Fact · Accessibility and health
-0.58standardised mean difference
The 2023 Cochrane steroid review found that the symptom improvement from a steroid injection was still evident up to six months, with a standardised mean difference of -0.58 favouring the injection.
Checked against its source on October 16, 2026
In the source's own words
“Up to six months this was still evident favouring LCI (SMD -0.58, 95% CI -0.89 to -0.28; 4 RCTs, 234 participants/hands; moderate-certainty evidence).”
Local corticosteroid injection versus placebo for carpal tunnel syndrome, NL Ashworth et al., Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2023, Abstract, main results.
Open the original (DOI 10.1002/14651858.CD015148)- What it measures
- LCI is local corticosteroid injection into the carpal tunnel area. The figure is smaller than the three-month estimate of -0.77 and comes from four trials.
- What it does not show
- Based on four trials with 234 participants or hands, and follow-up to six months only. The review says benefits last up to six months, not that the condition is cured.