Treatment of Enchondromas of the Hand with Curettage, Autoiliac Bone Graft and Contact Cryotherapy

Kim,  Sung Soo; Kim,  Chul Hong; Kim,  Bo Kun; Park,  Young Il; Ko,  Man Seok; Hwang,  Jin Su

Original Article

Journal of the Korean Society for Surgery of the Hand 2012;17(3):99-106.
Published online September 1, 2012.

Treatment of Enchondromas of the Hand with Curettage, Autoiliac Bone Graft and Contact Cryotherapy

Sung Soo Kim, Chul Hong Kim, Bo Kun Kim, Young Il Park, Man Seok Ko, Jin Su Hwang

¹Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Dong-A University College of Medicine, Busan, Korea. cusem9@daum.net
²Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Huimangchan Hospital, Hwasung, Korea.
³Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Ulsan Hospital, Ulsan, Korea.

Received: 17 May 2012 • Revised: 16 August 2012 • Accepted: 21 August 2012

Abstract

Purpose
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of contact cryotherapy as an adjuvant therapy after intralesional curettage and autoiliac bone graft of enchondromas of the hand. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty seven cases in 30 patients (17 males, 13 females) with enchondromas of the hand who underwent curettage, contact cryotherapy and autoiliac bone graft between July 2004 and March 2010 were reviewed with a minimum follow-up of 1 year. Radiologic evaluations were done periodically. Mean follow-up period was 26 months (range: 12-54 months). The radiologic results were evaluated according to the degree of new bone formation based on the Tordai's criteria.

Results
According to the Tordai's criteria, 33 cases (89%) were group I, and 4 cases (11%) were group II. There was no case of group III, which meant recurrence. Bone healing was achieved at average 4.8 months (range: 4-5.3 months) after the operation. There was no cryotherapy-related complication such as pathologic fracture, bone necrosis and skin necrosis during the follow-up periods.

Conclusion
We suggest that the contact cryotherapy can be used as an effective adjuvant therapy for treatment of enchondroma of the hand without complications.