J Korean Orthop Assoc.  1982 Aug;17(4):633-642. 10.4055/jkoa.1982.17.4.633.

A Clinical Study of the Pelvic Disruption

Abstract

The pelvis is a ring structure with strong ligamentous support. This support includes the symphysis pubis, the anterior and posterior sacroiliac ligaments, and the strong sacrospinous and sacrotuberous ligaments. Since the pelvis is a ring, disruption of any protion of the ring is always associated with disruption in another portion of the ring. Massive pelvic disruption is an important and often life threathening injury. It is usually due to a motor vehicle accident, a fall from a height, industrial injury, and so on. The authors reviewed 28 cases of unstable pelvic fracture treated at the orthopaedic department of Catholic Medical Center during the period from January 1975 to December 1980, and the injury was classified according to the Pennal and Tiles method, and analyzed the clinical data as to the cause of mechanical violence, type of fracture and treatment, post-traumatic pelvic instabilities, and the results. The persistant post-traumatic pelvic instability was assessed by physical examination, and Chamberlain and Trostlers stress Roentgen view of the pelvis. The clinical results obtained were as follows: 1. The incidence of the unstable pelvic fracture was 17.7% (28) of all pelvic fractures (158). The incidence of injury in male was approximately 5 times more frequent than female, and most of the patients were in the 3rd to 5th decade of their life. The causes of injury were road accident (54%), coal mine accident and fall from a height in orders. 2. The four-rami fracture with posterior disruption due to the lateral compression injury was the most common type of unstable pelvic fractures. 3. In conservatively treated patients, the pelvic instability persisted in 37.5% (6 in 16 cases) of the cases and all of them necessitated the joint stabilizing operation. Twelve cases were treated operatively. Among them, performed operations include wiring of symphysis pubis in 2 and sacroiliac joint fusion in 4 within 4 weeks after injury. But for the other 6 cases in which pelvic instability persisted in spite of the sufficient conservative treatment, sacroiliac joint fusion or sacroiliac joint fusion together with a symphyseal plate fixation were done. 4. Satisfactory results was obtained in 62.51% (10 in 16 cases) of nonoperated cases, and 91.7% (11 in 12 cases) of operated group. Authors consider that the most important step in the management of traumatic pelvic instability are; firstly the early recognition of the correlation of the fracture-fragments; the fracture mechanism, and the possible presence or the post-traumatic pelvic instability, and secondly finalizing the therapeutic plan. Early surgical stabilization of the duration of the treatment and the residual disability.

Keyword

Fracture; Pelvic instability; Traumatic

MeSH Terms

Clinical Study*
Coal
Female
Humans
Incidence
Joints
Ligaments
Male
Methods
Motor Vehicles
Pelvis
Physical Examination
Pubic Bone
Sacroiliac Joint
Violence
Coal
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