Capitate

Looks like

The largest wrist bone, in the middle of the far row, with a rounded head fitting into the near row.

What it does

Keystone of the wrist; supports the third metacarpal and is the centre of wrist movement.

Keeping it well

Rarely broken alone; it may fracture with the scaphoid in severe falls on the hand.

Related conditions

• Acromegaly
• Carpal tunnel syndrome
• De Quervain's tenosynovitis
• Dupuytren's contracture & trigger finger
• Fractures
• Fragility fracture
• Frailty & falls in older age
• Ganglion cyst
• Hyperparathyroidism
• Juvenile idiopathic arthritis
• Osteogenesis imperfecta (brittle bone disease)
• Osteomalacia & rickets
• Osteomyelitis (bone infection)
• Osteoporosis
• Paget's disease of bone
• Pseudogout (calcium pyrophosphate disease)
• Raynaud's phenomenon
• Repetitive strain & overuse injury
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Sarcoma
• Vitamin B1, C and other deficiencies
• Vitamin D deficiency