CLINICAL ARTICLE

 

Radioulnar fusion for forearm defects in children - a salvage procedure

 

 

MN Rasool

Department of Orthopaedics, Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine, KwaZulu-Natal

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ABSTRACT

Eight children aged 1-14 yrs with defects in the forearm were treated with the one-bone forearm procedure and followed up for 1-11 yrs. The defects were due to pyogenic osteomyelitis (n=3), osteochondroma (n=3), neurofibromatosis (n=1) and ulnar dysmelia (n=1). The radius was fixed to the ulna shaft with an intramedullary pin in six cases, and two children had centralisation of the radial metaphysis onto the ulna for "radial club hand" type deformity with Kirschner wires. All forearms united in 3-6 months. Shortening ranged from 1-10 cm. Fixed flexion deformity of the elbow (20°) resulted in one child and cubitus valgus (20°) occurred in another. One child had a radial articular tilt of 45°. The procedure achieved stability at the wrist and elbow. There was cosmetic and functional improvement in all patients.

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Reprint requests:
Mr MN Rasool
Department of Orthopaedics, Faculty of Medicine
Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine
Private Bag X, Congella, 4013
Tel: (27) 031 260-4297; Fax: (27) 031 260-4518
E-mail: katia@ukzn.ac.za

 

 

No benefits of any form have been received from a commercial party related directly or indirectly to the subject of this article. This research was not submitted to an ethical committee. This article is free of plagiarism.