EMET Education
Musculoskeletal
Hand
Distal radius fracture

3D model · Hand

Distal Radius Fracture 3D Model

Set your patient’s fracture: AO/OTA type, tilt, impaction. Walk through the proposed treatment; they leave with their model on their phone.

Customize the lesions

Opens in your browser, no sign-up. For orthopedic and hand surgeons, emergency physicians, sports medicine physicians, physiatrists, radiologists and primary care physicians.

The patient understandsTheir lesions, reproduced from their imaging, on a model they handle themselves.
Reassured, ready to decideThey review the proposed procedure at home before giving consent.
Documented informationVisit saved and dated: a record of the information you provided.
In their language🇫🇷 🇬🇧 🇪🇸 🇷🇺

How it works

In the visit, in three steps

Structured information in a few minutes, which the patient can review at home.

1
Show

Open the model and walk through the wrist: radius, ulna, styloids, carpus, and the joint surface on which the scaphoid and the lunate rest.
2
Reproduce

Set the fracture from the radiographs or the CT scan: AO/OTA type, fragment or articular split, tilt, metaphyseal comminution, displacement, shortening; add an ulnar styloid fracture or DRUJ instability. Then walk through the proposed treatment, step by step.
3
Share

Give the patient the QR code or an image: they find their own case, in their language.

Features

Explain in detail during the visit

Every setting updates the model live: you reproduce the fracture from your patient's imaging in front of them, then walk through the treatment you recommend.

The fracture, in a few clicks

The “Pathology & lesions” panel describes the fracture the way the AO/OTA compendium does: the type, then the fragment, the articular split or the tilt, then two gauges, displacement and shortening. The AO/OTA code, the eponym and whether the fracture is stable or unstable update live; fragments never pass through each other, and the carpus follows the fragment that carries the lunate facet. See also the AO/OTA distal radius classification in 3D.

Extra-articular: tilt and metaphysis

Dorsal tilt (Colles) or volar tilt (Smith), simple or comminuted metaphysis: dorsally, the comminuted wedge splits into small fragments and leaves a void after reduction.

Model panel: extra-articular type, dorsal or volar tilt, simple or comminuted metaphysis. — **Dorsal tilt** · A2.2 Colles

Severely displaced extra-articular fracture, lateral view: the fragment tilted dorsally, the carpus follows it. — **Dorsal tilt** · A2.2 Colles

The ulna and the wrist

Associated injuries are set separately, and the 2U3 code of the ulnar styloid is added to the readout. The wrist moves: the carpus turns on the fragment.

The ulnar styloid: tip or base

Intact, tip fracture, or base fracture, where the triangular fibrocartilage attaches: the 2U3 code is added to the radius code.

Model panel: ulnar styloid intact, tip or base. — **Tip** · 2U3A1.1

Ulnar styloid tip fracture, dorsal-oblique ulnar view. — **Tip** · 2U3A1.1

The treatment, step by step

Four procedures, played step by step, continuously or one step at a time, plus hardware removal after healing. None is locked: outside its usual indication (unstable fracture in a cast, pins for a volar tilt or an articular fracture, volar plate for a dorsal rim…), the button shows a warning that only you can see. The findings keep the original injury.

Resin cast

Reduction if the fracture is displaced or impacted, wrist in neutral, cast molded on the skin, thumb free. Stable fracture: healing in place. Unstable fracture: the impaction recurs, then the tilt: secondary displacement and malunion.

Cast, step 1: the impacted fracture reduced, a void remains under the fragment. — 1Reduction

Cast, step 2: the resin cast molded on the wrist, thumb free. — 2Cast

Cast, step 3: unstable fracture, secondary displacement inside the translucent cast. — 3Secondary displacement

Cast on a stable fracture: healing in place, fracture line gone. — 3Or healing in place

Kapandji intrafocal pinning

Three 1.8 mm pins enter the fracture site, not the fragment; lowered, they reduce it by a lever effect, then buttress against the opposite cortex. The tilt does not recur; an impacted fracture shortens again.

