A groundbreaking type of surgery can halve the time it takes elderly patients to recover from wrist fractures, University of Hong Kong experts say.
The medical advance will be particularly important for those who rely heavily on both hands to make their living, such as drivers and tailors, or people who do not have helpers to take care of their daily needs, said Frankie Leung Ka-li, honorary clinical assistant professor with the HKU department of orthopaedics and traumatology.
The new method involved implanting a metal plate inside the wrist to reaffix its position, instead of the conventional treatment with a plaster cast, Dr Leung said. The metal plate can stay inside the body permanently or it can be removed.
Although the surgery was first used in Hong Kong at Queen Mary Hospital in 2001, doctors are now publicising the treatment after establishing its usefulness.
Patients treated with the new method can perform simple activities with their injured limb about two weeks after the one-hour operation. Patients regain their mobility and return to a normal life after about three months - instead of between four and nine months using the conventional casting.
The medical professor said the new surgery was specially designed for older people, for whom broken wrists are among the most common injuries. Elderly people usually take longer to recover.
Dr Leung explained that the new surgery might not be appropriate for young patients, whose wrist fractures were usually more severe than elderly people's because of their different bone conditions.