Small-Fragment Plate Fixation of Humeral Shaft Fractures.

Fixation of humeral shaft fractures is frequently performed with large-fragment (4.5 mm) plates to accommodate immediate weight bearing. Use of small-fragment (3.5 mm) plates as an alternative carries theoretical benefits. We examined nonunion rates and postoperative radial nerve palsy (RNP) rates in a retrospective cohort of patients undergoing open reduction and internal fixation of humeral shaft fractures with 3.5-mm or 4.5-mm plates. Two hundred thirty-six patients with 241 humeral shaft fractures were included. Small 3.5-mm plates were used in 83% of the patients, and large 4.5-mm plates were used in 17% of the patients. Fifty-three percent were made weight bearing as tolerated following surgical fixation. There was a 7% incidence of nonunion and a 10% incidence of RNP in the 3.5-mm plate group. There was a 7% incidence of nonunion and a 15% incidence of RNP in the 4.5-mm plate group. No statistically significant relationship was shown between nonunion or RNP and plate size (P=.74 and P=.39). No relationship was shown between nonunion and postoperative weight-bearing status (P=.45). Subgroup analysis according to plate size additionally showed no association of nonunion with postoperative weight bearing in both the 4.5-mm (P=.55) and the 3.5-mm (P=.25) cohorts. Small-fragment and large-fragment plating of humeral shaft fractures resulted in comparable union and RNP rates, regardless of postoperative weight-bearing status. Our findings suggest that 3.5-mm plate fixation of humeral shaft fractures is a safe alternative to 4.5-mm plate fixation. [Orthopedics. 2023;46(4):198-204.].

Analysis of Helicopter-Transported Trauma Patients at a Regional Trauma Center.

Our medical center's regional helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) serves southeastern North Carolina. Judicious HEMS use is vital to ensure that the resource is available for critically injured patients and to reduce morbidity and mortality by providing timely access to definitive care. We reviewed HEMS use, clinical outcomes, and overtriage rates. The data included airlifted trauma patients from January 2004 to December 2012. Of 1210 total patients, 733 were flown directly from the scene (FS) and 477 from referring hospitals (FH). The HEMS catchment area was a 100-mile radius of our trauma center. FS patients were younger and sustained more motor vehicle collisions. FH patients were older and sustained more falls. FS patients required more hospital resources including longer ventilator requirements, intensive care unit (ICU) stay, and hospital stay. For all HEMS patients, there was 92.2 per cent blunt injury, 47.5 per cent required Trauma I or II activation, 31 per cent required mechanical ventilation, and 50 per cent required ICU care. 59.5 per cent of HEMS trauma patients were critically injured (defined as requiring either immediate surgical intervention, immediate ICU admission, or immediate death). The overtriage rate was 1.8 per cent. The emergency department mortality rate was 2.3 per cent and the ultimate mortality rate was 7.5 per cent. Most of the airlifted trauma patients were critically injured, and therefore, HEMS transport was appropriate. However, overtriage was low, suggesting high incidence of undertriage. There should be a lower threshold for HEMS use for trauma patients in our region. More research is needed to determine ideal overtriage and undertriage rates.