Scaphoid nonunions - Pitfalls and pearls

Scaphoid nonunions present a challenging problem because of the geometry of the fracture and vascular pattern of the scaphoid. The scaphoid is a small curved carpal bone with approximately 50% of its articular surface covered with articular cartilage. Because the scaphoid has articular cartilage over such a large portion of its surface area, there is only a limited area over the dorsal radial surface for perforating blood vessels to enter.