title: Carpal fractures in children.
abstract: Carpal fractures in children are uncommon injuries, with the scaphoid being fractured most frequently. Thirty-three children with scaphoid fractures and one child each with fractures of triquetrum, trapezoid, hamate, and capitate were retrospectively reviewed. The mean age was 13 years, 4 months. The mechanism of injury was of low energy in most cases, with > 80% of injuries involving a fall. Localizing tenderness was present in 100% of cases. Of fractures, 97.3% were evident on the initial radiographs. One patient required a bone scan to confirm the diagnosis. All but one scaphoid fracture went on to union with conservative treatment in a long-arm thumb spica cast or short-arm thumb spica cast at a mean of 7.1 weeks. All other carpal fractures healed at a mean of 4.5 weeks. The one scaphoid nonunion was attributed to noncompliance by the patient.
authors.affiliation: Children's Mercy Hospital, Kansas City, Missouri, USA.
authors.forename: R N
authors.initials: RN
authors.lastname: Wulff
authors.forename: T L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Schmidt
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002348:Carpal Bones / Q000293:injuries*; D002370:Casts, Surgical; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005592:Fracture Fixation / Q000379:methods*; D017102:Fracture Healing; D050723:Fractures, Bone / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D006230:Hand Injuries / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011859:Radiography; D016059:Range of Motion, Articular