Journal of shoulder and elbow surgery
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Chronic coronoid deficiency can occur subsequent to coronoid fracture malunion/nonunion or to coronoid hypoplasia or dysplasia resulting from injury during development. Several surgical options have been described to treat this difficult condition, but results are equivocal. We hypothesized that a modified coronoid reconstruction using a radial head osteochondral graft could restore elbow stability and congruity and that a technique involving rigid internal fixation would promote graft union. ⋯ Coronoid reconstruction with a radial head osteochondral allograft was successful in restoring stability and function in chronically unstable elbows with coronoid deficiency. Strong fixation using a large segment of the medial radial head achieved rapid graft healing.