Cartilaginous and ligamentous degeneration of the wrist. Anatomic study

The growing precision of diagnostic techniques (MRI, arthrography, arthroscopy) and the consequent increase of the diagnosis of cartilaginous and ligamentous lesions of the wrist led us to undertake a detailed anatomical study of the carpus and to extend this study to the search for correlations between these lesions and the radio-ulnar index. Fifty one cadaveric wrists were dissected from an elderly population (mean age of 76 years). Cartilaginous lesions were found in two-thirds of radioulnar joints of the wrist with a marked predominance for the lunate bone (43%). The triangular cartilage of the fibrocartilaginous complex (TFCC) was perforated in 23 wrists (46%). We established a correlation between the radio-ulnar index and perforations of the TFCC (p < 0.05), as well as the thickness of this structure (p < 0.05). The relationship between age and rupture of intrinsic ligaments (p < 0.05), and the radio-ulnar index (p < 0.05) and age was also established. We present our figures, discuss the clinical implications, and draw the following conclusions from this study. 1) The carpus is a complex joint which is subject to age-related degeneration. 2) The large number of cartilaginous lesions observed in this study must be taken into account in the interpretation of MRI and the "over" precise results of arthroscopy.