Pinning, step 1: three pins in the fracture line, the fracture still displaced. — 1Pins in the fracture

Pinning, step 2: the lowered pins reduce the fragment by a lever effect. — 2Lever effect

Pinning, step 3: the pins anchored in the opposite cortex of the shaft. — 3Anchoring

Pinning, step 4: the pins bent and cut. — 4Pins cut

Pinning, step 5: healing; the impacted fracture has shortened again. — 5Healing

Radial styloid screw fixation

For an isolated styloid fracture: a 3.5 mm bicortical screw, perpendicular to the fracture line, its path computed on the bone to stay below the cartilage.

Styloid screw fixation, step 1: the styloid reduced. — 1Reduction

Styloid screw fixation, step 2: the screw crosses the fracture line at a right angle. — 2Screw

Styloid screw fixation, step 3: the fracture healed around the screw. — 3Healing

Volar locking plate

Reduction, plate seated proximal to the watershed line, oblong-hole screw, five 2.4 mm distal locking screws whose angle and length are computed on the bone (subchondral, short of the dorsal cortex), two bicortical shaft screws. The void of the impacted bone remains, then fills in.

Volar plate, step 1: the tilt corrected, then the length; the void of the impacted bone remains. — 1Reduction

Volar plate, step 2: the plate on the volar surface, held by the oblong-hole screw. — 2Plate

Volar plate, step 3: the distal locking screws, below the joint surface. — 3Distal screws

Volar plate, step 4: the bicortical shaft screws. — 4Shaft screws

Volar plate, step 5: healing, the void filled in. — 5Healing

Hardware removal

Each fixation (plate, pins, styloid screw) has its removal, offered once the bone has healed: the screws one by one, the plate, then the holes filling in.

Removal, step 1: the screws out, their holes in the bone. — 1Screws out

Removal, step 2: the plate removed from the volar surface. — 2Plate out

Removal, step 3: bone remodeled, the holes filled in. — 3Bone remodeled

After the visit

The patient leaves with their 3D model

They scan the QR code: the model, their findings and the proposed treatment follow them on their phone, in their language.

The model, exactly as you set it

At the end of the visit, the Consultation panel shows the anatomical findings, the proposed treatment and a QR code. The patient scans it and finds the model on their phone exactly as you set it, in their language.

Their lesions, and the proposed treatment to replay step by step.
Their anatomical findings and the explanatory card.
No identifying data in the link.

Patient view on a phone: the distal radius after volar locking plate fixation, and the “The proposed treatment” panel open, with the “Replay” button. — What the patient sees after scanning the QR code

Every structure explains itself on tap

Tap a fragment, a bone chip, the ulnar styloid, a pin, a screw or the plate: its name and an explanation appear.

One explanation per structure: fragments, dorsal bone chips, crushed cancellous bone, ulnar styloid, dislocated ulnar head, pins, screws, plate, cast.
Written for the patient, in their language.
They can reread it on their own, on the tablet or at home.

Explanation bubble “Epiphyseal fragment” shown after tapping the fragment. — “What is this?” on tap

They can replay the treatment step by step

From “The proposed treatment,” the patient replays the procedure: each step plays at their own pace, with its explanation, as often as they like.

Patient view on a phone: the volar plate fixation replayed step by step. — “Replay”: the procedure, step by step

Try it with your next case: the model opens in your browser, nothing to install.

Customize the lesions

Patient information

Quality information, documented

Only 12% of U.S. adults have proficient health literacy (National Assessment of Adult Literacy). A patient who sees their own fracture, its impaction and the proposed treatment understands why surgery is offered, or not, and gives truly informed consent.

For the patient

They see their own lesions, reproduced from their imaging, and how the proposed treatment unfolds. They leave with the same material and can review it at home, with their family, as often as they like, before giving consent.

For the physician

Each visit created with an account keeps a record of the information provided: what was shown, when, and whether the patient reviewed it. The model image, with the anatomical findings, the proposed treatment and the QR code, downloads for the patient's chart and prints. Informed consent, as the Joint Commission puts it, is more than getting a signature.

Saved and datedThe exact state of the model: injuries shown, treatment proposed.
Identical, archivableThe patient receives what you showed; the image goes in the chart and prints.
TrackedEach time the patient opens the link is recorded.
AnonymousThe link given to the patient carries no identifying data.

