Comparison of three surgical fixation methods for fracture of distal radial metaphyseal diaphyseal junction in children

Zhilin ZHOU; Chaoyu LIU; Guoqiang JIA; Lian MENG; Jianyi JIANG; Hailong MA; Jun SUN; Wenqiang XU

ABSTRACT

Objective:

To compare the effects of anterograde elastic stable intramedullary nailing (ESIN-A), retrograde K-wires fixation (KW-R) and retrograde precision shaping of elastic stable intramedullary nailing (ESIN-RPS) in the treatment of fractures of distal radial metaphyseal diaphyseal junction (DRMDJ) in children.

Methods:

A retrospective study was conducted to analyze the data of 112 eligible children with DRMDJ fracture who had been treated at Department of Orthopedics, Children's Hospital, Anhui Medical University and Department of Orthopedics, The People's Hospital of Fuyang City,Anhui Medical University, from January 2016 to May 2022. There were 64 males and 48 females, with an age of (8.4±2.3) years. The children were divided into 3 groups according to different surgical fixation

methods:

group ESIN-A of 36 cases, group KW-R of 52 cases, and group ESIN-RPS of 24 cases. The operation time, intraoperative bleeding, fluoroscopy times, alignment rates and residual angulations by the anteroposterior and lateral X-ray films immediately after reduction were compared among the 3 groups. The Gartland-Werley evaluation of wrist function and complications were compared at the last follow-up.

Results:

There was no statistically significant difference in the preoperative general data among the 3 groups, indicating comparability ( P>0.05). In the operation time, group KW-R [(71.2±9.2) min] > group ESIN-A [(65.1±13.1) min] > group ESIN-RPS [(51.7±17.1) min]; in the fluoroscopy times, group KW-R [(13.9±6.3) times] > group ESIN-A [(9.0±2.8) times] > group ESIN-RPS [(6.4±2.0) times]; in the alignment rates by the anteroposterior and lateral X-ray films immediately after reduction, group ESIN-RPS (93.1%±4.6% and 95.2%±3.3%) > group KW-R (82.1%±11.0% and 88.1%±7.4%) > group ESIN-A (80.4%±9.9% and 86.7%±6.9%); in the residual angulations by the anteroposterior and lateral X-ray films immediately after reduction, group ESIN-RPS (3.3°±1.8° and 2.9°±2.1°) < group ESIN-A (5.2°±1.0° and 5.0°±3.2°) < group KW-R (6.6°±1.6°and 7.5°±2.7°). Pairwise comparisons in the above items were statistically significant ( P<0.05). In group ESIN-A, the incision length [(1.8±0.3) cm] was significantlylonger than that in group ESIN-RPS [(1.4±0.2) cm], and the intraoperative blood loss [(8.3±2.2) mL] significantly larger than that in group ESIN-RPS [(5.5±1.6) mL] ( P<0.05). One year after operation, the excellent and good rate by the Gartland-Werley evaluation of wrist function in groups ESIN-RPS, ESIN-A and KW-R, respectively, were 95.8% (23/24), 86.5% (31/36) and 86.1% (46/52), showing no statistically significant difference between the 3 group ( P>0.05), and the major incidence of complications in group KW-R (25.0%, 13/52) and in group ESIN-A (25.0%, 9/36) were significantly higher than that in group ESIN-RPS (4.2%, 1/24) ( P<0.05).

Conclusion:

In the treatment of DRMDJ fractures in children, compared with ESIN-A and KW-R, ESIN-RPS is an effective choice due to its advantages of shorter operation time, less intraoperative blood loss, less radiation, better alignment, and fewer complications.