title: Do asymptomatic patients have normal function after percutaneous fixation of the posterior pelvic ring? A case-control pilot study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Following treatment of a posterior pelvic disruption, residual deformity or associated injuries can adversely affect functional recovery. No study has been performed on gait and functional outcome after closed reduction and percutaneous screw fixation (CRPSF) of posterior pelvic disruption in clinically asymptomatic patients. The purpose of this study was to determine if gait and functional outcome are different from normal in asymptomatic patients with a posterior pelvic injury after CRPSF, serving as a pilot study in this regard.
  
  
  METHODS
  Six asymptomatic patients with no grossly evident gait abnormality, treated by CRPSF for a posterior pelvic disruption, were included in the study (SG). A control group (CG) of six healthy volunteers was created. All participants completed the 12-Item Short Form Health Survey version 2 (SF-12v2), the Majeed Pelvic Score (MPS), and the Iowa Pelvic Score (IPS). In addition, the participants' gait was analyzed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Pelvic drop was significantly smaller on the uninjured side in the SG when compared to the injured side in the SG. There was no significant difference between the injured and uninjured side for other gait parameters within the SG. Knee angle at initial contact was significantly greater on the injured side when compared to the CG. The SG scored statistically worse than the CG on the Physical Component Summary part of the SF-12v2. However, when evaluated by age group using national mean scores, the SG differences were minimal. All six patients in our study scored "excellent" on both MPS and IPS.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Despite having subclinical alterations in gait, asymptomatic pelvic ring injured patients show minimal, if any, evidence of impaired functional outcome following successful reduction of a posterior pelvic disruption treated by CRPSF.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, 3635 Vista Avenue, 7th Floor Desloge Towers, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA. psalari@slu.edu.
authors.forename: Pooria
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Salari
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, 3635 Vista Avenue, 7th Floor Desloge Towers, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA. lcannada@slu.edu.
authors.forename: Lisa K
authors.initials: LK
authors.lastname: Cannada
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, 3635 Vista Avenue, 7th Floor Desloge Towers, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA. moedbr@slu.edu.
authors.forename: Berton R
authors.initials: BR
authors.lastname: Moed
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001863:Bone Screws; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D011345:Fenofibrate; D005593:Fracture Fixation, Internal / Q000379:methods; D050723:Fractures, Bone / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010384:Pelvic Bones / Q000293:injuries / Q000601:surgery*; D010865:Pilot Projects; D020127:Recovery of Function; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D011345:Fenofibrate