Biomechanical analysis of olecranon fracture fixation in children

The authors present an original fixation technique for olecranon fractures in children, achievable without opening the fracture site. The standard method of Kirschner wire fixation with tension band wiring is replaced by a threaded pin stabilization with adjustable lock effect. An olecranon fracture model was used to compare the mechanical properties of this new system with the tension band wiring technique, and with a simple pin fixation. No significant difference was found between the two first techniques, whereas the simple pin fixation had much poorer mechanical properties.