Wrist Partial Fusion — 4-Corner Fusion

University of Virginia Orthopaedic Surgery

Weight-Bearing

NWB surgical UE; no WB until surgeon clearance

Key Restrictions

No lifting/pushing/pulling; wrist immobilized in short arm cast until fusion confirmed on X-ray (typically 10-12 weeks); no resistance strengthening until fusion confirmed; ROM deficits expected long-term

Timeline & Phases

Phase 1 (0-10-14 days): volar wrist splint; Phase 2 (2 weeks to 10-12 weeks until fusion confirmed): short arm cast, may transition to custom static WHO or Exos semi-custom WHO, PROM fingers, light hand use within cast/orthosis; Phase 3 (10-16 weeks): wean orthosis, AROM wrist 4-way/forearm, progressive wrist/forearm strengthening, PROM 2 weeks after initiating AROM; may progress ADLs from wk 10-12

Notes

Wrist immobilized until fusion confirmed on X-ray (typically 10-12 weeks); ROM deficits expected long-term; recovery may take several months to >1 year; may transition from cast to custom WHO or Exos per surgeon; no WB until cleared by surgeon

Published

09/2024