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A Patient's Guide to Excision Arthroplasty of the Thumb Introduction Thumb arthritis may be surgically treated with a procedure called excision arthroplasty. The term excision means to "take out." In this surgery, the surgeon takes out a small bone at the base of the thumb and fills in the space with a rolled up section of tendon. The soft tissue forms a "false joint." This guide will help you understand • which parts of the thumb are involved • why this type of surgery is used • what happens during the procedure • what to expect before and after surgery   Anatomy Which parts of the thumb are involved? The basal joint (also known as the carpometacarpal joint or CMC joint) of the thumb is where the metacarpal bone of the thumb attaches to the trapezium bone of the wrist. It is this joint that allows you to move your thumb into your palm--a motion called opposition. Click to view pain area of the thumb Several ligaments (strong bands of tissue) hold the joint together. These ligaments join to form the joint capsule of the basal joint. The joint capsule is a watertight sack around the joint. The joint surfaces are covered with a material called articular cartilage. This material is the slick, spongy covering that allows one side of a joint to slide against the other joint surface easily. When this material wears out, the joint develops a type of arthritis called osteoarthritis and becomes painful. Click to view a cross section of the CMC joint. Rationale What does the doctor hope to achieve with surgery? The main goal of this surgery is to ease pain where the surfaces of the thumb joint are rubbing together. The doctor uses a piece of tendon to form a "spacer" that separates the surfaces of the joint. Unlike a fusion surgery that simply binds the joint together, excision arthroplasty can help take away pain while allowing the thumb joint to retain some movement. Document Link: A Patient's Guide to Arthritis of the Thumb Pre-Intervention Instructions What should I do to prepare for surgery? The decision to proceed with surgery must be made jointly by you and your doctor. You need to understand as much about the procedure as possible. If you have concerns or questions, you should talk to your doctor. Once you decide on surgery, you need to take several steps. Your surgeon may suggest a complete physical examination by your regular doctor. This exam helps ensure that you are in the best possible condition to undergo the operation. On the day of your surgery, you will probably be admitted to the hospital early in the morning. You shouldn't eat or drink anything after midnight the night before. Procedure What happens during surgery? Surgery can last up to ninety minutes. Surgery may be done using a general anesthetic, which puts you completely to sleep, or a local anesthetic, which numbs only the hand. With a local anesthetic you may be awake during the surgery, but you won't be able to see the surgery. Once you have anesthesia, your surgeon will make sure the skin of your hand is free of infection by cleaning the skin with a germ killing solution. An incision will be made that angles along the back of the thumb to the edge of the wrist. Special care is taken not to damage the nearby nerve going to the thumb. Once the joint is exposed, the surgeon will take out (excise) the trapezium bone at the base of the thumb. Click to view cartilage removed. Click to view matecarpal and carpal shaped. Then the doctor removes a small section of one of the tendons near the thumb. The piece of tendon is sewn into a small ball and placed into the space where the trapezium bone was removed. Once the ball is in place, the soft tissues over the joint are sewn back together. The thumb is placed in a splint, and the hand is wrapped in a bulky dressing. Click to view an image of tendon ball inserted. Complications What might go wrong? Infection Any operation carries a small risk of infection. Excision arthroplasty of the thumb is no different. You will probably be given antibiotics before the operation to reduce the risk of infection. If an infection occurs you will most likely need antibiotics to cure it. You may need additional operations to drain the infection if it involves the area around the arthroplasty. Nerve Damage All of the nerves and blood vessels that go to the thumb travel across, or near, the basal joint. Due to the fact that the operation is performed so close to these important structures, it is possible to injure either the nerves or the blood vessels during surgery. The result may be temporary if the nerves have been stretched by retractors holding them out of the way. It is uncommon to have permanent injury to either the nerves or the blood vessels, but it is possible. Post-Intervention Instructions What happens after surgery? After surgery, your thumb will be bandaged with a well-padded dressing and a splint for support. The splint will keep the thumb in a natural position during healing. Your surgeon will want to check your hand within five to seven days. Stitches will be removed after ten to fourteen days, though most of your stitches will be absorbed into your body. You may have some discomfort after surgery. You will be given pain medicine to control the discomfort. You should keep your hand elevated above the level of your heart for several days to avoid swelling and throbbing. Keep it propped up on a stack of pillows when sleeping or sitting up. Rehabilitation What should I expect during my recovery period? After surgery, you'll wear a thumb brace for up to six weeks to give the repair time to heal. Then a physical or occupational therapist will probably direct your recovery program. You will likely need to attend therapy sessions for one to two months, and you should expect full recovery to take up to four months. The first few therapy treatments will focus on controlling the pain and swelling from surgery. Heat treatments may be used. Your therapist may also use gentle massage and other hands-on treatments to ease muscle spasm and pain. Then you'll begin gentle range of motion exercise. Strengthening exercises are used to give added stability around the thumb joint. You'll learn ways to grip and support items in order to do your tasks safely and with the least amount of stress on your thumb joint. As with any surgery, you need to avoid doing too much, too quickly. Some of the exercises you'll do are designed get your hand and thumb working in ways that are similar to your work tasks and daily activities. Your therapist will help you find ways to do your tasks that don't put too much stress on your thumb joint. Before your therapy sessions end, your therapist will teach you a number of ways to avoid future problems. The therapist's goal is to help patients keep their pain under control, improve strength and range of motion, and regain fine motor abilities with the hand and thumb. When patients are well underway, regular visits to the therapist's office will end. The therapist will continue to be a resource, but patients will be in charge of doing their exercises as part of an ongoing home program.

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