Kienböck’s disease: Treatment implications of the wrist-joint tamponade hypothesis

Figure 1 Schematic graph of a wrist-joint tamponade. A wrist-joint tamponade reduces the arteriovenous perfusion pressure and thus lunate blood flow, which can cause osteonecrosis of the lunate within a few hours. Note that the capsular vein pressure cannot be less than the intra-articular pressure, i.e. the higher the intra-articular pressure, the lesser the arteriovenous pressure perfusion. Urgently performed arthrocentesis reduces the intra-articular pressure and may thereby prevent osteonecrosis of the lunate. AV: Arteriovenous perfusion pressure. Adapted from Matsen[2].