What is a wrist denervation?

Wrist denervation addresses symptomatic wrist pain without the morbidity and complication profile of more extensive surgical procedures aimed to correct the underlying pathology. The concept of wrist denervation is not new, but its practical application has been modified over the past 50 years.

How successful is wrist surgery for arthritis?

Results After Surgery In patients who undergo surgery for wrist arthritis, most will find relief of some or all of their pain. While function is not normal after wrist arthritis surgery, it is most often better than the patient experienced before surgery.

What is muscle denervation?

Muscle denervation in a patient is suggested by signs of muscle weakness and wasting (i.e., atrophy), especially when it is in the distribution of muscles innervated by a single nerve root or peripheral nerve.

What happens after a wrist joint denervation procedure?

A denervation procedure will leave you with several smaller incision wounds on the wrist. Like every other surgical wound each of those small incisions requires careful monitoring. This is the only way to secure a regular healing course. Swellings and Reddenings during the wound healing process are a rare occurrence, but they are possible.

Are there nerve blocks for wrist joint denervations?

There have been a variety of attempts to come up with forecasts on wrist joint denervations based on so called “trial nerve blocks”.

Who is the ideal candidate for wrist denervation?

The ideal candidate is a skeletally mature individual with a chronic, painful radiocarpal wrist condition causing sufficient wrist pain to warrant a surgical procedure after exhausting nonoperative methods.

How does a denervation of a nerve work?

A denervation is a procedure that aims to permanently stop a nerve transmitting pain. The nerve is destroyed by heating it with an electrical current from a special device, called a radio-frequency machine. This treatment is usually done after procedures, such as facet joint or sacro iliac injections, have been effective.