Anatomical study comparing the thickness of the volar and dorsal cortex of cadaveric adult distal radii using digital photography

• Published in: Archives of orthopaedic and trauma surgery Vol. 127; no. 10; pp. 975 - 977
• Main Authors: Dhillon, S S, Kumar, A J Shyam, Sadaiyyappan, V, Bassi, R S, Shanahan, D, Deshmukh, S C
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Germany Springer Nature B.V 01-12-2007
• Subjects: Adult; Anatomy, Cross-Sectional; Cadaver; Digital photography; Humans; Photography; Radius - anatomy & histology
• ISSN: 0936-8051; 1434-3916
• DOI: 10.1007/s00402-007-0394-8

Dorsally displaced fractures of the distal radius fractures are one of the commonest in day-to-day practice. There is still no consensus among surgeons regarding the suitability of using volar or the dorsal cortex as basis for internal fixation for dorsally displaced fractures.
We report an anatomical study, which compares the thickness of the volar and dorsal cortices of cadaveric adult radii using digital photography.
Results of this study show that the volar cortex was statistically, significantly thicker than the dorsal cortex. We believe that the volar cortex may behave as the calcar of the distal radius and hence internal fixation devices applied to the volar cortex may provide a more stable internal fixation compared to those based on the dorsal cortex.