What should I expect from ganglion cyst surgery? (November 2012 recording)
On the channel as “Ganglion Cyst of The Wrist - Frequently Asked Questions”
This is the November 2012 upload of the ganglion cyst question and answer, one of two on this site. Dr. Knight covers the MRI, why draining the cyst with a needle often is not enough, and what recovery involves.
This is a transcript of a recorded talk from 2012. Any figures mentioned are from the recording and are not statements about current results or the practice.
Read the transcript 311 words
The transcript below is what Dr. Knight says in the video. We corrected the anatomy, drug and device names the automatic captions got wrong and added the punctuation and paragraph breaks. No words were changed, added or taken out. The uncorrected machine transcript is kept on file.
Transcript
We frequently obtain an MRI of the wrist to determine the makeup of the mass. In about 50% of cases the actual cyst does not even show up on the MRI. Therefore when we do surgery we take out the tissue, send it to the lab and have it analyzed to confirm the diagnosis.
Patients with ganglion cysts sometimes have the fluid aspirated, or sucked out of the cyst through a needle. This is largely ineffective and has a high recurrence rate, and also can damage an important ligament within the wrist while trying to do so. The definitive treatment is to remove the cyst surgically and send this to the lab to have this analyzed.
Removal of a ganglion cyst surgically is about a 15 minute outpatient surgical procedure performed under a general anesthetic to make sure the patient is not moving during the procedure. It requires taking the cyst out all the way down to the wrist joint. Frequently I perform this with arthroscopic assistance, placing a 1.9 millimeter camera lens into the wrist to look around the wrist to assure that there are no other ligament or cartilage injuries within the wrist joint.
After removal of the ganglion cyst you're placed in a splint for several days and then begin rehabilitation. Usually the total recovery is about 6 weeks, but you're quickly transitioning back into your normal activities within days to weeks. Overall soreness may persist for up to 6 weeks.
Once the ganglion cyst is removed it is highly unlikely to return or recur. In about 5% of cases the ganglion cyst may come back. This is more likely when the cyst is on the front of the wrist, where the dissection involves the nerves and arteries and you can't be near as aggressive removing the cyst in that area, therefore leading to a higher recurrence rate.