• Liuqi Weng, Ge Zhang, Hai Zhou, Xing Liu, Yujiang Cao, and Yuan Zhang.
• Department of Orthopaedics, Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, National Clinical Research Center for Child Health and Disorders, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Child Development and Disorders, Chongqing Key Laboratory of Pediatrics, 136 Zhongshan Er Road, Yuzhong District, Chongqing 400014, China.
• Injury. 2024 Mar 1; 55 (3): 111309111309.

IntroductionLateral humeral condyle fractures (LHCFs) are the most common intra-articular fracture occurring at the elbow in children. Conventional treatment for displaced pediatric LHCFs is open reduction and percutaneous pinning, and few studies have regarded the efficacy of arthroscopic-assisted techniques. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy of anatomic reduction via elbow arthroscopy for pediatric humeral lateral condyle fractures with displacements >4 mm.MethodsA total of 32 children with LHCFs featuring displacements >4 mm were enrolled in this retrospective study. Arthroscopically assisted reduction was performed as the primary treatment approach. For simple displaced fractures, arthroscopically assisted reduction was directly employed with intermittent intra-articular irrigation. For fractures with distal fragment rotation, the rotated fragments were firstly realigned into a simple displaced position under fluoroscopy before proceeding with arthroscopy. The success rate of arthroscopically assisted reduction and clinical outcomes at the latest follow-up were assessed, and complications related to the procedure were monitored.ResultsTwenty-nine of 32 (90.62 %) enrolled cases were successfully treated with arthroscopically assisted reduction. Failure cases were attributed to soft tissue swelling, which hindered the manipulation of the fracture fragments for reduction or fixation. We subsequently adapted the surgical procedure, resulting in a significant increase in the success of arthroscopically assisted reduction, rising from 71.43 % to 96 %. Among the 29 successfully treated cases, excellent functional outcomes were observed in 18 cases, and 11 cases showed good outcomes. Regarding the carrying angle outcomes, 28 patients achieved excellent results, with one patient having a good outcome. The most frequent radiographic finding after surgery was lateral spur formation without further negative effects. Only one case of superficial infection occurred, promptly healing with topical management. No significant complications such as neurovascular injury or compartment syndrome were observed.ConclusionArthroscopically assisted anatomic reduction provides a promising alternative to open reduction for LHCFs with displacements exceeding 4 mm, offering direct visualization of the articular surface and minimizing soft tissue dissection.Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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