Application of 3 dimension-printed injection-molded polyether ether ketone lunate prosthesis in the treatment of stage III Kienböck’s disease: A case report

BACKGROUND: Polyether ether ketone (PEEK) is a high-performance medical polymer, and there are some clinical cases of PEEK prosthesis implantation. However, application of 3D-printed injection-molded PEEK lunate prosthesis for treatment of stage III Kienböck’s disease has not been reported. This study’s purpose was to analyze the clinical efficacy of 3D-printed injection-molded PEEK lunate prosthesis in the treatment of stage III Kienböck’s disease and thus provide a good therapeutic choice for Kienböck’s disease. CASE SUMMARY: We report a patient with stage III Kienböck’s disease. With the healthy lunate bone as reference, 3D lunate reconstruction was performed using a mirroring technique. A PEEK lunate prosthesis was prepared by 3D printing and injection molding, and then it was inserted into the original anatomical position after removing the necrotic lunate bone. Wrist pain and function, anatomical suitability of the lunate prosthesis, and complications were evaluated and analyzed postoperatively. At the last visit (one year after surgery), the range of motion, grasp force, visual analog scale score and Cooney score of the affected wrist were significantly improved, and postoperative X-ray examination indicated that the lunate prosthesis had good anatomical suitability for adjacent bony structures. CONCLUSION: The 3D-printed injection-molded PEEK lunate prosthesis demonstrated definite efficacy in treating stage III Kienböck’s disease.