Diego's Wrists

Diego has a very painful wrist and a semi-painful wrist. His right carpus (wrist) is swollen, it is hyperextended (stretches further than it should), and it hurts. He licks at it a lot, which tells me something is uncomfortable. He is missing hair in two places from licking. He protests me handling it. He chooses to lie down instead of sit or stand for long periods of time. When he walks, he limps. His left carpus is also hyperextended.

Bailey, Gabby, and Diego waiting in the elevator.

After his exam at my work, one of the recommendations was to get his front legs xrayed. So Monday morning, we xrayed Diego's front legs. Tuesday the xrays were read and it was determined that he had an untreated fracture in his radius (the big bone at the front of the foreleg, below the elbow, close to the carpus) with bone fragments present. This is likely the root cause of his pain. And we needed to talk with his rehab vet as well as a surgeon to determine the best possible outcome for Diego to be pain free. Two surgeons generously read Diego's xrays and told us their respective recommendations.

Waiting for his exam. Note the hairloss on his wrist.

So now we have a few options.
1) Surgically remove the bone fragments in his wrist then brace it externally with a custom orthotic from OrthoPets. Removing the fragments should give him pain relief as one of the surgeons said the fragments are likely pinching his tendons when he moves, causing damage and discomfort. However, he would still need support of his wrist after the surgery.

One xray view of his wrists.

2) Surgically remove the fragments and fuse his carpus joints together (arthrodesis). This is not a guaranteed fix and is very expensive.

The other view of his wrists.

3) Continue with pain medications and other anti-inflammatory treatments (specifically laser therapy). He is definitely more comfortable than he was, but he is still bothered by it.

We are currently trying to decide on the best option for Diego. We should know soon.

Diego and Gabby. Neither wanted to pose for me!