• E Hirvensalo, O Böstman, and P Rokkanen.
• Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, University Central Hospital, Helsinki, Finland.
• Arch Orthop Trauma Surg. 1990 Jan 1; 109 (5): 258-61.

AbstractIn a prospective study 24 patients with a displaced fracture of the radial head were treated by open reduction and internal fixation using absorbable polyglycolide pins, 2 mm in diameter. All patients admitted with fractures involving a quarter or more of the radial head, whether comminuted or not, were included in the study whenever there was a displacement of 2 mm or more between the fragments. The mean follow-up time was 28 months (range 15-43 months). A postoperative redisplacement of 1-3 mm between the fragments was seen in four patients with severely comminuted fractures. A transient inflammatory reaction around the implants occurred in two cases 8-12 weeks postoperatively. The functional end-result was classified as excellent or good in 22 patients (91%). This study indicated that successful fixation of displaced fractures of the radial head can be accomplished by using absorbable pins.

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