ACETABULAR FRACTURES

Course overview

ACETABULAR FRACTURES PRIMARILY OCCUR IN YOUNG PEOPLE WHO ARE INVOLVED IN HIGH-VELOCITY TRAUMA. SINCE THE ADVENT OF MANDATORY SEATBELT USE, THERE HAS BEEN A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION OF ACETABULAR FRACTURES TO APPROXIMATELY AN INCIDENCE OF 3 PER 100000. THERE HAS BEEN AN INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF ACETABULUM FRACTURES RESULTING FROM A FALL OF FEWER THAN 10 FEET, LIKELY DUE TO THE INCREASE IN OSTEOPENIA/OSTEOPOROSIS. LITTLE HAS CHANGED SINCE LETOURNEL AND JUDET’S LANDMARK PAPER IN 1993, AND MANY OF THEIR FINDINGS REMAIN THE “GOLD STANDARD” FOR TREATMENT TODAY. AMONG THE MOST SIGNIFICANT ADVANCEMENTS HAS BEEN THE ADVENT OF PERCUTANEOUS FIXATION OF CERTAIN FRACTURE TYPES. THIS ACTIVITY OUTLINES THE EVALUATION, DIAGNOSIS, AND TREATMENT OF PATIENTS WITH ACETABULUM FRACTURES. IT ALSO REVIEWS THE ROLE OF PRE, PERI, AND POST-OPERATIVE MANAGEMENT OF ACETABULUM FRACTURES.