RÉSUMÉ
Objective:To compare the clinical outcomes between percutaneous Kirschner wire leverage plus plaster fixation and elastic intramedullary nailing in the treatment of radial neck fractures in children.Methods:A retrospective study was conducted to analyze the 60 children with radial neck fracture who had been treated by percutaneous Kirschner wire leverage plus plaster fixation at Department of Pediatric Orthopedics, Children's Hospital of Soochow University from January 2016 to July 2023 (set as an internal fixation-free group). They were 30 males and 30 females (34 left and 26 right sides) with an age of (7.7±3.0) years. At the same time, another cohort of 60 patients were chosen as an intramedullary nailing group who had been treated by percutaneous Kirschner wire leverage plus elastic intramedullary nailing and matched in age and gender with those in the internal fixation-free group. The preoperative fracture angulation, operative time, hospitalization time, fracture angulation on the first postoperative day, fracture angulation at 1 month postoperatively, rate of angulation loss after reduction, Mayo elbow performance score (MEPS) at the last follow-up and complications were compared between the 2 groups.Results:There was no significant difference between the 2 groups in their preoperative general data, showing comparability ( P<0.05). The 120 pediatric patients were followed up for (7.5±3.2) months. The operative time [(27.4±15.0) min] and hospitalization time [(3.4±1.9) d] in the internal fixation-free group were significantly shorter than those in the intramedullary nailing group [(45.4±13.5) min and (4.4±1.3) d] ( P<0.05). The preoperative fracture angulation (50.8°±1.9°), fracture angulation on the first postoperative day (11.3°±1.2°), fracture angulation at 1 month postoperatively (12.1°±1.3°), rate of angulation loss after reduction (2.9%±0.5%), and MEPS at the last follow-up [(90.4±2.0) points] in the internal fixation-free group showed no significant differences from those in the intramedullary nailing group [49.5°±1.7°, 11.1°±1.2°, 13.3°±1.5°, 3.9%±1.4%, and (90.2±2.3) points] ( P>0.05). None of the patients in the internal fixation-free group developed pin-tail irritation sign or premature epiphyseal closure after surgery, whereas 3 patients in the intramedullary nailing group developed pin-tail irritation sign and 2 ones premature epiphyseal closure after surgery, showing a significant difference in the complication rate between the 2 groups [0 (0/60) versus 8.3% (5/60)] ( P<0.05). Conclusions:Percutaneous Kirschner wire leverage plus plaster fixation and close elastic intramedullary nailing can both achieve satisfactory outcomes in the treatment of radial neck fractures in children. However, percutaneous Kirschner wire leverage plus plaster fixation needs shorter operative time and hospitalization time, leads to fewer complications, and requires no reoperation to remove internal fixation.