Creation of elbow joint in children with humeroradial synostosis. A clinical case

Abstract

Humeroradial synostosis is a severe rare anomaly of the upper limb, leading to the development of disability. This congenital anomaly may be a separate nosological unit, or a part of a genetic syndrome. Multi-stage surgical treatment is correct for all components of the deformity. The most difficult stage of treatment is the creation of an elbow joint. There are few studies on this problem in the literature. The article presents the results of surgical treatment of two children with humeroradial synostosis, who had the elbow joint created using two techniques. Patient A. underwent microsurgical transplantation of 2–3 metatarsophalangeal joints into the area of the elbow joint that had been absent since birth. Patient B. underwent total arthroplasty of the elbow joint with an individual implant. The unsatisfactory result of the treatment of patient A. is associated with the impossibility of early development of movements in the elbow joint due to the presence of axial pins. The stable position of the endoprosthesis in patient B. made it possible to conduct a course of early development of movements and get a good long-term result. Due to small number of patients, it is impossible to reliably assess the advantage of one of the presented methods. Improvement of the results of treatment in children with humeroradial synostosis requires further research.