Abstract
This study was conducted to verify the clinical outcomes after treatment of fracture of the hamate hook in baseball players. Nine male baseball players, who underwent resection of the hamate hook with a J-shaped skin incision from the ulnar midlateral area of the palm to the palmar side of the wrist, were included in this study. In one patient, palmaris longus tenden grafting was added because of a partial tear of the flexor digitorum profundus of the little finger. The mean patient age at the time of surgery was 19.2 years (range: 14 to 56 years), and the mean follow-up period was 3.6 months (range: 1 to 7 months). Except for the one patient with tendon grafting, eight patients made a full return to baseball in mean about 5.3 weeks. As a postoperative complication, there was numbness of the ulnar nerve area in one patient for only a short period. None of the patients had any pain in the treated hand at the time of the final examination. In cases of hamate hook fracture in baseball players, excision of the hook is useful for early return to the sport.
