Paediatric Femoral Fractures for FRCS

Description

The presentation focuses on femur fractures in children, highlighting classification, treatment methods, and the importance of biomedical considerations.



**Overview and Acknowledgements:** Starting with acknowledgement of sources, the speaker details that this presentation stems from a symposium by Aleister Murray in Edinburgh, tailored to provide current insights on femur fractures in pediatric patients.



**Treatment Options:** The talk elaborates on various treatment methods including non-operative options like public cornice and operative methods such as balancing traction and surgical fixes using flexible nails, plates, or external fixation, discussing their respective advantages and ideal situations for use.



**Epidemiology and Risks:** Statistical insights include an epidemiological overview, noting that 1 in 5000 children experience femur fractures, which are predominantly seen in males and younger children. An emphasis is placed on identifying potential non-accidental injuries, particularly in children under three years of age, encouraging vigilance within medical assessments.



**Age-wise Treatment Protocol:** The presentation systematically discusses treatment protocols according to patient age groups. For children under two, a preference for non-operative methods is noted, whereas in older children different fixation methods, including flexible plating or rigid nailing, are explored, with detailed commentary on patient weight considerations and compliance issues.



**Complications and Considerations:** The speaker touches upon complications associated with each method, such as skin irritation in the presence of external fixation and the challenges of malunions or limb length discrepancies in plating methods. The psychological and compliance aspects of children in treatment are also reviewed.



**Conclusion and Resources:** Conclusively, the discourse emphasizes the necessity of judicious decision-making in treating pediatric femur fractures and source citation for best practices in clinical settings, referencing significant professional guidelines from both American and British pediatric orthopaedics.

Specialties