Partial dorsal wrist denervation: Resection of the distal posterior interosseous nerve

Chronic dorsal wrist pain limits hand function. This article details preoperative diagnostic nerve block and patient selection criteria, operative technique for partial dorsal wrist denervation, and results of nonoperative as well as operative treatment for pain transmitted via the distal posterior interosseous nerve. More than 90% of the patients treated with the partial dorsal wrist denervation procedure achieved subjective relief of pain and objective improvement in wrist function, with 83% returning to work. Function did not improve in the group with fractures associated with reflex sympathetic dystrophy, and three of the four patients with rotary subluxation of the scaphoid subsequently required wrist fusion.