Evaluation of Clinical Outcome of Intra-Articular Distal Radius Fractures Treated with Distractor: Prospective Randomized Study

Background and purpose Distractor allowing movement during fracture healing are commonly used for treatment of intraarticular or unstable extraarticular distal radius fractures. Distractor has recently been introduced as an alternative to volar locking plate for the fixation of unstable intra-articular distal radial fractures. Patients and Methods All adult patients at our institution who underwent treatment of a unilateral distal radius fracture using a Distractor from 2014 to 2017 were identified retrospectively. This study comprised 75 patients with displaced intra-articular (Frykman type IV-VIII) distal end radius fractures treated with distractor fixation. The patients were followed up at 2nd week, 6th week, 12 week, 6 months and 1 year after surgery. The assessment of pain, range of motion, grip strength and activity were assessed at each follow-up visit and scored according to the Green and OBrien scoring system. Results we observed excellent result was achieved in 30 patients (40 %), good in 35 patients (46.66 %), fair in 10 patients (13.33 %). Conclusions Irrespective of the direction and amount of initial displacement, a great majority of intra articular fractures of the distal radius can be managed with a Distractor through a percutanious approach. Distraction fixation for distal radius fractures is safe with minimal complications.