Treatment of mallet fracture using a percutaneous fixation technique with an 18-gauge needle


Published online: Jun 27 2015

Eun young RHA, Min cheol LEE, Jung ho LEE, Suk ho MOON, Jong won RHIE, Deuk young OH

From Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, The Catholic University of Korea

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to introduce a simple and intuitive treatment method using an 18-gauge needle for mallet fractures that involve more than one-third of the articular surface. We performed a retrospective review of 17 patients who underwent closed reduction using an 18-gauge needle with transfixation of Kirschner wire between March 2007 and October 2013. According to the Wehbe and Schneider classification, 15 cases were type IB, 1 was type IIB, and 1 was type IIC. The mean size of bony fragments at the time of injury was 53 percent of the articular surface of the distal phalanx. According to Crawford's criteria, 6 of 17 patients had an excellent result, 9 had a good result and 2 had fair results. Our method of percutaneous reduction using an 18-gauge needle with transfixation of Kirschner wire is minimally invasive and is useful for the fixation of mallet fractures.