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Background: The evidence for the treatment of acceptably reduced intra-articular distal radial fractures remains inconclusive. We therefore compared the functional outcomes of cast immobilization (nonoperative) and volar plate fixation (operative) for patients with these fractures., Methods: This multicenter randomized controlled trial enrolled patients between 18 and 75 years old with an acceptably reduced intra-articular distal radial fracture. Patients were randomized to nonoperative treatment or to operative treatment. The primary outcome measure was the Patient-Rated Wrist Evaluation (PRWE) score after 12 months. Secondary outcome measures were the Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) questionnaire; the Short Form-36 (SF-36) questionnaire; a visual analog scale for pain; range of motion; grip strength; radiographic parameters; and complications. Analyses followed the intention-to-treat principle., Results: A total of 96 patients were randomized, and 90 (46 in the nonoperative group and 44 in the operative group) were included in the analysis. Patients treated in the operative group had significantly better functional outcomes measured with the PRWE at 6 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year. Additionally, a 28% rate of subsequent surgery was identified in the nonoperative group., Conclusions: Adult patients with an acceptably reduced intra-articular distal radial fracture have better functional outcomes for 12 months when treated operatively instead of nonoperatively. We therefore recommend surgical treatment for patients with these fractures., Level of Evidence: Therapeutic Level I. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence., Competing Interests: Disclosure: The Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest forms are provided with the online version of the article (http://links.lww.com/JBJS/G645)., (Copyright © 2021 by The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, Incorporated.)

Background: The aim of this study was to compare the cost-effectiveness and cost-utility between plaster cast immobilization and volar plate fixation for acceptably reduced intra-articular distal radial fractures., Methods: A cost-effectiveness analysis was conducted as part of a randomized controlled trial comparing operative (volar plate fixation) with nonoperative (plaster cast immobilization) treatment in patients between 18 and 75 years old with an acceptably reduced intra-articular distal radial fracture. Health-care utilization and use of resources per patient were documented prospectively and included direct medical costs, direct non-medical costs, and indirect costs. All analyses were performed according to the intention-to-treat principle., Results: The mean total cost per patient was $291 (95% bias-corrected and accelerated confidence interval [bcaCI] = -$1,286 to $1,572) higher in the operative group compared with the nonoperative group. The mean total number of quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) gained at 12 months was significantly higher in the operative group than in the nonoperative group (mean difference = 0.15; 95% bcaCI = 0.056 to 0.243). The difference in the cost per QALY (incremental cost-effectiveness ratio [ICER]) was $2,008 (95% bcaCI = -$9,608 to $18,222) for the operative group compared with the nonoperative group, which means that operative treatment is more effective but also more expensive. Subgroup analysis including only patients with a paid job showed that the ICER was -$3,500 per QALY for the operative group with a paid job compared with the nonoperative group with a paid job, meaning that operative treatment is more effective and less expensive for patients with a paid job., Conclusions: The difference in QALYs gained for the operatively treated group was equivalent to an additional 55 days of perfect health per year. In adult patients with an acceptably reduced intra-articular distal radial fracture, operative treatment is a cost-effective intervention, especially in patients with paid employment. Operative treatment is slightly more expensive than nonoperative treatment but provides better functional results and a better quality of life., Level of Evidence: Economic and Decision Analysis Level I. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence., Competing Interests: Disclosure: The Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest forms are provided with the online version of the article (http://links.lww.com/JBJS/G640)., (Copyright © 2021 by The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, Incorporated.)

Background: Our center evaluates all distal radial fractures with traction radiographs before splinting. Although investigations of various imaging modalities to evaluate distal radial fractures have been presented in the literature, to our knowledge the use of traction radiographs has not been well described. We hypothesized that the addition of traction radiographs to standard radiographs increases interobserver and intraobserver reliability for injury descriptions, affects the choice of treatment plan, and decreases the perceived need for computed tomography., Methods: Radiographs for fifty consecutive eligible patients with distal radial fractures that were treated at a level-1 trauma center were used to create two image sets for each patient. Set 1 included injury and splint radiographs, and Set 2 included the images from Set 1 plus traction radiographs. The image sets were stripped of all demographic data and were presented in random order to seven fellowship-trained orthopaedic surgeons. The surgeons independently reviewed each of the 100 image sets and answered ten questions regarding the description and treatment of the injury. Analyses were conducted with kappa statistics to evaluate interobserver reliability. Intraobserver variability was assessed with the McNemar test after adjusting for clustering., Results: Traction radiographs improved interobserver reliability for four of ten questions. With regard to intraobserver variability, responses to two questions were significantly changed. With the addition of traction radiographs, the observation of intra-articular fragments requiring reduction increased from 38.3% to 53.1% (p < 0.05) and the perceived need to order computed tomography for further evaluation decreased from 21.7% to 5.1% (p < 0.001). No other changes reached significance., Conclusion: The addition of traction radiographs appeared to affect surgeons' interobserver reliability in the evaluation of distal radial fractures. In addition, traction radiographs changed the rate of detection of intra-articular fragments requiring reduction and the perceived need for computed tomography. These data indicate that traction radiographs may provide some of the same information as computed tomographic scans at a lower cost and argue for additional research comparing computed tomographic scans and traction radiographs of the distal part of the radius.

