The surgical outcome and recurrence rate of tenosynovial giant cell tumor in the elbow: a literature review.

BACKGROUND: Tenosynovial giant cell tumor (TSGCT) is a rare proliferative disorder of the synovium. Because of its aggressive nature and recurrence potential, treatment of TSGCT involves surgical resection with or without synovectomy. There is currently a paucity of literature describing the surgical management of TSGCT at the elbow. The aim of this study was to evaluate clinical outcomes and recurrence rates following open and arthroscopic excision of TSGCT in the elbow.

METHODS: Electronic databases were searched for relevant articles relating to surgical management of TSGCT of the elbow. We included all patients who received surgical treatment for TSGCT, with no age limitations. We excluded any nonsurgical treatment studies. Seventy-seven articles were identified for screening, and a total of 27 patients from 24 studies were included for the review.

RESULTS: The patients' mean (standard deviation [SD]) age was 40.3 (21.7) years, and the most common presenting symptoms included pain (18/27, 66.7%), swelling (19/27, 70.4%), and decreased range of motion of the elbow (9/27, 33.3%). The majority of patients underwent open excision with or without synovectomy (23/27, 85.1%). Of those undergoing open procedures, 16 (16/23,69.6%) had diffuse TSGCT and 14 (14/23, 60.9%) remained symptom free for a mean (SD) follow-up of 38.9 (25.4) months. Four patients (4/27, 14.8%) were treated arthroscopically, all of whom had diffuse disease.

CONCLUSIONS: Our review found that open synovectomy appears to be an effective treatment for both localized and diffuse TSGCT in the elbow, and arthroscopic synovectomy is emerging as a method of surgical management for diffuse TSGCT. However, because of the limited number of patients undergoing surgery for TSGCT, further studies are needed to make a definite conclusion.