Treatment of radial dysplasia by a combination of distraction, radialisation and a bilobed flap - the results at 5-year follow-up.

Abstract

Thirty-nine hands with radial dysplasia were prospectively treated between 1998 and 2005 by a combination of distraction, followed by radialisation, using bilobed flaps to redistribute the skin at the wrist. Correction of radial deviation and volar subluxation in 29 hands with an average follow-up of 6.5 years has been assessed. In 21 hands, the length and breadth of the ulna were measured in the corrected hands and compared to the contralateral normal ulna for length and contralateral normal radii for breadth at 5-year follow-up. The average length of the ulna was 72%, which was notably better than that reported in earlier series.