Revised: March 23, 2013
Accepted: April 10, 2013
Published online: April 18, 2013
In this article, we present a case of humeral biepicondylar fracture dislocation concomitant with ulnar nerve injury in a seventeen year-old male patient. Physical examination of our patient in the emergency room revealed a painful, edematous and deformed-looking left elbow joint. Hypoesthesia of the little finger was also diagnosed on the left hand. Radiological assessment ended up with a posterior fracture dislocation of the elbow joint accompanied by intra-articular loose bodies. Open reduction-Internal fixation of the fracture dislocation and ulnar nerve exploration were performed under general anesthesia at the same session as surgical treatment of our patient. Physical therapy and rehabilitation protocol was implemented at the end of two weeks post-operatively. Union of the fracture lines, as well as the olecranon osteotomy site, was achieved at the end of four months post-operatively. Ulnar nerve function was fully restored without any sensory or motor loss. Range of motion at the elbow joint was 20-120 degrees at the latest follow-up.
Core tip: Elbow joint posterior fracture-dislocations accompanied by neurovascular injuries are generally require surgical intervention. In this article, we present a case of humeral biepicondylar fracture dislocation concomitant with ulnar nerve injury in a seventeen year-old male patient. We obtained a successful clinical result by applying open reduction-internal fixation of the fracture dislocation and ulnar nerve repair at the same session as surgical treatment of this case. Although elbow fracture-dislocations with neurovascular complications are rarely seen, assessment of the neurovascular status in emergency room should always be a crucial part of physical examination which may affect the clinical result of the treatment.