Finite Element Modeling of the Human Wrist: A Review

Abstract

Background Understanding wrist biomechanics is important to appreciate and treat the wrist joint. Numerical methods, specifically, finite element method (FEM), have been used to overcome experimental methods' limitations. Due to the complexity of the wrist and difficulty in modeling, there is heterogeneity and lack of consistent methodology in the published studies, challenging our ability to incorporate information gleaned from the various studies. Questions/Purposes This study summarizes the use of FEM to study the wrist in the last decade. Methods We included studies published from 2012 to 2022 from databases: EBSCO, Research4Life, ScienceDirect, and Scopus. Twenty-two studies were included. Results FEM used to study wrist in general, pathology, and treatment include diverse topics and are difficult to compare directly. Most studies evaluate normal wrist mechanics, all modeling the bones, with fewer studies including cartilage and ligamentous structures in the model. The dynamic effect of the tendons on wrist mechanics is rarely accounted for. Conclusion Due to the complexity of wrist mechanics, the current literature remains incomplete. Considering published strategies and modeling techniques may aid in the development of more comprehensive and improved wrist model fidelity.