Surgical treatment of carpal boss by simple resection: Results in 25 cases at a mean of 8 years’ follow-up

Abstract

Carpal boss is a symptomatic bony protrusion on the dorsal surface of the wrist at the base of the 2nd and/or 3rd metacarpal. The goal of this study was to assess the reliability and safety of simply resecting the exostosis. From 1994 to 2014, 29 cases of carpal boss were treated by simple resection. Twenty-five of these patients were subsequently assessed by telephone questionnaire at a mean of 8 years’ follow-up (range 1.1 to 20 years). There were no cases of recurrence; however, 1 patient reported carpometacarpal instability requiring fusion, 5 years after surgery. Eight of the 24 patients without fusion (33%) reported moderate episodic pain (visual analog scale [VAS] pain: mean, 2.3/10, range 1 to 4). Range of motion improved in 8 cases (33%), was unchanged in 11 (46%) and decreased in 5 (21%). Twenty patients (83%) had no functional impairment; 4 reported impairment during unusual hand movements. Fifteen patients considered themselves cured (60%), 9 considered their status improved (36%) and one – the patient who required fusion – considered his status unchanged. Patients were very satisfied with the procedure in 15 cases (60%) and satisfied in 10 (40%). In all cases, features of dysplasia were present and associated with secondary osteoarthritis limited to the area of impingement. The single failure was most likely due to excessive bone resection. Simple exostosis resection is sufficient to effectively treat carpal boss. Fusion should be reserved for the rare cases of secondary metacarpal instability.