Functional Outcome of Acute Minimally Displaced Scaphoid Waist Fractures Treated with Percutaneous Headless Compression Screw Fixation: A Prospective Cohort Study

Abstract

Introduction: Scaphoid fracture incidence has increased recently due to increased participation of people in sports and increased road traffic accidents and easy availability of diagnostic tools like Computed Tomography (CT), which help in easily diagnosing scaphoid fractures, and may be missed on routine radiographs. Aim: To evaluate the functional outcome of surgical intervention with percutaneous headless compression screw fixation for acute minimally displaced scaphoid fractures. Materials and Methods: The present study was a prospective cohort study in which patients with acute fractures of scaphoid bone managed with percutaneous headless compression screw fixation were included between January 2020 to December 2022 and were evaluated using the Modified Mayo Wrist Score (MMWS) and Disabilities of Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) score. The data obtained was entered into a Microsoft Excel sheet, and statistical analysis was performed using a Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20.0. Results: The study included 55 patients with a mean age of 32.9 years, out of which 43 were males and 12 were females. Road traffic accident injuries were in 19 patients, 17 were sports injuries and 19 were due to direct trauma. All patients were managed by percutaneous headless compression screw fixation. Among these, 27 patients showed excellent outcomes, 24 showed good outcomes, and four showed fair outcomes. Conclusion: This study shows that percutaneous fixation of minimally displaced scaphoid fractures results in early symptomatic relief and functional recovery. It shows that percutaneous fixation using a headless compression screw has similar functional outcomes and less hospital stay and patient scarring than in open fixation methods. Functional recovery is faster with percutaneous fixation than in non operative and open fixation.