Plate fixation of middle-third fractures of the clavicle in the semi-professional athlete.
From 1995 to 2003, 39 semi-professional athletes (34 men and 5 women) aged 17-34 years (mountain bike racers, soccer players, swimmers and cyclists) with a displaced fracture of the middle-third of the clavicle were treated operatively using rigid plate fixation within one week after the initial trauma. In 90% of the athletes, radiographic union was achieved after 12 weeks. At 6 weeks post-operatively the mean Constant score was 88 points, the mean visual analogue pain score was 3 out of 10 and the average time for return to sports was 45 days. Seventy-five percent of the patients were very satisfied with the end-result and 95% would chose to have the same operation again. In 5% of the cases the end-result was unsatisfactory. The most frequent postoperative complication was wound infection (18% of the cases). Nevertheless, this did not affect the outcome. Other postoperative complications in our athletic population included refracture (5%), transient neurological complications (7%) and non-union (5%), which were equally low in the literature. These data suggest that rigid plate fixation of middle-third clavicle fractures gives good results in the semi-professional athlete and may result in early return to sports activity, at the expense of a significant risk for complications, which would not be considered acceptable in patients with lower functional demands.
Verborgt
Olivier
O
University Hospital of Antwerp, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Traumatology, Edegem, Belgium. olivier_verborgt@hotmail.com
Pittoors
Kathleen
K
Van Glabbeek
Francis
F
Declercq
Geert
G
Nuyts
Rudy
R
Somville
Johan
J
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001265:Athletic Injuries / Q000601:surgery*; D001860:Bone Plates; D002968:Clavicle / Q000293:injuries* / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D005592:Fracture Fixation / Q000379:methods*; D005596:Fractures, Closed / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010146:Pain; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D012008:Recurrence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome