Range of movement in the wrist as a diagnostic tool in radial-sided wrist pain

Kienböck disease is diagnosed by imaging studies, and is often difficult to diagnose in its early stages. Our clinical impression is that wrist movement is more limited in Kienböck disease than when radial-sided wrist pain is caused by other conditions. The purpose of this study was to determine the use of wrist movement in differentiating between early Kienböck disease and radial-sided sprained wrist. We retrospectively reviewed 62 cases of Kienböck disease and 49 patients with radial-sided wrist sprain. Wrist movement at presentation was recorded. The two groups differed significantly in flexion and extension (p<0.001). The ability of movement of the affected wrist relative to the normal side to distinguish between the groups was excellent (AUC = 0.96, 0.97, respectively). The ability of wrist movement measurements to differentiate between early Kienböck disease and radial-sided wrist sprain emphasises that wrist movement should be measured prior to invasive or expensive testing.