title: Radial nerve safety in Dorgan's lateral cross-pinning of the supracondylar humeral fracture in children: a case report and cadaveric study.
abstract: We encountered an iatrogenic radial nerve injury following Dorgan's lateral cross-pinning in a 5-year-old girl with a supracondylar fracture of the humerus. This prompted a cadaveric study to define a safe entry point for the proximal lateral Kirschner -wire. A child's cadaveric humerus was pinned laterally in three coronal planes, simulating the proximal entry pin. The radial nerve lay farthest from the wire in the posterolateral plane, 1 and 2 cm proximal to the lateral epicondyle. We report the first incidence of radial nerve injury with lateral cross-pinning and suggest that the wire should be placed posterolaterally within 2 cm from the lateral epicondyle.
authors.affiliation: Paediatric Orthopaedics Unit, Department of Orthopaedics, Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, India.
authors.forename: Sangeet
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gangadharan
authors.forename: Bertha
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rathinam
authors.forename: Vrisha
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Madhuri
mesh_terms: D001864:Bone Wires / Q000009:adverse effects*; D002102:Cadaver; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D005593:Fracture Fixation, Internal / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006801:Humans; D006810:Humeral Fractures / Q000601:surgery; D059348:Peripheral Nerve Injuries / Q000209:etiology*; D011826:Radial Nerve / Q000293:injuries*; D012189:Retrospective Studies