A single awkward movement, an accidental blow against a door handle or a fall on a straight arm will be enough to cause an injury to a wrist joint or a hand. Injuries to those body structures account for over one third of all injuries that require assistance of an orthopedist-traumatologist.
A wrist joint and a hand, anatomy and physiology of movements
This joint is made up of several components:
- distal ulna and distal radius bones
- interarticular disc
- proximal wrist bones – a navicular bone, a lunate bone, a triquetral bone and a pisiform bone
They are interconnected with fiber bands and ligaments.
It is a complex joint by its structure. A shape of an ellipse or an oval allows movements on two axes – sagittal and frontal. This provides for multifunctionality of a joint and allows delicate and precise movements, in particular, adduction, abduction, pronation, supination and slight rotation in a joint, supported by high mobility of a ligament structure. An articular capsule of a joint is thing, especially in its palm area, linked with a lunate collateral ligament to a wrist. Elbow collateral ligament is located on the elbow side of a wrist. Other palmar and backside lunate ligaments are located on palmar and back surfaces of a wrist.
A wrist is a free-moving part of an upper limb, which consists of wrist bones, a metapodium and phalanges.
Wrist bone structure consists of eight short spongy bones aligned in two rows:
- Proximal – navicular, lunate, cuneiform and pisiform bones;
- Distal – trapezium bone, trapezoid, capitate and hooked bones;
How to diagnose and tell apart radiocarpal joint and wrist injuries?
All injuries can be attributed to either of the categories:
- Fractures of lower parts of lunate and elbow bones, wrist bones and a hand
- Dislocation of a hand or phalanges
- Fractures with dislocations in a lunate joint and a hand
- Sprained ligaments of a lunate joint and hand
- Hand, wrist maims
Traumatic injuries, such as fractures, can be closed or open depending on presence of skin tissue raptures at the end of a broken bone.
Diagnostics of wrist or hand injuries is usually quite simple. Typical signs include:
- Large bruising area
- Crackle feeling of raptured bones inside the wound or under the skin
- Swelling
- Inability to do active movements and restricted passive movements in a wrist and a hand
Open fractures are followed by bleeding, tissue raptures and relevant clinical manifestations such as strong pain, loss of touch and temperature response, feeling of burning or pins and needles.
During an examination, an experienced orthopedist-traumatologist might assign an X-ray of the damaged area to have a better visual of the injuries. If greater detail is required a doctor might carry out a computer tomography.
Wrist surgery in Zaporizhia
Any injuries sustained to a wrist or a hand require an immediate medical attention. Any delay can lead to complications, longer rehabilitation period and possibly can result in a restricted mobility or its entire loss. In our clinic in Zaporizhia, qualified orthopedist-traumatologist provide round-the-clock surgical assistance to patients with wrist injuries. Our centre of micro-surgery has all the professional equipment in order to treat the injured limb and restore its full functionality within the shortest time possible. Our surgeries have state-of-the-art equipment, and our doctors regularly upgrade their skills in the best clinics of Europe and the world. All this allows us to provide medical services at an exceptionally high standard. We will be able to give you a treatment at any hour, and we will make sure that you will live your life without any memories about the injury.