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(P2-13) Pitfalls for Upper Limb Injuries in Emergency

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 May 2011

S. Abrassart
Affiliation:
Orthopédie, Geneve, Switzerland
P. Hoffmeyer
Affiliation:
Orthopédie, Geneve, Switzerland
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Abstract

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Sternoclavicular dislocation usually requires a Computed Tomography (CT) scan and surgery. This injury is rare because costoclavicular ligaments are strong. They appear in motorcycle accidents and sports collisions. Compression of the neurovascular structures or trachea involving the vital prognosis is not rare. Practitioners must be aware of symptoms such as dysphagia, dyspnea, hoarseness, or neurologic disorders. On the printing of thoracic standards, the medial clavicle appears misplaced superiorly in previous dislocations and posterior inferior dislocations. Fracture of the scapula (less than 1% of all fractures) rarely requires surgery, but should not be ignored because they signal a very high-energy trauma. The posterior shoulder dislocation is 2–4% of all delayed dislocations. Diagnosis is most often attributed to inadequate x-ray photographs. The main causes of this dislocation are epilepsy and electrocution. Radiography in front and profile observed a duplication of the humeral head. Joint space is not completely in view, and the CT scan can confirm the diagnostic if there is any doubt. Fracture of the clavicle is common in young patients. Fractures with lesions of the clavicular vessels and nerves are common. Practitioners also must be wary of intermediate fragments, which can puncture skin. Pneumothorax should always be excluded by a complete chest auscultation. The stump of the shoulder must be minimized in young patients, or an active patient operative indication can have negative functional and aesthetic consequences. Neurovascular examination must be complete, and circonflex nerve damage should not be confused with injury of the rotator cuff. These two injuries reduce abduction. The elbow is complex and a number of lesions could be missed, including: (1) the tip of the coronoid process; (2) epitrochlea and epicondyle; (3) radial head fractures; or (4) pullout capitelum.

Type
Poster Abstracts 17th World Congress for Disaster and Emergency Medicine
Copyright
Copyright © World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine 2011