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Intramedullary fixation of metacarpal and phalangeal bone fractures with bioabsorbable Mg K-wire in 20 cases

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European Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery & Traumatology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

The treatment of irreducible or severely displaced metacarpal and phalangeal bone fractures is still much debated. The recent development of the bioabsorbable magnesium K-wire is thought to allow effective treatment upon insertion via intramedullary fixation by minimizing articular cartilage injuries without discomfort until pin removal and drawbacks, such as pin track infection and metal plate removal. Therefore, this study investigated and reported the effects of intramedullary fixation with the bioabsorbable magnesium K-wire in unstable metacarpal and phalangeal bone fractures.

Methods

This study included 19 patients admitted to our clinic for metacarpal or phalangeal bone fractures from May 2019 to July 2021. As a result, 20 cases were examined among these 19 patients.

Results

Bone union was observed in all 20 cases, with a mean bone union time of 10.5 (SD 3.4) weeks. Reduction loss was observed in six cases, all showing dorsal angulation with a mean angle of 6.6° (SD 3.5°) at 4.6 weeks as compared with that noted in the unaffected side. The gas cavity upon H2 gas formation was first observed approximately 2 weeks postoperatively. The mean DASH score was 33.5 for instrumental activity and 9.5 for work/task performance. No patient complained of notable discomfort after surgery.

Conclusion

Intramedullary fixation with the bioabsorbable magnesium K-wire may be used for unstable metacarpal and phalanx bone fractures. This wire is expected to be a particularly favorable indication for shaft fractures, although care should be taken due to the possibility of complications related to rigidity and deformity.

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Funding

This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Orthopedics, Daejeon Sun Hospital, 29 Mok-dong, Jung-gu, Daejeon, 34811, South Korea

    Bong-Ju Lee, Chul-Hyung Lee, Young-Ho Lee & Seungha Woo

Authors
  1. Bong-Ju Lee
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  2. Chul-Hyung Lee
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  3. Young-Ho Lee
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Contributions

CHL conceptualized the study and its methodology. BJL prepared the study’s original draft, reviewed, and edited the manuscript. YHL contributed to the reviewing and editing of the manuscript, curated, and validated the data used for the study. SW also contributed to data curation, reviewing, and editing. All authors reviewed and edited the manuscript and approved the final version of the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Chul-Hyung Lee.

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Conflict of interest

The authors declare no potential conflict of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Ethical approval

Ethical approval to report these cases was obtained from the Institutional Review Board of Daejeon Sun Hospital (DSH-인-22–04). The study conforms to the Declaration of Helsinki.

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Written informed consent was obtained from the patient(s) for their anonymized information to be published in this article.

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Lee, BJ., Lee, CH., Lee, YH. et al. Intramedullary fixation of metacarpal and phalangeal bone fractures with bioabsorbable Mg K-wire in 20 cases. Eur J Orthop Surg Traumatol 33, 2911–2920 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00590-023-03503-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00590-023-03503-3

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