The state of the problem of fractures of the distal metepiphysis of the humerus in children and adolescents

Abstract

Annotation. One of the most frequent injuries of the distal end of the humerus is the trans-condylar and supracondylar fractures of the humerus, which make up 47.5-80% of all intraarticular fractures of the elbow joint in children. Among the injuries of the distal humerus, the supracondylar and supracondylar fractures occur with the greatest frequency and is one of the most common domestic injuries in children aged 3 to 12 years. Our work is based on a retrospective analysis of the treatment of 255 patients treated in the Lviv City Children's Hospital for the period 2013-2017. 83.1% of patients were diagnosed with flexion fracture, 16.9% – flexion fracture. Transvertebral fractures of the shoulder were diagnosed in 85.5% of cases of the study array, supragingival – in 14.5%. The treatment of patients with the consequences of injuries of the elbow joint presents great difficulties and remains one of the most difficult problems in pediatric traumatology. Depending on the presence of rotational displacement and the severity of the fracture, the following types of treatment are most often used: conservative, osteosynthesis with spokes or Ilizarov apparatus. An ideal reposition and stable fixation of fragments during these injuries is necessary not only to ensure timely consolidation of the fracture, restoration of the anatomical integrity and shape of the distal humerus, but also to prevent the development of deformation in the elbow joint. Deformations of the elbow joint during supracondylar and supracondylar fractures of the shoulder, unlike deformation of another localization, cannot be adjusted and subsequently only increase and as a result can lead to impaired function of the elbow joint, and often to disability already in childhood. Thus, complicated anatomical localization of supracondylar and supracondylar fractures of the humerus in children, great technical difficulties in comparing and fixing fragments, there is a high probability of neurological and vascular disorders, both at the time of injury and during the provision of medical care, impaired function of the elbow joint determine the need for further study of this problem.