Diagnosis and treatment of hygroma of the wrist joint in the practice of an outpatient surgeon

Introduction. Synovial cyst or hygroma is a common disease that occurs in both children and adults, but it is most often observed in people 20–45 years old. More than 60% of patients who go to the polyclinic with complaints about the presence of tumor-like formations have hygroma.Goal. Analysis of the results of treatment of synovial cysts of the hand and wrist joint according to our own observations and literature data.Material and methods. We observed 54 patients suffering from hygroma of the hand and wrist joint, who were treated in polyclinic No. 2 and MEDEL multidisciplinary clinic in Kazan from 2005 to 2020. The treatment of hygrom was carried out using conservative (puncture) and surgical methods. Results. Our experience showed that after a single puncture of the hygroma with the evacuation of its contents (10 patients), relapse developed in all cases. After repeated puncture of the hygroma in 10 patients with evacuation of the contents and subsequent administration of 0.5 ml of betaspan solution, 6 of them did not relapse within 5–6 months, but 4 patients had a relapse in the nearest period (1–2 months). Of the 23 patients who underwent surgery to remove the hygroma, 15 of them had no relapses. In 8 patients in the postoperative period, recurrent hygroma occurred, which could be explained by the ineffectiveness of eliminating the communication zone between the hygroma and the joint.Conclusions. For the successful treatment of this disease, it is important to understand that for the occurrence and development of hygroma, its communication with the joint cavity or tendon vagina is of great importance. In the absence of a message, the successful use of puncture methods of treatment is possible. In the presence of such a message and its detection during preoperative examination, surgical treatment should be planned with mandatory ligation of the leg of the hygroma.

Synovial facet joint cysts after lumbar posterior decompression surgery

OBJECTIVE Numerous studies have reported on synovial facet joint cysts of the spine as a primary lesion. The exact pathogenesis of those cysts is still controversial, but degeneration and destabilization seem to be underlying mechanisms. However, only a few reports have thus far investigated synovial cysts of the spine as postoperative complications of decompression surgery. In this retrospective clinical study, the authors focused on synovial cysts of the lumbar facet joints as complications after lumbar decompression surgery, with the aim of elucidating their pathophysiology. METHODS A total of 326 patients with 384 segments treated with posterior decompression surgery without fusion were included in the study. Of these segments, 107 were surgically decompressed unilaterally and 277 were decompressed bilaterally. After surgery, 18 of the 384 segments developed a complication of symptomatic facet synovial cyst. The anatomical and morphological evaluations of these segments were performed using functional plain radiographs, CT scans, and MR images. RESULTS All of the 18 segments with postoperative lumbar facet synovial cyst were treated with bilateral lumbar posterior decompression. There was no significant radiological lumbar spinal instability in any segments, although 17 of 18 segments demonstrated facet articular spondylotic changes. Moreover, 12 of 18 patients demonstrated lumbar retrolisthesis in the neutral position. CONCLUSIONS Based on the authors’ results, they propose that patients with lumbar degenerative disease who have a potential biomechanical lumbar instability such as disruption of the facet articular surface and hydrarthrosis or lumbar facet tropism might have a high risk for formation of lumbar facet synovial cyst after bilateral posterior decompression surgery.

Surgically Managed Symptomatic Intraspinal Lumbar Facet Synovial Cyst: Outcome of surgical treatment with resection and instrumented posterolateral fusion, a case series.

PURPOSE: There is controversy regarding the treatment of symptomatic synovial cysts (SSC), specifically, the need for a concomitant fusion when surgical resection of the CS is required. We present a retrospective review of a series of patients treated for SSC of the lumbar region during the last 20 years by a single surgeon, analyzing the current available literature. METHODS: Retrospective review. The same surgical technique was applied to all patients. Demographic, clinical, surgical data and synovial cyst recurrence rate were recorded. Postoperative results reported by patients were documented according to the McNab score. RESULTS: 69 subjects, with mean follow-up of 7.4 years. 62% (43) were female, with a mean 57.8 years at the time of surgery. In 91.3% (63), the primary management was conservative for a minimum period of 3 months. All subjects underwent surgery due to the failure of conservative treatment. The segment most operated on was L4-L5 (63.77%). 91.3% (63) of the sample reported excellent and good and 6 subjects (8.6%) fair or poor results. There was no evidence of CS recurrence at the operated level. CONCLUSION: In SSC, it seems that conservative treatment is only effective in a limited number of patients and in the short term. Thus, the recommendation of a surgical indication should proceed as soon as the conservative management fails to result in significant symptom relief. Based on our results, we recommend, together with the resection of the cyst, the instrumentation of the segment to avoid its recurrence and the management of axial pain.

Is it really safe to evaluate symptomatic extensor carpi ulnaris tendon instability by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)?

The extensor carpi ulnaris (ECU) tendon is in the sixth extensor compartment of the wrist and is isolated from other tendons by a different sheath. Extensor carpi ulnaris pathologies are characterized by pain locally localized to the wrist ulnar side. Outpatient records and wrist MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) tests were retrospectively scanned between January 2018 and July 2019. By examining the anamnesis and examination notes of the patients in the outpatient clinic records, patients with wrist ulnar side pain, pain or sensitivity on the ulnar styloid and provocation test (synergy) were assigned to the first study group (Group 1).The second study group was composed of patients who underwent wrist MR for the diagnosis or differential diagnosis of a synovial cyst around the wrist, without ulnar side pain (Group 2).While evaluating MR images in the axial plane, the depth and width of the ulnar groove, thickness of the ECU tendon were measured. The position of the ECU tendon relative to the ulnar groove and the forearm rotation during the shooting were recorded.105 cases evaluated, there were 41 cases in the symptomatic subgroup and 64 cases in the asymptomatic subgroup. Among all patients, the mean patient age was 38.05.In the evaluation according to whether cases were symptomatic or not, there was no significant relationship between being symptomatic and the degree of instability and MR withdrawal position. Our study suggests that ECU instability in MR is not a specific condition, and detection of MR in instability may not be associated with a patient’s symptoms.

A Rare T2-T3 Synovial Facet Cyst Causing Progressive Myelopathy

Intraspinal extradural synovial cysts are a rare occurrence at the spinal cord level and thus a rare cause of myelopathy. Synovial cysts usually present in the more mobile lumbar and cervical parts of the spine; however, they may also arise in the thoracic spine. We present a case of a 59-year-old male with a left upper thoracic synovial cyst at T2-3 causing disabling, progressive myelopathy, and an incomplete spinal cord injury syndrome with inability to ambulate. An urgent decompressive laminectomy with bilateral facetectomies, cyst excision, and posterior fusion was performed. Subsequently, the patient recovered full function. Synovial cysts should be considered in the differential diagnosis of progressive thoracic myelopathy. This is only the sixth reported case of a synovial cyst of this kind occurring between the levels of T1 and T7. Urgent surgical decompression is the recommended treatment.