Arthur Peabody

The ulna of my right arm doesn't connect to the wrist. Lately (after 60 years) it's begun to hurt, especially when I ride. The 'repair' (a Sauve-Kapandji, for example) doesn't always work and sounds unpleasant. Has anyone a similar problem for which s/he has successfully adjusted?

phoebeisis

You will adjust to it
and yes your initial thought-AVOID SURGERY- is right
I would suggest changing handle bars to old fashioned upright 1950's bars
the sort of bars EVERYONE in China and India had/have on their actual transportation bikes
put more weight on you "hips" less on hands
your hands wrists neck will thanks you
Yes get a saddle with significant cut-out to protect the nerves blood vessels and urethra
I actually have trained myself to sit on one side then another-almost on my hamstrings/butt
Oh well -good luck-get the weight off your wrist-forget the surgery

Siu Blue Wind

Do you mean like these "Mary" bars?

phoebeisis

Yes like those
or even more old school
like all the bikes in USA up until 1962 or so- except a few
"10 speeds as we called them"

censor ?? not sure what you mean? none of my post was censor worthy-?

Siu Blue Wind

Oh that's just my sig. I wasn't meant for you.

phoebeisis

Ahhhh-got it-
and on that note- of not understanding but curious
what is Siu Blue Wind ?
something to do with that "sea turtle" sea tortoise?

anyway nice upright bars-weight on Posterior part of hips pelvis- is much easier on wrists and neck

Road Fan

I have a distal radial fracture, which is now healing pretty well, after surgery with addition of a plate. What are the issues you see with surgery?

Siu is one of the senior moderators here, if not currently the most senior one. Pretty decent one, too!

I can't explain the name, not that it needs explaining.

Arthur Peabody

I had an osteochondroma on the distal end of the ulna congenitally. After an injury when I was 17, it was removed, leaving a gap between the ulna and the DRUJ. 25 years ago a hand surgeon recommended a Kapandji 'reconstruction' but also said, 'We have 6 different reconstructions for this because we don't know what we're doing.' (Fun fact: he treated Mick Jagger.) I read up on these reconstructions at UCLA's medical library (not the Internet); they often went awry and didn't always improve their patients' arms. I demurred.

The wrist has begun to hurt, occasionally making the hand unusable, apparently in response to long bicycle rides (my favorite pastime). I've thought about surgery again so ask here.

Does your ulna meet your DRUJ? Does the plate repair the ulna? None of the reconstructions offered to me involve a plate, perhaps because the joint is too mobile.

Leisesturm

Recumbent bike?

CliffordK

It may not hurt to get another orthopedic consult.

It is quite possible there has been new advances in the last 25 years since your last consult.

I'm even seeing notes on wrist replacement surgery (both positive and negative outcomes).

Anyway, talk to your orthopedists, then do the research yourself. Perhaps hop onto Medscape (local University library?) and look for clinical trials and reviews of the procedure the doctors discuss.

Road Fan

Not sure what the DRUJ is, but I have a break that separated the head of the ulna from the ”shaft.” The head was also split so the bone pieces were kind of a jumble, rather deformed in appearance and immobile. The surgery was a reduction, to restore correct orientation. The X-rays show the plate connecting the pieces together in shapes that the doc says are what the bones are supposed to look like. The radius and ulna are not rubbing against each other or the wrist bones as far as I can see.

So I would say the plate repairs the ulna. It does not connect any bone that was not originally connected.

Ohhhh, it must be distal radial-ulnal joint? What does it mean to meet that joint? Seems to me both bones are parts of that joint, no? Or is that the basis of the gap you mentioned? If so, then my ulna is now clearly a part of that joint. Probably my situation is rather different from yours, if I’m jumping to the right conclusions. But I’m not ANY sort of a doctor.

And I’m gonna jump just a bit further, to surmise that your wrist has too much mobility because of the gap that is present.

Road Fan

Arthur, what do you think about adding an aerobar to your road bike, and using the elbow/forearm pad to support your weight, rather than your hand and wrist? I'm working on making a set of foam bar-top pads to crudely prototype this idea, since I have never ridden with aerobars.