The pelvic external fixation: the mid-term results of 41 patients treated with a newly designed fixator

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical and radiological res ults of unstable pelvic fractures:treated with a new external fixation devi ce. Between May 1992:and May 1998, 43 patients with unstable pelvic fractur es were treated with a new anterior pelvic external fixator. Two died, and therefore 41 patients' results were evaluated. There were 29 men and 12 wom en, and their average age was 34 years (range 12-70 years). Traffic acciden ts accounted for 34 injuries. Three patients fell from a height, 3 were inj ured in industrial accidents, and 1 was hit by a train. According to the Ti le classification, there Were 24 type B pelvic injuries and 17 type C. Asso ciated injuries Were observed in 21 patients. A considerable reduction of t he pelvic pain was noted after application of the fixator in all patients. Excessive blood transfusion was not required in any patient, The average fo llow-up was 24 months (range 12-50 months). Clinical results at final evalu ation were good according to the criteria of Matta and Saucedo in 34 patien ts and poor in 7, In conclusion,:the new pelvic external fixator is effecti ve, safe, and easy to apply in the treatment of unstable pelvic fractures. The fixator can be used alone in patients with type B pelvic injuries such as open book and lateral compression. However, it does not provide sufficie nt stability for severely displaced type C injuries when applied alone. Nev ertheless, it may be helpful for fixing type C injuries like a posterior il iac fracture without dislocation of the sacroiliac joint.