title: Atrophic ununited diaphyseal fractures of the humerus with a bony defect: treatment by wave-plate osteosynthesis.
abstract: We treated 15 patients with atrophic nonunion of a diaphyseal fracture of the humerus with an associated bony defect using an autogenous cancellous bone graft and a plate to bridge the defect. There were nine men and six women with a mean age of 48 years. The mean length of the bony defect was 3 cm. At a mean follow-up of 30 months only one fracture failed to unite. This suggests that, in the presence of a well-vascularised envelope of muscle, the application of an autogenous cancellous bone graft in conjunction with a bridging plate represents a good alternative to more demanding surgical techniques.
authors.affiliation: Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston 02114, USA.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ring
authors.forename: J B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Jupiter
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Quintero
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Sanders
authors.forename: R K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Marti
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001284:Atrophy; D001860:Bone Plates; D016025:Bone Transplantation / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005593:Fracture Fixation, Internal / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D017102:Fracture Healing; D005599:Fractures, Ununited / Q000145:classification / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D006810:Humeral Fractures / Q000145:classification / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011859:Radiography; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013997:Time Factors; D014182:Transplantation, Autologous; D016896:Treatment Outcome