It's the same shape as a cashew nut and the most talked about bone since his own metatarsal. But ground-breaking work at the Royal Free Hospital could have helped England captain David Beckham heal his fractured wrist bone.

Beckham became one of around 40,000 people who break their scaphoid bone each year during England's 2-1 victory against South Africa last Thursday (May 22).

Orthopaedic surgeons at the Hampstead hospital are pioneering a new technique to treat a fracture of the scaphoid, a small bone on the thumb side of the wrist, close to the lower arm bones.

Conventional treatment involves setting the wrist in a plaster but success rates vary depending on where the fracture is. The fracture is most commonly caused by a sports injury in men between the ages of 20 and 40. The minimum recuperation period is eight weeks.

Surgeons at the Royal Free have developed a type of keyhole surgery known as the Acutrak Screw to re-align the bone.

Consultant orthopaedic surgeon Nicholas Goddard said: "If he Beckham is in plaster there is nothing to stop him, or anybody else, training, running and keeping fit. There have been some players who have played in plaster, although it is a little disabling. But we have got sportsmen back playing contact sports, like rugby and football, in three to four weeks. Our treatment means you don't have to go into plaster."

May 29, 2003 13:00