Editorial Commentary: Wrist Ulnar Impaction Syndrome: When I Use the Wafer Procedure and When I Do Not

Ulnar impaction syndrome is fundamentally a clinical diagnosis, which can be confirmed by magnetic resonance imaging. All palmer stages are amenable to surgical treatment with either arthroscopic wafer procedure (AWP) or ulnar shortening osteotomy, and neither the absence of a triangular fibrocartilage complex perforation nor neutral or negative variance contraindicate either. Because of its minimally invasive value proposition and likely success, there are few clinical scenarios for which I do not perform AWP preferentially. Furthermore, AWP is always preferable in smokers and in wrists in which a divergent orientation of the sigmoid notch and ulnar articular surfaces portend arthritic complication after ulnar shortening.