Clinical and Radiological Evaluation of Surgically Treated Acetabulum Fractures

Aim: Acetabular fractures were evaluated by Judet and Letournel in two main groups as elementary and associated fractures. There are publications in the literature that the results are worse as the complexity of the fracture increases. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether clinical outcomes are worse in associated fractured patients. Material and Methods: The study included 48 acetabular fractures admitted to the emergency room and treated surgically between December 2011 and October 2020. Patient’s trauma, additional injuries, surgical method, early or late complications, and range of motion at the last follow-up were documented. Clinical and radiological results of the patients were evaluated by modified Merle d'Aubigné, functional capacities by Harris hip scoring systems. Results: There were 25 elementary fractures and 23 associated fractures in patients. When the complication rates were examined, the rate of those without complications was 52.0% (n=13) among elementary fractures, while the rate was 34.8% (n=8) in associated fractures. When the fracture types were evaluated according to the Harris hip score, elementary fractures have better score than associated fractures, but no statistically significant difference was observed between them (p=0.056). When evaluated according to Merle d'Aubigne score, it was observed that elementary fractures had significantly better scores (p=0.004). Conclusion: As the complexity of the fracture increases, it can be predicted that the clinical outcomes of the patient will be worse. It is also concluded that the elementary fracture type had better clinical outcomes than the associated fracture type in our own surgically treated acetabular fractures.