Current diagnosis and management of toddler's fracture

Abstract

IntroductionToddler's fracture is an accidental spiral tibial fracture, characteristic of the early childhood. The objective of this study is to determine the incidence and current diagnosis and management of this disorder. Patients and methodsA retrospective study was conducted on a sample of patients aged 0–3 years diagnosed with a toddler's fracture in a tertiary hospital between years 2013 and 2017. ResultsA total of 53 patients were registered (10.6 cases per year). The median age was 2 years, with a slight male predominance. The initial radiograph was normal in 24.5% of patients. With the initial approach, 69.8% of patients were diagnosed with fracture, 11.3% with suspected fracture, and 18.9% with contusion. A follow-up was required in 22% through a control test, using radiographs in 10 patients (pathological 90%), and ultrasound in 5 (pathological 80%, 3 of them with normal initial radiography). The large majority (80.8%) of the patients were immobilised with a cast, while flexible immobilisation or non-immobilisation was used in 19.2%. Complications were found in a 21.4% of patients immobilised with splint, mainly skin injuries (19%). These were more frequent in this group than in those that were not immobilised (21.4% vs. 0%, P=.006); with no significant differences in time to weight-bearing. ConclusionsRadiography has a limited sensitivity for the diagnosis of toddler's fracture. In the group of patients with normal radiography, the use of ultrasound can be helpful to the diagnosis and avoid additional radiation. Even though the most common treatment continues to be immobilisation with a splint, the alternative without rigid immobilisation does not seem to give worse results, even with lower morbidity associated with the treatment.