Capitate Fracture Subsequent to Capitolunate Staple Fusion: A Case Report

We report a case of a 71-year-old man who underwent capitolunate fusion for scapholunate advanced collapse. At the patient's 4-month follow-up, there was evidence of a fracture at the distal staple tine. He subsequently underwent removal of staple hardware with revision open reduction internal fixation using headless compression screw fixation and bone grafting. The literature review aimed to identify possible mechanisms and analyze similar cases of this complication. We presume that the fracture resulted from increased stress on the bone from both drill holes and the orientation of the staples. Placing the tines in different planes may decrease the risk of this complication.