The Surgery of the Wrist in Rheumatoid Arthritis

The experience of the surgery of the wrist in rheumatoid arthritis over a six‐year period (1964–1970) at Rancho Los Amigos Hospital in Southern California is reported. One hundred and sixteen operations were performed on 75 patients. The procedures fell into two groups: (I) Decompression and removal of exuberant synovium; and (2) Reconstruction of deranged wrists. In the latter group it was felt that wrist fusion was an unsatisfactory procedure, and that the operation of pseudofusion gave a much more satisfactory functional result.