External fixation of high-energy upper extremity injuries

Forty patients with high-energy upper extremity injuries involving the humerus and forearm bones were treated by primarye external fixation. Concomitant soft tissue or neurovascular injuries were rated by the Gustilo classification, and this rating correlated well with the final results: three fractures were Gustilo type I, two fractures were type II, and 35 were type III (IIIA, nine fractures; IIIB, eight; and IIIC, 18). Immediate external fixation, open wound treatment, delayed bone grafting, and late internal fixation led to good to excellent results in 73%. Complications were either minor (related to the external fixation and included pin loosening, 20%) or significant (osteomyelitis, 3%).