Buying Time: Long-Term Results of Wrist Denervation and Time to Repeat Surgery.

This study reviews long-term outcomes of partial wrist denervation focusing on need for and time to revision procedure. A retrospective study was conducted of all patients undergoing partial wrist denervation between 1994 and 2014. At average latest follow-up of 6.75 years (range, 1-21 years), clinical and radiographic data and need for revision surgery were recorded. There were 100 wrists in 89 patients (61 male, 28 female) with average age at surgery of 54 years (range, 26-80). Principal diagnoses were arthritis (58%), inflammatory (19%), and posttraumatic arthritis (7%). Average flexion-extension arc was 83% and grip strength 75% of unaffected extremity. Average Mayo Wrist Scores improved from 48 preoperatively to 77 postoperatively. Sixty-nine percent of patients did not undergo other procedures during the time interval studied. Thirty-one percent underwent revision at an average of 26 months following denervation (range, 2-165). Partial wrist denervation is a motion-preserving procedure for patients with refractory wrist pain with 69% in this series requiring no further procedures. The remaining 31% experienced average symptom relief for 2 years prior to ultimately undergoing revision operation.