thing to remember is that when K Smith was injured and Jared Haase for that matter (linked above) screws were not an option for casts, or at least not widely accepted as such. Now it is understood that in some cases screws can be used in place of casts and the patient can remain functional. If the surgeon decided that KM needed a cast because of the severity of the injury then he would have not played the rest of the year imho. Also remember he played for many many minutes after the injury - you can watch replay .....and although it is obvious he was hurt - he was able to make moves, got fouled...had three assists....
I think tomorrow we will know more....he is coming down from the happy juice now according to his Dad
- Posted by sportznut628
Here is a post from an Orthopod you might be interested in.
This isn't some magically-devised new procedure, nor is this a rare type of injury. In fact, it's the 2nd-most common fracture of the upper extremity. The database is pretty ' robust, and NOWHERE in the literature is there a collection of post-surgical or post-perc-screw-fixation recommendations that includes a timetable of a week for return to full sports activity, unless it's in a cast. And certainly not for basketball.
It doesn't matter if it's a fracture at the waist or the tubercle or the proximal portion, and it doesn't matter whether it's an open procedure or a perc screw -- NO ORTHOPEDIST WOULD RECOMMEND RESUMING FULL ACTIVITY IN A WEEK UNDER THESE CIRCUMSTANCES, BECAUSE IT JUST ISN'T SAFE.
And you know why it isn't done? Because the scaphoid is the primary articulating bone of the wrist (it has articulating surfaces w/ 5 different bones, most importantly the radius, where the dribbling, passing, and shooting motions all bring this articulation strongly into play) and, if someone were looking at a career as a ' PG, coming back too early and impairing recovery would risk:
1) lifelong arthritis -- maybe not a huge deal to me and you, but, for a kid who (allegedly) has earned no money yet for his talents, but is literally months away from the possibility of earning oodles of dough AS LONG AS HE DOESN'T F$%^ IT UP, the risk here is massive.
2) worsening the injury -- screws are great and all, but stabilizing the joint isn't the only concern for someone who undergoes this surgery. There still needs to be healing going on between the screw and the bone, and he is at increased danger for getting either infected hardware or ANOTHER fracture of another portion of the bone if he goes into full-speed play too quickly and gets it knocked the wrong way on a play. And anyone who's ever dealt with infected hardware can tell you that it ain't pretty, and it's frequently devastating due to the need for removal of hardware, grafts for stabilization, and the development of chronic osteomyelitis.
3) pain when gripping or dribbling a basketball with his right hand for the rest of his life
4) decreased range of motion at his wrist for the rest of his life.
With these concerns, would YOU consider it wise to be the guinea pig?
So, before you start trotting out these, "you aren't the MD's that are seeing this kid, and you don't know the extent or location of the fx," please understand that IT DOESN'T MATTER that we don't know these specifics. The STANDARD OF CARE would never involve return to sports 5 days postop after this surgery NO MATTER WHERE THE FX IS.
So, just understand -- if they let Marshall play this week, they are prioritizing their championship concerns over his health and career. They shouldn't have even left the door open for him to play this week. It's incredibly irresponsible.