Hi all,
I just thought I'd ask if anyone had experience of scapholunate ligament tears, whether partial or complete, and how they were treated.
I'm a doctor, but not a wrist specialist (!) so I know a reasonable amount in terms of the basics but obviously there's not that much in the literature specifically addressed to climbers. I guess my main questions are:
1) Has anyone got any experience of this injury, and what advice did you get and from whom?
2) Has anyone had reconstructive surgery and been able to go back to climbing after?
3) Does anyone have any recommendations for an awesome wrist surgeon who appreciates that some people really, really want to keep climbing, and that just packing it in isn't really an option? (My surgeon seems really good but understandably doesn't have much patience for me wanting to keep climbing...)
Thanks! For anyone who's interested, my long and boring tale to date is written below...
Pete.
I reckon (although I'm far from sure) that the original injury happened just over a year ago in Yosemite, probably torquing hard off a fist jam - it really wasn't that bad at the time, and I didn't lose any climbing time at all, but ever since my left wrist has felt a bit "loose" and unstable, particularly when doing open-handed hangs. In that year I've climbed as hard as I ever have and it's not really held me back.
About a month ago I did something else to it during an indoor wall session - not really sure what - but it was sore and stiff for about 5-7 days during which it was definitely impingeing on dressing/washing and my job. During that time I decided I'd better get it seen to in case it wasn't going to get better or in case I was putting my wrist at risk by ignoring it. Found a friendly orthopaedic surgeon (who is a hand/wrist specialist) and got myself a dynamic CT (fancy but not much use diagnostically) and, just today, an MR arthrogram, which has shown a partial scapholunate ligament tear.
Now, in the meantime my wrist is essentially back to how it's been since the original injury in Yosemite - not painful but a bit loose and wobbly, and I've had no problems going back to light training (including one-arm lock + lowers, static campus rung hangs, gentle bouldering). I can't do press ups (pain on wrist hyperextensions) but I've been doing tuck planches on clenched fists. So it's not like my wrist is really causing me much of a problem at the moment. My concern is that looking at the very varied literature around the place, there's a risk of progression of these injuries, and I certainly don't want to end up with an arthritic and useless wrist in a few years' time... But I also don't want arthroscopes, knives or bits of tendons (which may not stand up to further fist jams) stuck into my wrist unnecessarily. Hence the request for information.
Cheers for reading!
