Open reduction and Kirschner wire fixation with triceps lengthening for neglected elbow dislocations.

PURPOSE. To evaluate outcome of open reduction and Kirschner wire fixation with triceps lengthening for neglected elbow dislocations. METHODS. Records of 6 women and 14 men aged 7 to 60 (mean, 20) years who underwent open reduction and Kirschner wire fixation with triceps lengthening for neglected elbow dislocations were reviewed. The dislocations were posterolateral (n=11), posterior (n=4), and posteromedial (n=5). No patient had a neurologic deficit. Elbow stiffness was the main indication for surgery. The duration of dislocation was 25 to 45 days in 11 patients and >45 days in 9; the mean was 47 days. The Mayo Elbow Performance Index (MEPI) was used to assess outcome at the final follow-up. The maximum score was 100. Scores of 90 to 100 were considered excellent, 75 to 89 good, 60 to 74 fair, and <60 poor. RESULTS. The mean follow-up period was 39.1 months. At the final follow-up, the mean MEPI score was 79.3; outcome was excellent in 6 patients, good in 8, fair in 4, and poor in 2. The mean MEPI was 86.4 and 70.6 for patients with ≤45 or less and >45 days of dislocation, respectively. The mean range of movement improved from 20 to 84.5 degrees (p<0.001). The 2 groups were significantly different in terms of MEPI (p=0.005) and range of movement (p=0.001). The MEPI correlated negatively with the duration of dislocation (r= -0.562, p=0.01). The range of movement correlated negatively with patient age (r= -0.649, p=0.002). CONCLUSION. Open reduction and Kirschner wire fixation with triceps lengthening, together with active postoperative elbow movements achieved favourable results for neglected elbow dislocations, especially in younger patients and those in whom the duration of dislocation was <45 days.