Health Outcomes of Elbow Fractures in Iraqi Children and Assessment of Risk Factors

An elbow fracture, which is usually as a result of falls or sports, is the most prevalent orthopedic injury in children. This research paper set out to assess the health-related outcomes of pediatric elbow fractures, including short-term and long-term outcomes and functional outcomes. It also aimed at determining risk factors, which are demographic, injury-specific, and treatment-related, resulting in adverse outcomes. It was a cross-sectional study and examined the medical records of children who had fractured their elbows. All data of 110 patients was documented both pre- and post-treatment, incorporating the morphology of the fractures and the complications. The functional outcomes are measured in short-term who less than 12 weeks, and long-term who more than 12 months. The most commonly used injury mechanism was falls from height (70%). In 60% of cases, they were treated conservatively. Short-term effects were nerve palsy (10%) and vascular compromise (4.5%). At the long-term evaluation, 80 % of the patients were completely recovered, 10 % reported some stiffness, 5.5% malunion, and 4.5 % nonunion. High-energy trauma (OR 2.8, p=0.004), postponing treatment longer than 48h (OR 3.2, p=0.001), and open fracture (OR 4.1, p=0.001) were significant risk factors of poor outcomes. The rate of great results was diverse among fractures. The fractures of the medial epicondyle reported the most excellent recovery of 80. The most prevalent type of pediatric elbow fracture, particularly in school-aged boys, is that of the supracondylar. Even though a significant proportion of patients do not die, there are risk factors such as high-energy trauma, delayed treatment, and open fractures that pose a significant risk to the occurrence of complications.