A new study, indeed, a critical analysis review, looked at a particular type of elbow fracture, the olecranon fractures, which typically are complicated by the fact they may involve multiple fragments and create ulnohumeral instability, and asked the question, should these patients be treated surgically or not?
The study, “Olecranon Fractures: A Critical Analysis Review,” was published online on January 13, 2023 in The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery.
An olecranon fracture—the break in the pointy bone of the elbow that sticks out when you bend your arms—usually occurs in isolation, but it can also be a part of a more complex injury.
The Wrightington Hospital in Wigan and Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh based team of researchers found that olecranon fractures account for 10% of all elbow fractures. A displaced fracture with a stable ulnohumeral joint is the most common type. They also noted that olecranon fractures are more likely to be caused by a low energy injury.
