Patients with upper-extremity musculoskeletal conditions planned for surgical treatment at an orthopedic department were considered for inclusion in this study. Exclusion criteria were age below 18 years, symptom duration of less than 2 months, or inability to complete questionnaires due to cognitive impairment or language difficulties. The DASH was completed preoperatively by 118 consecutive eligible patients[7 (link)]. Postoperatively, 9 (8%) of the patients did not respond and the remaining 109 patients completed the DASH after a minimum followup time of 6 months (Table 1 ). The 2 largest diagnostic groups comprised patients who had undergone arthroscopic acromioplasty because of subacromial impingement and open carpal tunnel release because of carpal tunnel syndrome. Complete followup could be obtained for all patients in these 2 subgroups (Table 2 ).
The followup questionnaire also included an item regarding change in health status after surgery. It inquired about the status of the operated arm compared to its status preoperatively (5 response options: much better, somewhat better, unchanged, somewhat worse, much worse). This item was accidentally missing in the initially mailed questionnaires and was therefore only completed by the last 83 participants.
The followup questionnaire also included an item regarding change in health status after surgery. It inquired about the status of the operated arm compared to its status preoperatively (5 response options: much better, somewhat better, unchanged, somewhat worse, much worse). This item was accidentally missing in the initially mailed questionnaires and was therefore only completed by the last 83 participants.