Terrible triad injuries

Abstract

The complex injury pattern of aposterior elbow dislocation with concomitant radial head and coronoid fractures is usually referred to as a terrible triad injury. Due to the concomitant compromise of several osteoligamentous structures of the elbow joint relevant for stability, these injuries pose aparticularly major challenge to the treating trauma surgeons. For this reason, acareful preoperative analysis of all relevant injury components is mandatory in order to make an adequate treatment decision. In most cases, surgical treatment addressing all elements relevant for stability is necessary to achieve astable and congruent elbow joint. Only this enables early functional follow-up treatment and minimizes the complication rate. Delayed or even insufficient treatment with persistent (sub)dislocation must be avoided at all costs, otherwise there is ahigh risk of serious posttraumatic functional disorders of the elbow with rapid progression of osteoarthritis.