(Radiographics. 2003;23:1569-1590.) © RSNA, 2003 Fracture Fixation1 Mihra S. Taljanovic, MD, Marci D. Jones, MD, John T. Ruth, MD, James B. Benjamin, MD, Joseph E. Sheppard, MD and Tim B. Hunter, MD 1 From the Departments of Radiology (M.S.T., T.B.H.) and Orthopaedic Surgery (M.D.J., J.T.R., J.B.B., J.E.S.), University of Arizona College of Medicine, 1501 N Campbell Ave, PO Box 245067, Tucson, AZ 85724-5067. Received July 2, 2003; revision requested July 17 and received August 12; accepted August 15. Address correspondence to M.S.T. (e-mail: mihrat@radiology.arizona.edu). The basic goal of fracture fixation is to stabilize the fractured bone, to enable fast healing of the injured bone, and to return early mobility and full function of the injured extremity. Fractures can be treated conservatively or with external and internal fixation. Conservative fracture treatment consists of closed reduction to restore the bone alignment. Subsequent stabilization is then achieved with traction or external splinting by slings, splints, or casts. Braces are used to limit range of motion of a joint. External fixators provide fracture fixation based on the principle of splinting. There are three basic types of external fixators: standard uniplanar fixator, ring fixator, and hybrid fixator. The numerous devices used for internal fixation are roughly divided into a few major categories: wires, pins and screws, plates, and intramedullary nails or rods. Staples and clamps are also used occasionally for osteotomy or fracture fixation. Autogenous bone grafts, allografts, and bone graft substitutes are frequently used for the treatment of bone defects of various causes. For infected fractures as well as for treatment of bone infections, antibiotic beads are frequently used.

OTA Poster 2001 Device for below knee injuries

Objective: To determine the prevalence of the various orthopedic injuries in the earthquake victims of Bam on 26/12/2003 referred to the emergency rooms of the hospitals of the Shaheed Beheshti University of Medical Sciences Material and methods: It was an observational, descriptive case series study and the data collection was via observation and interview. All of the victims of the earthquake of Bam referred directly from the site of earthquake to the emergency rooms of the hospitals of the Shaheed Beheshti University of Medical Sciences and were entered to this study on a census basis. The prevalence of various orthopedic injuries including fractures, dislocations and soft tissue injury were determined by clinical examination, X-ray and CT scan when necessary. Results: The victims' age ranged from 1.5 to 80 years, with a mean of 30.2 years. 76.9% of the victims suffered from one or more sort of orthopedic injuries. 9.6% had solely soft tissue injury and 57.6% had fracture or dislocation without any soft tissue injury. Also 9.6% of the victims suffered from both bone fracture and soft tissue injury. The most common injuries were: pelvic fracture (25%), lower leg fractures (18.2%), and compartment syndrome (12.5%). Conclusion: Since a remarkable percentage of the earthquake victims suffered from a kind of orthopedic injury, particularly pelvic and lower leg fractures and also compartment syndrome, special attention has to be focused on dealing with these injuries in future similar catastrophes. Gholamhossein Kazemian, Mansour Azarbal, Mohammad Enami, Hossein Khatibi, Adel Ebrahimpour, Touraj Shafaghi, Hossein Ettehad, Dariush Adybeik: Orthopedic Injuries In The Victims Of The Earthquake Of Bam . The Internet Journal of Orthopedic Surgery. 2004. Volume 2 Number 1.

A report on the 2006 volunteer orthopaedic traumatology mission to Mulago Uganda and Nayanza Kenya. The team rallying point was Let's Go which stands for Lower Extremity Trauma Solutions; Gathering and Organization

Medical Algorithms Project Collection of scoring systems