Needle aponeurotomy: a treatment alternative for Dupuytren's disease.

Since the publication of Baron Dupuytren's first paper 180 years ago, the treatment of Dupuytren's disease continues to be problematic. Because of the high recurrence rate following surgery, there has been a shift to more radical surgical options. Unfortunately, this has led to more frequent and sometimes serious postoperative complications. Recently, there has been renewed interest in the original treatment for Dupuytren's disease: simple fasciotomy of the diseased cord. One method of fasciotomy is needle aponeurotomy, which can be done in the office as an outpatient with local anesthesia. The indications for the surgical treatment of Dupuytren's disease and the technique for needle aponeurotomy are discussed in this paper.