Functional outcome of tension band wiring with k-wires for olecranon fractures

Among orthopedics trauma, the Olecranon fractures are one of the most commonly seen in the emergency room. The cause of such injuries are either fall or road traffic accident. The coronoid process stabilizes the humerus against the distal ulna. There is loss of extensor mechanism at the elbow joint whenever there is fracture of Olecranon. So, its management is always operative. Objectives: The main objective of this study was to determine the functional outcome of patients with olecranon fractures treated with tension band wiring and K-wires. Study Design: Descriptive case Series. Setting: Department of Orthopedics and Spine centre, Ghurki Trust teaching Hospital, Lahore. Period: 25th March 2016 to 30th September 2016. Materials and Methods: 85 patients were selected using Non Probability/ Consecutive sampling technique. Informed consent was taken and demographic information was noted. Surgery was performed by single team of orthopedics surgeons. Patient was followed after 06 weeks. Post-operatively for the assessment of functional outcome in terms of very good to good, fair and poor according to Murphy’s system. All the collected data was entered and analyzed on SPSS version 20. Results: In our study the mean age of the patients was 36.62±14.09 years, the male to female ratio of the patients was 0.7:1. The mean value of total Murphy’s score of the patients was 5.98±2.03. In this study the good functional outcome was observed in 35(41.18%) patients, fair outcome was observed in 46(54.12%) patients. Conclusion: The tension band wiring with K-wires shows good and satisfactory functional outcome for the management of olecranon fractures.