Analysis of functional outcome of management of scaphoid waist fractures with herbert screw fixation

Introduction: Fractures of the scaphoid bone mainly occur in young adults and constitute 70%–80% of all carpal bone fractures. The aim of our study was to assess the functional outcome of undisplaced and minimally displaced scaphoid fractures with percutaneous Herbert screw fixation. Materials and Methods: We conducted a prospective study from 2016 to 2018 including patients of more than 18 years of both sexes with waist fractures of scaphoid excluding avulsion fractures and compound injuries. The functional outcome of patients was assessed with the Modified Mayo Wrist Score (MMWS) at a minimum of 1-year follow-up. Results: Fifteen patients (M: F = 12:3) with a mean age of 39.4 years were enrolled in the study. The mean time to surgery after trauma was 5.75 days. Union was achieved in all the cases at a mean duration of 7.2 weeks; 93.3% (n = 14) of patients showed an excellent outcome, while the other 6.7% (n = 1) showed a good outcome with an average MMWS score of 92.6. Patients were able to reach this functional status as early as 3 months. The average duration of follow-up was 15 months. No major complications were encountered. Conclusion: Percutaneous Herbert screw fixation of scaphoid waist fractures provides excellent functional results enabling the patients to return to the preinjury status as early as 4 months without major complications.