Nanchahal J, Tonkin M A
Department of Hand Surgery, Royal North Shore Hospital, Sydney, Australia.
J Hand Surg Br. 1996 Feb;21(1):103-7. doi: 10.1016/s0266-7681(96)80022-2.
Patients treated for total radial aplasia have been reviewed. It was possible to re-align the carpus by radialization in five out of six limbs treated with pre-operative distraction, but in only one out of six treated without distraction. The average improvement in radial angulation in the non-distraction group was 19 degrees and in the distraction group 38 degrees. The average improvement in radial translation was 16 mm and 17 mm in the two groups respectively. Pre-operative distraction with the Kessler device permits re-alignment of the hand without skeletal resection or excessive tension on the radial neurovascular structures.
