Wrist and forearm range of motion commencement time following primary triangular fibrocartilage complex foveal repair surgery: A scoping review

• Published in: Journal of hand therapy Vol. 36; no. 1; pp. 179 - 195
• Main Authors: McCarron, Luke, Bindra, Randy, Coombes, Brooke K, Bisset, Leanne
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01.01.2023; Elsevier Limited
• Subjects: Adverse events; Arthroscopy - methods; Clinical practice guidelines; Comparative studies; Forearm; Guidelines; Humans; Ligament; Ligaments; Magnetic resonance imaging; Prospective Studies; Range of motion; Range of Motion, Articular; Rehabilitation; Retrospective Studies; Scoping review; Surgery; Trauma; Triangular fibrocartilage; Triangular Fibrocartilage - surgery; Wrist; Wrist Injuries - surgery; Wrist Joint - surgery; Wrist; Scoping review; Ligament; Range of motion; Rehabilitation; Triangular fibrocartilage
• ISSN: 0894-1130; 1545-004X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jht.2021.10.004

•TFCC rehabilitation following foveal repair surgery was inconsistently reported.•TFCC rehabilitation protocols varied between the included studies.•Adverse events were rarely reported to have occurred.•No study provided any supporting literature to justify rehabilitation recommendations. Scoping review. Rehabilitation guidelines following triangular fibrocartilage complex (TFCC) foveal repair surgery have been inconsistently reported in the published literature, with no consensus regarding wrist or forearm range of motion (ROM) commencement time. To scope the available literature to identify the extent and strength of the evidence supporting the clinical guidelines for wrist and forearm ROM commencement time following primary TFCC foveal repair surgery. A systematic search produced 26 studies (3 retrospective cohort studies, 1 prospective cohort study, 1 retrospective comparative study, and 21 retrospective case series) that described specific rehabilitation protocols following TFCC foveal repair surgery. No supporting evidence was identified regarding rehabilitation protocol recommendations across all the included studies. Postsurgery wrist ROM commencement ranged from 2 to 8 weeks; forearm ROM commencement ranged from 2 to 12 weeks. ROM commencement times did not appear to systematically influence the rate of adverse events, although adverse events were poorly reported. TFCC rehabilitation protocols were poorly reported and varied widely between the included studies. Additional research is recommended to comprehensively evaluate the association between wrist and/or forearm ROM and the rate of adverse events for this complex and multifaceted condition.