A comparative study of the treatment outcomes of surgical and non-surgjcal management of ulnar styloid fractures

Abstract

：Objective To compare theclinical outcomes of surgical and non-surgical treatment of ulnar styloid fractures.Methods There were 62 patients (64 sides) that were treated with Kirschner wire andtension band fixation in the surgical group. They were follow-up postoperatively for 2 to18 months, with an average of 8 months. Seventy patients (72 sides) were non-surgicallytreated and follow-up for 1.5 to 24 months with an average of 10 months. Gartland andWerley scoring system of the AO Foundation was applied to evaluate the results. Fracturehealing was evaluated by X-ray films. Comparison was made between the surgical andnonsurgical groups. Results Results in the surgical group were graded as excellent in 57cases, good in 2 cases,fair in 2 cases and poor in 1 case. The overall satisfactory ratewas 95.2%. X-rays showed that bone union was obtained in all the patients three monthsafter the surgery. Results in the non-surgical group were graded as excellent in 10 cases,good in 15 cases, fair in 18 cases and poor in 27 cases. The overall satisfactory rate was35.7%. X-rays showed bone union in only 9 cases 1.5 months after the injury, fracturemalunion in 32 cases 6 months after the injury, and nonunion in 29 cases even 12 monthsafter the injury. The differences between the two groups were statistically significant.Conclusion From the aspects of wrist function and fracture healing,surgical treatment ofulnar styloid fractures is superior to non-surgical treatment.