[Tumors and tumor-like diseases of the carpal bones].

This presentation concerns the findings in 105 tumors or tumor-like lesions in the bones of the carpus. These tumors generally produce complaints which are uncharacteristic and they are quite difficult to recognize on X-ray. Due to this difficulty, there may be many different therapies before the correct final diagnosis is confirmed. These tumors are usually found in the scaphoid, capitate, lunate, or hamate. Of the 105 tumors, 45.7% were osteoid osteoma, which has an incidence of only 11.33% of all bone tumors in the body as a whole. Of the remaining tumors, 15.24% were diagnoses to be intraosseous ganglia (= tumorlike lesions). Lesser percentages were giant-cell tumors, osteochondromas, chondromas. One intraosseous lipoma was found and this had never before been reported. The majority of the patients were between twenty and thirty years of age. With surgical removal, complaints are generally reduced. Dramatic relief from pain is reported by patients when an osteoid osteoma is removed. The most important deduction from these findings is that tumors in the carpus are not as rare as once assumed. The possibility of bone tumors should be considered in patients with intractable pain in the carpus.