Partial arthroscopic trapeziectomy with ligament reconstruction to treat primary thumb basal joint osteoarthritis

Since the outcome of partial trapeziectomy is not always satisfactory, we proposed using arthroscopy to perform partial trapeziectomy and to perform ligament reconstruction with the abductor pollicis longus tendon. A tendon strip was left intact at its insertion at the base of the first metacarpal and then slipped into the trapeziectomy space. It was fixed into a blind tunnel at the base of the second metacarpal with a bioabsorbable interference screw. Forty-nine patients were surgically treated between 2006 and 2009. With an average follow-up of 3.6 years, 83.5% of patients were satisfied with the procedure; 96% of thumbs were stable and 74% were pain free. The average recovery time was 4.5 months. There were four cases of radial nerve branch irritation and one case of flexor carpi radialis tendinitis; there were no cases of complex regional pain syndrome. This minimally-invasive technique is a less-aggressive treatment approach for thumb carpometacarpal joint arthritis, which simplify postoperative recovery.