“Document the informed consent conversation and the patient’s (or surrogate’s) decision in the medical record in some manner.”

AMA Code of Medical Ethics, Opinion 2.1.1, Informed Consent

The model supports the consent conversation and the written consent form; it does not replace them. Data and privacy: legal information (in French).

Questions

Questions from colleagues

Is the model free?

Yes: the model and its lesions are free. Treatments (resin cast, intrafocal pinning, styloid screw fixation, volar locking plate, hardware removal) and other features are paid options.

Do I need an account?

Not to open the model, set the fracture and walk through the treatment. After about fifteen adjustments, you will be asked to create a free account: it saves your visits, picks them up from one time to the next, and records when the patient opens the link.

What equipment do I need?

Just a web browser, nothing to install: computer, tablet or TV screen in the exam room; the patient opens it on their phone. One click saves an image, without the interface, for the chart.

What happens to patient data?

No patient names are stored. The link given to the patient carries only the state of the model: fracture, treatment, language and visit date. A name written on the image you hand out stays on that image.

How long does it take in clinic?

Three adjustments and one procedure played: a few minutes, during the visit. The patient reviews it at home, as often as they like.

Can I embed it on my website?

It is planned for upcoming plans: the model displayed on a practice or hospital website, credited to EMET Education.

Which languages?

English, Spanish, French and Russian. The patient receives the model in the language chosen during the visit, which helps with the roughly 28 million people in the U.S. with limited English proficiency, alongside a qualified interpreter, not instead of one.

Is it a medical device?

No: it is an educational tool. It does not diagnose, does not plan surgery, and does not replace the consent conversation or the written consent form. Among software functions that are not medical devices, the FDA lists those intended for general patient education and interactive anatomy diagrams used for training.

Which classification, which parameters?

The AO/OTA classification (2018 compendium, radius 2R3 and ulna 2U3) is shown on the model and in the anatomical findings, with the eponym (Colles, Smith, chauffeur’s fracture, Barton, die-punch) and whether the fracture is stable or unstable. Lateral tilt, radial inclination, radial height, ulnar variance and articular step-off are read on the model and flagged outside the acceptability criteria.

Can I show secondary displacement?

Yes. In a cast, an unstable fracture collapses again then re-tilts, and heals in malunion; a rim fragment slips again with the carpus. With intrafocal pins, the tilt does not recur, but an impacted fracture shortens. Under a plate, the void of the impacted bone fills in.

Classifications

Related classifications

AO/OTA (distal radius)Distal radius fractures: types A, B and C (2018), in 3D

Design

Who designed this model

Model designed by Dr. Mikaël Chelli, orthopedic surgeon, based on the reference classification and anatomical and biomechanical studies. Updated November 3, 2026.

Meinberg E.G. et al. Fracture and Dislocation Classification Compendium—2018. J Orthop Trauma, 2018. doi:10.1097/BOT.0000000000001063
Orbay J.L., Fernandez D.L. Volar fixation for dorsally displaced fractures of the distal radius: a preliminary report. J Hand Surg Am, 2002. doi:10.1053/jhsu.2002.32081
Soong M. et al. Volar locking plate implant prominence and flexor tendon rupture. J Bone Joint Surg Am, 2011. doi:10.2106/JBJS.J.00193
Jung H.S. et al. Incidence and predictors of dorsal comminution in older adults with low-energy distal radius fracture. Eur J Trauma Emerg Surg, 2024. doi:10.1007/s00068-024-02559-y
Zhang X. et al. Analyses of fracture line distribution in intra-articular distal radius fractures. Radiol Med, 2019. doi:10.1007/s11547-019-01025-9
Bain G. et al. Microstructure of the distal radius and its relevance to distal radius fractures. J Wrist Surg, 2017. doi:10.1055/s-0037-1602849
Bram J.T. et al. Simulated wrist fractures displace in well molded casts and splints under fall simulation forces: a cadaveric study. Clin Biomech, 2026. doi:10.1016/j.clinbiomech.2026.106752