The triangular fibrocartilage complex (TFCC) is an important soft tissue stabilizing structure on the lateral side of the wrist, and its injury is one of the most common causes of lateral wrist pain. The mechanisms of TFCC injury include acute trauma, degenerative microtrauma, and penetrating injuries, and the clinical manifestations include lateral wrist pain, decreased grip strength, and limited forearm rotation, etc. The Palmer classification divides the lesions into traumatic type I and degenerative type II. Due to the uneven blood supply of the TFCC, the central fibrocartilage disc has no blood supply and a poor ability of spontaneous repair, and timely intervention is crucial for prognosis. For some cases of partial thickness tear, degenerative lesion, and chronic symptomatic cases, conservative rehabilitation is the first-line treatment, which mainly includes physical factor therapy, therapeutic exercise, and orthopedic braces, targeting pain and inflammation regulation, dynamic neuromuscular stabilization, and passive mechanical protection. The subtypes of injury, tissue blood supply, severity of symptoms, and functional requirements jointly determine the optimal intervention combination. This article reviews these three rehabilitation modes, compares the clinical effects, and points out the shortcomings in current conservative treatment.
Research Article
Open Access