Objective To investigate the therapeutic effect of minimally invasive small incision surgery under local anesthesia for pediatric stenosing tenovaginitis of thumb. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on the medical records of children with stenosing tenovaginitis of thumb who received small incision tendinolysis under local anesthesia at West China Hospital of Sichuan University between January 2013 and August 2022, to evaluate and analyze the safety and effectiveness of the surgery. Results A total of 949 pediatric patients were included, with an average age of (3.23±1.92) years. The average duration of surgery was (7.0±2.5) minutes, and the average follow-up time was (3.91±5.32) months. All patients did not need to fast for solids and liquids before surgery, and were immediately discharged from the hospital after outpatient surgery. The family members of the patients were highly satisfied with the treatment process and postoperative recovery. All patients had no nerve or vascular damage, and the wound margin skin showed linear healing with mild scars that fused with palm prints. There were 825 cases (86.93%) of children with thumb function fully restored to normal, 113 cases (11.91%) with limited maximum dorsiflexion function of the thumb, and 11 cases (1.16%) with recurrent stiffness of the thumb metacarpophalangeal joint. Conclusion Small incision tendinolysis under local anesthesia is a safe and effective treatment for pediatric stenosing tenovaginitis of thumb, with high satisfaction among the patients’ family members.