History and portraits in fracture treatment

Abstract

During the human history there were many attempts to treat fractures and injuries of extremities. Since Mathijsen and his plaster cast there was many attempts to make immobilization at the fracture site, to protect obtained reduction. Hugh Owen Thomas invent traction which greatly decrease mortality in the patients with femoral fractures during the war. External fixation was used from the time of Malgaigne, Lambote, Parkhill in 19th century, and Anderson, Hofmann, Ilizarov in 20th century. This kind of fracture fixation still has place and role in the treatment of open, compound fractures, and in the patients with multiple fractures. Along with invention of antisepsis, antibiotics, X-rays, ant metallurgy, the internal fixation become widely used, from the Lane,s plate at the beginning of 20th century to the biogredable materials and new designed internal devices. Special problem of hip fracture treatment was solved by fixation dated from Hey Groves, Smith Petersen, while intramedullary fixation of long bones was introduced by Kuntscher. Clinical and biomechanical investigation during the 1950 and 1960 was established by members of AO group.