Treatment of Infected Nonunion of Distal Radius with Concurrent Distal Radioulnar Joint Disruption

Abstract

Case: A 37-year-old farmer presented with previously operated open type 2 infected nonunion of distal radius. A wrist-spanning external fixator was applied after implant removal, debridement, and postoperative antibiotics for 6 weeks. At 6 weeks' follow-up, a volar locking plate and bone grafting for the gap nonunion over distal radius and the modified Sauve-Kapandji procedure for distal radioulnar joint (DRUJ) were performed. The patient had excellent results at 3 years' follow-up. Conclusion: Distal radius nonunion with disrupted DRUJ can be treated with internal fixation, and the modified Sauve-Kapandji technique provided thorough debridement is performed.