To Study the End Results of Radial Head Excision in the Management of Displaced and Comminuted Radial Head Fractures in Young Adults

INTRODUCTION: Radial head fractures are the most common fractures of the elbow with an estimated incidence of 2.5 to 2.9 per 10, 000 people per year. Radial head fractures can occur in isolation or as part of a more complex elbow dislocation or Essex-Lopresti injury. When confirmed that the fracture is in isolation, the goal of treatment is a pain-free, stable arc of motion in flexion-extension and pronation-supination. MATERIAL AND METHODS: It was a cross-sectional, Hospital based study conducted in the Orthopaedics Department of Agartala Government Medical College And Govind Ballabh Pant hospital, Agartala from October 2016 to october2018 in 18 patients of displaced and comminuted radial head fracture in young adults. They were treated by radial head excision and evaluated using mayo elbow performance index. RESULT: In this study total 21 patients with isolated displaced and comminuted radial head fractures without any ligamentous injury were included and evaluated after excision. Of these 18 patients, 14 were male (77.78 %) and 4 (22.22 %) were female. CONCLUSION: Radial head excision is a simple surgical procedure and not as technically demanding as ORIF or radial head replacement and that early post operative motion can be permitted. Short term outcome of radial head excision in displaced and comminuted radial head fractures in young adults yield good functional outcome, However in long term outcome there are chances of proximal migration of radius with chronic wrist pain and valgus deformity at elbow which contributes to the limitation of this study.