Background: Injuries to the hand and wrist account for approximately 20% of patient visits to emergency departments and may impose a large economic burden. The purpose of this study was to estimate the total health-care costs and productivity costs of injuries to the hand and wrist and to compare them with other important injury groups in a nationwide study., Methods: Data were retrieved from the Dutch Injury Surveillance System, from the National Hospital Discharge Registry, and from a patient follow-up survey conducted between 2007 and 2008. Injury incidence, health-care costs, and productivity costs (due to absenteeism) were calculated by age group, sex, and different subgroups of injuries. An incidence-based cost model was used to estimate the health-care costs of injuries. Follow-up data on return to work rates were incorporated into the absenteeism model for estimating the productivity costs., Results: Hand and wrist injuries annually account for $740 million (in U.S. dollars) and rank first in the order of most expensive injury types, before knee and lower limb fractures ($562 million), hip fractures ($532 million), and skull-brain injury ($355 million). Productivity costs contributed more to the total costs of hand and wrist injuries (56%) than did direct health-care costs. Within the overall group of hand and wrist injuries, hand and finger fractures are the most expensive group ($278 million), largely due to high productivity costs in the age group of twenty to sixty-four years ($192 million)., Conclusions: Hand and wrist injuries not only constitute a substantial part of all treated injuries but also represent a considerable economic burden, with both high health-care and productivity costs. Hand and wrist injuries should be a priority area for research in trauma care, and further research could help to reduce the cost of these injuries, both to the health-care system and to society.

Background: Distal radial fractures are common and confer a considerable financial burden on the health-care system; however, controversy surrounds the optimal treatment of these injuries. This study was performed to determine (1) the rate of distal radial fractures in the U.S. Medicare population stratified by hospital referral region and (2) whether the type of fracture treatment is affected by patient age, race, sex, comorbidity, or hospital referral region., Methods: A 20% sample of Medicare Part-B claims from the years 1998 through 2004 was analyzed. Procedural codes for nonoperative treatment, percutaneous fixation, and open reduction and internal fixation of distal radial fractures were identified. These codes were then used to determine the overall rate of distal radial fracture. The rates of distal radial fracture were then evaluated according to hospital referral region and patient age, sex, comorbidity, and race. The types of treatment were determined and were also analyzed on the basis of hospital referral region and patient age, sex, comorbidity, and race. Regression analysis was performed with use of the above variables., Results: We identified 107,190 patients. The rate of distal radial fracture was 125 per 10,000 Medicare beneficiaries. The rate of the fracture in white individuals (136 per 10,000) was more than twice that in non-white individuals (fifty-nine per 10,000), and the rate in women (189 per 10,000) was 4.8 times higher than that in men (thirty-nine per 10,000). The overall fracture rate varied widely across the United States, from forty-seven per 10,000 beneficiaries in New Orleans, Louisiana, to 220 per 10,000 in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Treatment rates were similar across race, with the rate of nonoperative treatment being 84% for white beneficiaries compared with 83% for non-white beneficiaries, the rate of percutaneous fixation being 11% for white beneficiaries compared with 10% for non-white beneficiaries, and the rate of open treatment being 6% for white beneficiaries compared with 7% for non-white beneficiaries. There was variation across the country, with the rate of nonoperative treatment ranging from 60% in San Luis Obispo, California, to 96% in Covington, Kentucky; the rate of percutaneous fixation ranging from 2% in Boulder, Colorado, to 39% in San Luis Obispo, California; and the rate of open treatment ranging from 0.4% in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, to 25% in Great Falls, Montana. While the rates of percutaneous fixation and nonoperative treatment remained relatively stable, the overall rate of operative fixation nearly doubled from 5% in 1998 to 8% in 2004., Conclusions: There is wide variation in the rate of distal radial fractures across sex, age, race, and geographic region in the United States. There is also significant variation in the treatment of these fractures, driven mainly by age and region. Between 1998 and 2004, a strong trend toward more frequent operative fixation was apparent. While white individuals had more than twice as many fractures as did non-white individuals, there did not appear to be significant racial variation in the treatment of this injury.

