title: Compression plating for child and adolescent femur fractures.
abstract: Twenty-five children ranging in age from 6-16 years underwent AO compression plate fixation for treatment of a femur fracture. Generally, the most common reason for plate fixation was to simplify nursing care and rehabilitation of children with an associated severe head injury or polytrauma. Twenty-three fractures healed in 11 weeks on the average, most by periosteal bone formation. Leg length discrepancy was not a clinical problem. Nursing care and polytrauma rehabilitation were simplified in all children. We believe that plate fixation is a reasonable treatment option for femoral fracture care in children aged less than 11 years with severe head injury or associated polytrauma.
authors.affiliation: Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
authors.forename: W T
authors.initials: WT
authors.lastname: Ward
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Levy
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kaye
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001860:Bone Plates; D002648:Child; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000150:complications; D005260:Female; D005264:Femoral Fractures / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011859:Radiography; D012189:Retrospective Studies