Abstract
We report on a patient who developed septic wrist arthritis with destruction of the entire carpus due to osteomyelitis following percutaneous pinning of a fifth metacarpal base fracture. Arthrodesis was performed using a 6 cm vascularized iliac bone graft. This case report may sharpen the surgeon’s awareness of risks in orthopedic surgeries, even though the procedure seems to be rather simple and the patient is young and seems to be healthy.
Highlights
Septic wrist arthritis (SWA) is defined as an infection of involving one or all of the radio-carpal, mid-carpal, distal radio-ulnar and carpo-metacarpal joints
We present a case of an end stage SWA with complete loss of the bony carpus following percutaneous pinning of the fifth carpo-metacarpal (CMC) joint, resulting in a total wrist arthrodesis
A second fistula was found in the middle dorsum of the wrist
Summary
Septic wrist arthritis (SWA) is defined as an infection of involving one or all of the radio-carpal, mid-carpal, distal radio-ulnar and carpo-metacarpal joints. The infection can extend into the carpal tunnel and the surrounding subcutaneous tissues [1]. We present a case of an end stage SWA with complete loss of the bony carpus following percutaneous pinning of the fifth carpo-metacarpal (CMC) joint, resulting in a total wrist arthrodesis.
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