Background: Fragility fractures are associated with a significant increase in the risk of future fracture, but the rates of evaluation to identify osteoporosis after such injuries are low. The purpose of this study was to determine the rates of evaluation and treatment of osteoporosis following distal radial fractures and to test two interventions in the outpatient clinic to improve evaluation and treatment rates., Methods: In the first part of the study, the medical records of 298 consecutive patients treated for a fragility fracture of the distal part of the radius were reviewed. Primary outcome measures were a bone mineral density examination and treatment with osteoporosis medication within six months after the fracture. In the second part of the study, fifty patients with a fragility fracture of the distal part of the radius were prospectively randomized to receive one of two interventions. These consisted of (1) the orthopaedic surgeon ordering a bone mineral density examination and forwarding the results to the primary care physician or (2) the orthopaedic surgeon sending a letter to the primary care physician outlining guidelines for osteoporosis screening. Patients were contacted at six months after the fracture to determine the rates of evaluation and treatment for osteoporosis., Results: The first part of the study revealed that, following a distal radial fracture, 21.3% of 240 patients had a bone mineral density examination and 78.7% were never screened. Osteopenia was the most common diagnosis among those screened (57%). Most (72.5%) of the 240 patients received no medication, whereas 6.7% received calcium and vitamin D; 11.3%, bisphosphonates; 2.5%, hormone replacement therapy; and 7.1%, a combination regimen. The treatment rate for the patients who had undergone a bone mineral density examination was 2.5-fold higher than the rate for those who had not had bone mineral density testing (53% compared with 21%, p < 0.001). In the second part of the study, the patients randomized to Intervention 1 had two to threefold greater rates of bone mineral density testing (93% compared with 30%, p < 0.001), discussion of osteoporosis with their primary care physician (89% compared with 35%, p < 0.001), and initiation of osteoporosis therapy (74% compared with 26%, p < 0.001) compared with patients randomized to Intervention 2., Conclusions: Rates of evaluation and treatment for osteoporosis after fragility fractures remain low (21.3% and 27.5%, respectively). Patients who undergo a bone mineral density examination are more likely to receive treatment. Ordering a bone mineral density examination in the orthopaedic clinic can dramatically improve osteoporosis evaluation and treatment rates following fragility fractures of the distal part of the radius.

Among 125 patients with the Galeazzi-type fracture-dislocation of the forearm, there were fourteen children and eighty-six adults with the classic Galeazzi lesion, and twenty-five patients with a special type -- fracture of both bones and dislocation of the distal radio-ulnar joint. Conservative management was successful only in children. In adults this method resulted in failure in 80 per cent of cases. The results of operative treatment were much better. The fracture fragments of the radius and the dislocation of the radio-ulnar joint in this complex injury are very unstable, especially in the lesion with fractures of the radius and ulna, and it appears that rigid internal fixation is necessary for the dislocation as well as the fracture. With combined fixation over half of the results were excellent.

Injury to the ulnar nerve associated with or following a fracture at the wrist is unusual. Three cases of this association are presented. Previously reported cases have been reviewed. The associated lesions tend to occur in young adults after higher-energy trauma and more dorsal displacement of the distal radial fragment than are generally seen in patients with Colles fractures. The return of function in the three wrists was related to the promptness and accuracy of reduction of the fracture and to the decompression of the ulnar nerve in Guyon's canal. We present a regimen for treatment of this injury stressing accurate reduction of the fracture and early surgical decompression when necessary.

Traumatic carpal instability can be difficult to detect and may present complicated management problems. Post-traumatic palmar carpal subluxation has been previously described only as a theoretical ligament instability. Such a condition implies disruption of the normal ligament attachments either within or around the carpus, or both, which very often results in altered intercarpal relationships and in disturbed kinematics. Post-traumatic palmar carpal subluxation is a form of carpal ligament instability that we could not find in any previous reports. We are reporting the cases of two patients who were followed for three years after such an injury. After closed reduction and non-operative management, both patients had a satisfactory functional result.

Three of our five cases and approximately one-half the cases reported were misdiagnosed at the time of original injury. Increased awareness of this lesion and alertness to the relationship of the radius and ulna on lateral roentgenograms of the wrist would probably reduce the incidence of faulty diagnosis markedly.We believe that early closed reduction and adequate immobilization should result in excellent function in most cases. Delay in diagnosis will probably result in protracted disability and the necessity for surgical correction.