Quantitative perioperative pain assessment using PainVision® in carpal tunnel release: a retrospective observational study.

Objective assessment of perioperative pain remains challenging. The PainVision® device is designed to quantitatively estimate pain intensity, but its clinical utility for perioperative pain assessment following carpal tunnel release remains unclear. This retrospective study analyzed pain results for 21 hands in 17 patients who underwent carpal tunnel release. Pain intensity was assessed preoperatively and on postoperative day 1 using a visual analog scale (VAS) and the PainVision®-derived pain degree (PD). Both VAS and PD were significantly decreased on postoperative day 1 (p < 0.001 each; r = 0.74 each). Standardized magnitudes of change were similar for VAS (dav = 0.88) and PD (dav = 0.90). Patient-level sensitivity analysis accounting for bilateral cases yielded consistent findings (VAS, dav = 1.09; PD, dav = 1.18; p < 0.001 each). These findings suggest that PainVision®-derived PD can detect early perioperative changes of a magnitude comparable to those detected by VAS and may provide a quantitative measure complementary to subjective pain assessment following carpal tunnel release.