Arthroscopic scapholunate dorsal capsulodesis: A 30-patient case series comparing postoperative splint immobilization...

The aim of this retrospective study was to compare the results of arthroscopic dorsal capsulodesis performed with or without temporary K-wiring to treat patients who had sustained scapholunate ligament injuries. Our case series included 30 patients with an average age of 37 years (range: 19-55) of whom 12 were female. Dorsal scapholunate capsulodesis was carried out in all patients. In 15 patients, splint immobilization only was used (group I). For the remaining 15 patients, supplementary scapholunate and scaphocapitate K-wiring was performed (group II). The outcomes, whether K-wiring was used or not, were not as good as the outcomes of other published studies. In our study, the reported QuickDASH score was on average higher than 20/100, pain score was higher than 2/10, grip strength was less than 70% of the contralateral side. There was one postoperative complication in the first group and three complications in the second group; five cases of DISI were reported in the first group and three in the second group. There were no significant differences between the two groups. Based on our findings, supplementary K-wiring is not necessary when a dorsal scapholunate capsulodesis is performed. The outcomes of our study were not as good as those of other published series, potentially due to a shorter follow-up and the more severe ligament injuries in our case series.