A new surgical technique for the ligament reconstruction of the trapeziometacarpal joint

Isolated traumatic dislocation of the trapeziometacarpal joint is rare compared with fracture-dislocation of the joint. The mechanism of injury is usually axial loading on a flexed thumb metacarpal, leading to dorsal dislocation of the joint. Closed reduction with immobilization is an acceptable method of treatment if the joint is stable after the reduction. Otherwise, early ligamentous reconstruction is recommended to reduce the likelihood of secondary arthritis. Various surgical techniques have been used to reestablish the ligamentous integrity of the joint; however, these techniques usually reconstruct only 1 or 2 ligaments around the joint. The current technique is aimed to reconstruct all 4 ligaments of the trapeziometacarpal joint using a half strip of extensor carpi radialis brevis tendon.