Demographic Pattern and Fracture Characteristics of Supra-condylar Fracture of Humerus in Children in a Tertiary Care Hospital of Nepal

Abstract

Introduction Supracondylar distal humerus fracture is one of the common fractures around the elbow in pediatric population. It has high complication rate and requires specialized resources for management. This study aims to describe the epidemiological and clinical parameters of supracondylar fractures presenting to our hospital retrospectively.   Methods Our study is a single center observational cross-sectional study conducted in a tertiary care hospital. We retrospectively reviewed data from past 3 years and included skeletally immature children with supracondylar fractures. Age, gender, side of injury, type of fractures, Gartland’s classification, associated injuries and treatment modalities given were noted and a descriptive analysis was done.   Results A total of 145 patients were included in the study; of which 73 cases(50.34%) were from 5-10 years of age group. Boys to girls ratio was 2:1. Left sided injury accounted for 53.79% of the cases. 94.48% cases had extension type injury of which Gartland Type III was seen in 86 cases(59.31%). 47.6% cases had posteromedial displacement but majority of cases had no neurovascular injury (84.13%). 76.55% underwent closed reduction and percutaneous pinning.   Conclusion Supracondylar fracture was mostly seen in the age group 5-10 years with boys being more commonly affected. Gartland type III was the most common type presenting to our center. Higher Gartland types required operative intervention requiring specialized resources.