Sideswipe injuries to the elbow in Western Australia

Abstract

Objective: To examine the conditions leading to sideswipe injury of the upper limb in motor vehicle accidents and to highlight the severity of these injuries. Design and setting: Prospective study of upper‐limb sideswipe injuries in patients admitted to Royal Perth Hospital, Western Australia, between August 2003 and January 2005. Participants: Eleven patients sustaining sideswipe injuries to the upper limb. Main outcome measures: Accident pattern, type of injury, surgical management, complications, and functional and employment implications. Results: Ten patients required open reduction and internal fixation for open fractures of the humerus, ulna and radius, and nine underwent additional surgical procedures including nerve, artery and tendon repair, and free flaps and split‐skin grafting. The injury severity scores ranged from 9 to 25. The severity of injuries led to extensive functional deficits in eight patients, affecting employment prospects in seven. Conclusion: Appropriate educational programs, legislation and improvements in traffic conditions, especially in rural areas, as well as changes in current car design, could contribute to preventing these devastating and complex injuries.

The Impact of Musculoskeletal Injuries Sustained in Road Traffic Crashes on Work-Related Outcomes: A Systematic Review

“…Of the 53 studies, 33 had a prospective cohort design, 13 were retrospective studies, and 7 studies had a cross-sectional design. The sample size varied from 11 [ 45 ] to 32,970 [ 30 ] participants. Most studies were conducted in Europe ( n = 22, 42%), followed by Australia ( n = 17, 30%), North America ( n = 10, 19%), South America ( n = 2 Brazil and Chile, 4%), Africa ( n = 1 Uganda, 2%) and the Middle East ( n = 1 Israel, 2%).…”

Non-Anatomical Surgical Solutions for Difficult Non-Unions: Case Series

“…Kinzel et al reported on 10 cases of side swipe injuries of the elbow that were treated by primary open reduction and internal fixation of the humerus, radius and ulna, nine of them needed additional surgical procedures. Eight patients had extensive functional deficit (9). …”

Sloppy Hinge Prosthetic Replacement in Old Healed Side Swipe Injuries of Elbow – Long term Results

“…3 The massive trauma to the elbow is characterized by involvement of all the major tissues including bones, joints, vessels, nerves, muscles, and skin which require demanding surgical management with high level of expertise. 4 5 6 7 8 After primary repair, secondary reconstruction of elbow is often required due to loss of bone and muscles around the elbow resulting in instability with functional loss, associated with or without pain, provided the neurovascular status of the limb is reasonably preserved. To ensure the stability of the elbow either arthrodesis or its prosthetic replacement may be contemplated.…”

“…Other options like interposition arthroplasties are also difficult to contemplate around the deficient bone ends. Except sporadic case report of prosthetic replacement of elbow in side swipe injuries, 8 9 10 11 no report on a series of such cases and their functional results have been published in the literature within our knowledge. The object of this paper is to report the long term functional results of Baksi sloppy hinge elbow arthroplasty in a series of such patients.…”