Treatment of Medial Humeral Epicondyle Fractures in Children With Absorbable Cartilage Nails

Treatment of Medial Humeral Epicondyle Fractures in Children With Absorbable Cartilage Nails

To compare surgical outcomes from medial epicondyle fracture fixation with absorbable cartilage nails to those from traditional Kirschner wire fixation.

From August 2007 to January 2012, 32 patients undergoing surgery for medial humeral epicondyle fractures in our hospital were randomized into group A (traditional Kirschner wire) or group B (absorbable cartilage nail). The same surgical team performed the operations, and patients were followed for over a year. Group A had open reduction with K-wire fixation, and group B was fixed with absorbable cartilage nails. The Bede scoring system was used to evaluate elbow function at follow-up.

Inclusion Criteria:

• fractures with more than 2 mm of displacement were treated with cast immobilization

Exclusion Criteria:

• fractures with less than 2 mm of displacement were treated with cast immobilization