Rupture of Thumb's Long Extensor Tendon After Fracture of the Distal Radius, Study of Muscle and Tendon Pathology

Fractures of the wrist (fractures of the distal radius) are one of the most common fractures with almost 60 000 injuries per year in Sweden. One known complication following these fractures is that the long extensor tendon of the thumb ruptures (extensor pollicis longus tendon, EPL tendon). This leads to disability to stretch the thumb in order to grip bigger objects. Earlier studies show that the tendon ruptures in about 3-5% of all wrist fractures. These ruptures occur some weeks to months after the fracture.

There are different theories about the cause of the rupture. One theory is that the fracture creates a bleeding in the tight area that the tendon lies, leading to high pressure and therefore low blood supply to the tendon. Another theory is that the tendon comes in contact with some sharp bonny fragments in this area that injures the tendon when it moves.

Such tendon ruptures need almost always some type of surgical intervention in order to reconstruct the function of the thumb. A common problem is that the quality of the tendon is insufficient for just suturing it. Another problem is that the muscle becomes stiff after the rupture. However, there is no objective method to determine how stiff the muscle is.

The most common treatment option is the transfer of one of the two extensor tendons of the index finger to the thumb, a so-called extensor indicis proprius to extensor pollicis longus transfer. The motivation behind this operation is that the muscle of EPL is so stiff that cannot be used to lift the thumb. However, there is no consensus about the time period after which the EPL muscle can be used to reconstruct the function of thumb.

The study aims to investigate the microscopical changes in the muscle and tendon of EPL after such a rupture. Better knowledge of these factors could lead to better understanding of the treatment options.

The investigators plan to include in the study all patients that would get operated for an EPL tendon rupture after a fracture of the distal radius at the institution the study is conducted. After oral and written information to the patient and written consent the investigators will take some samples from the ruptured tendon and muscle for microscopical analysis.