A 16-year-old young man, victim of a serious road accident, received a new chance at a normal life at the Oradea County Hospital, where doctors performed a first-ever operation.
A 16-year-old patient presented to the Bihor Emergency County Clinical Hospital with a displaced humeral diaphysis fracture, following a road accident.
The long bone of the arm (the humerus) was fractured and the two segments were displaced. The teenager needed surgery to reattach the fractured bone fragments, the classic solutions for orthopedic treatment of pediatric fractures involving either mounting a plate with screws or using elastic rods.
In this case, however, due to the age of over 15 years, the patient had closed growth cartilage, which represents a factor of incompatibility with the mentioned surgical options.
Therefore, the operating team decided to perform, for the first time in the county, closed orthopedic reduction with osteosynthesis using a titanium bolted rod for a pediatric patient. Under radiological control, closed orthopedic reduction of the fractured bone was performed, and then a titanium rod was inserted to fix the bone fragments.
“The first step involved putting the two fragments of the fractured bone back together. With the help of special kits and radiological guidance, the surgeons inserted the rod to secure the position of the fractured bone.
This approach involved taking repeated x-rays during the procedure to see where the rod is and how close it is to the fracture site. After positioning it on the bone, the next step was to install 3 screws to anchor the rod in the humerus. The titanium rod is the caliber of the medullary canal, having dimensions of 28 cm long 8 phi in diameter. The intervention was one of high complexity, the humerus being a very difficult bone to reduce. The operation took place on 20.04.2024, it lasted an hour and a half and went well”, informs spitaljudetean-oradea.ro
At the moment, the condition of the teenager is very good, he has already been discharged. Thanks to the operative technique, it was no longer necessary for the arm to be immobilized with plaster, and the patient’s evolution is favorable. He was already able to resume his usual daily activities, including going to school. In six months, the patient will have to return to have the rod removed.
