Corticosteroid or hyaluronic acid injections to the carpometacarpal joint of the thumb joint are associated with early complications after subsequent surgery.

Truven MarketScan® Databases were used to identify patients with thumb carpometacarpal arthritis who underwent surgical treatment. Pre-operative corticosteroid or hyaluronic acid injections were identified, as were post-operative complications. Multivariable regressions assessed the relationship between injections and complications. Of 16,268 patients, 4462 had steroid injections and 252 received hyaluronic acid injections. Twenty-one per cent (3381 patients) had post-operative complications. Diabetes and smoking increased the odds of complications in all models. Odds of any complication, most notably infectious complications, were increased 20% by corticosteroids (OR 1.2; 95% CI: 1.1 to 1.3). More than three injections increased the odds of a complication by 70% (OR 1.7; 95% CI: 1.3 to 2.1). Hyaluronic acid increased the odds of wound-healing complications by 110% (OR 2.1; 95% CI: 1.3 to 3.4). Corticosteroid and hyaluronic acid injections for thumb carpometacarpal arthritis increase the odds of post-operative complications. Level of evidence: IV.