Osteoid osteoma of ulnar head. An uncommon tumour, an uncommon location and an uncommon cause of ulnar sided wrist pain

Abstract

Background: Osteoid osteomas are typically benign osteoblastic bone tumours. Patients often present with progressively increasing pain that is worse at night and relieved with aspirin. These lesions rarely occur in the hand or wrist; Case report: we present a 25 year old gentleman with ulnar head osteoid osteoma as an unusual cause of pain on the ulnar side of the wrist. The diagnostic delay was one year and is treated with wafer resection. One year later he remains pain free with full range of movement at wrist. Conclusion: The presentation in our case was atypical due to its location and lack of typical clinical features, making the initial work-up and final diagnosis challenging and pointing to the importance of considering this diagnosis on the back of our mind for painful conditions on the ulnar side of wrist.