers will track pain, hand function, and disability over a year to find the best balance between healing and avoiding stiffness.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- postoperative immobilization protocol
- What this could lead to
- If this trial succeeds, it could show that a shorter 2-week immobilization period is just as effective as 6 weeks, leading to faster recovery and less stiffness after thumb arthritis surgery.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage trial with only 90 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. The study compares two standard care options, so no dramatic breakthrough is expected.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 90 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Apr 2021
- Expected to finish
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Aug 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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40 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Age \>= 40 years old * Patients undergoing arthroplasty of the first CMC joint including: 1. Trapeziectomy with LRTI 2. Simple Trapeziectomy 3. Suspensionplasty (suture vs. APL) Exclusion Criteria: * Patients \< 40 years of age * Patients who have undergone prior surgical procedures on the thumb base * Patients with history of prior procedure at the base of thumb, or those with plan for concomitant carpal tunnel release or thumb metacarpophalangeal (MCP) arthrodesis, will be excluded. Concomitant carpal tunnel surgery may skew outcome surveys, and an arthrodesis procedure will warrant a longer length of immobilization following procedure. * Those undergoing implant arthroplasty * Patients with a diagnosis of inflammatory arthritis * Patients with diagnosis of hypermobility syndrome
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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University of Chicago Medicine
RECRUITINGChicago, Illinois, 60637, United States
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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