Prognosis
The prognosis is favorable with operative and conservative therapy. Nevertheless, there are therapy failures in both forms of therapy, i.e. bone fractures do not heal. An untreated scaphoid fracture generally ends in the formation of a false joint (pseudarthrosis), which can be painless and can only cause problems years after the fall.
It should be remembered that a not inconsiderable proportion of scaphoid fractures are not initially visible and can therefore be overlooked. Unfavorable prognoses have oblique fractures of the part near the wrist (proximal). These fractures tend to fail to heal even under therapy. The consequences can be pain in the thumb-side wrist due to instability and arthrosis.
Healing
A healing of the scaphoid fracture can be achieved with surgery or without surgery. How the fracture is treated depends on the type of fracture itself. Fractures in the distal two thirds can be treated conservatively.
The distal third is immobilized for about 6-8 weeks. The middle third should be immobilized for 10-12 weeks due to the poorer blood supply. Surgery is always indicated for fractures of the proximal third. Such a scaphoid fracture should always be screwed.
