Management of Acute Dorsal Unstable Proximal Interphalangeal Fracture Dislocation

Abstract

Fracture-dislocations of the proximal interphalangeal joint (PIPJ) are common injuries that, when inappropriately treated dysfunctional joint occurs secondary to persistent pain, stiffness, and arthritis. A thorough understanding of the biomechanics of the injured PIPJ, the principles of its treatment, and the available treatment options is essential to the proper management of these injuries. The aim of this study was to review systematically the results of management of acute dorsal unstable fracture-dislocations of the proximal interphalangeal joints of the fingers. A total of 47 papers were obtained using the mentioned keywords in the research of all internet-based databases in the period from 1970 to 2018. Of these, 25 were excluded due to non relevance to our topic or very old date of publication (before 1970), and 22 papers were included in our study. The total number of cases in all of the studies was 383 cases ranging from 2 cases in a case report study to a maximum of 56 cases per study. However, the vast majority of cases included limited number of cases, ranging mostly between 5 and 20 cases. Regarding the publication years of the included papers, we found a steady increase in the pubblications in the recents