Medial clavicle fractures are the least common type of clavicular fractures. Although rare, such injuries deserve rapid diagnosis and effective treatment to avoid future complications. An optimal, standardized operative treatment has not been yet established. We report a case of medial clavicle fracture, where primary operative treatment was indicated due to gross dislocation. An open reduction and osteosynthesis with a modified hook plate was performed, leading to an excellent postoperative outcome after a sixteen-month follow-up. The hook plate seems to be a promising approach for the operative treatment of medial clavicle fractures.

BackgroundNon-union continues to be one of the orthopedist’s greatest challenges. Despite effective culture methods, the detection of low-grade infection in patients with non-union following tibial fracture still presents a challenge. We investigated whether “aseptic” tibial non-union can be the result of an unrecognized infection.MethodsA total of 23 patients with non-union following tibial shaft fractures without clinical signs of infection were investigated. Intraoperative biopsy samples obtained from the non-union site were examined by means of routine culture methods and by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for the detection of 16 S ribosomal RNA (rRNA). Control subjects included 12 patients with tibial shaft fractures.Results23 patients (8 women and 15 men; mean age: 47.4 years) were included into this study. Preoperative C-reactive protein levels (mean: 20.8 mg/l) and WBC counts (mean: 8,359/μl) in the study group were not significantly higher than in the control group. None of the samples of non-union routine cultures yielded microorganism growth. Bacterial isolates were found by conventional culturing methods in only 1 case of an open fracture from the control group. In this case, PCR yielded negative results. 16 S rRNA was detected in tissue specimens from 2 patients (8.7%) with non-union. The analysis of these variable species-specific sequences enabled the identification of specific microorganisms (1x Methylobacterium species, 1x Staphylococcus species). Both PCR-positive patients were culture-negative.ConclusionsThe combination of microbiological culture and broad-range PCR seems to substantially add to the number of microbiological diagnoses obtained and may improve the clinican’s ability to tailor therapy to the individual patient’s needs.

The demographic development will result in an increase of up to 30 % of distal radius fractures. There are various therapy options but what is new? Conservative therapy: conservative therapy is reserved for stable fractures only. Osteosynthesis by K-wires: due to low biomechanical stability in older patients, insufficient functional and radiological results were achieved. External fixator: external fixators are used in compound and complex fractures and show better results than K-wire osteosynthesis. Angular stable plate osteosynthesis: with angular stable plates it is possible to achieve good results with complex fractures and they are currently the method of choice. Intramedullary osteosynthesis: intramedullary nails result in a faster functional improvement than angular stable plates but have limitations. New is that 90% of osteoporotic distal radial fractures are treated with angular stable plates which have shown good results in single study groups.

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