Hand/Wrist News

SAN FRANCISCO — Although patients with subacute-to-chronic metacarpophalangeal joint collateral ligament tears who underwent primary repair had restored joint stability, they also had reduced grip strength and residual disability, according to a presentation at the American Society for Surgery of the Hand Annual Meeting, here.

SAN FRANCISCO — Researchers found a low risk of mechanical failure in patients with osteoporosis who had distal radius fracture fixation with a volar locking plate, according to a presenter here.

SAN FRANCISCO — Use of a multi-modal pain program reduced the number of narcotic analgesics taken by patients after distal radial fracture surgery, according to a presenter here at the American Society for Surgery of the Hand Annual Meeting.

SAN FRANCISCO — Researchers found distal radius fractures occurred in a young population of men compared to women, but screening tools for osteoporosis were rarely used in men, according to a presenter at the American Society for Surgery of the Hand Annual Meeting, here.

SAN FRANCISCO — Patients who had a simultaneous bilateral carpal tunnel release as part of a planned staged release showed no increased short-term impairment when compared to patients who received a unilateral release, according to results of this study presented at the American Society for Surgery of the Hand Annual Meeting, here.

SAN FRANCISCO — Researchers found a higher success rate using a percutaneous trigger finger release technique to treat trigger finger rather than corticosteroids in patients with diabetes, according to a presenter, here.

SAN FRANCISCO — The future of upper extremity surgery education will be through electronic media, with residents and fellows using distance learning, surgical simulation and smartphone apps, according to a speaker at the American Society for Surgery of the Hand Annual Meeting, here.

Arthroscopic debridement is a viable treatment for patients with dorsal wrist syndrome, according to a researcher who presented results with the technique.

The introduction of rule-based standardized treatment and new surgical methods have given the orthopaedic community hope to improve the results after distal radius fracture both at short-term with return to normal and long-term with fewer patients having complaints after a year. With the use of a standardized patient outcome instrument — DASH — the patient’s opinion of the result can be recorded and with the follow-up taking place entirely via mail, large cohorts can be followed. But, the DASH instrument seems to be too blunt to be able to show a difference, if there is any, according to Swedish researchers.

Solana Surgical has launched FuseFORCE SuperElastic Fixation System for use in the fusion of small joints in the foot and ankle, and hand and wrist.