Percutaneous Screw Fixation in Pelvic and Acetabular Fractures

Unstable pelvic fractures are major orthopaedic injuries with high rates of morbidity and mortality. Open surgical stabilization is the standard treatment for a great number of them. Percutaneous surgical fixation has become an accepted treatment method in last several years. We would like to report our experience with this relatively newer technique in a small mixed group of unstable pelvic ring fractures. This is a report of 16 cases (13 males 3 females) with mean age of 31±8 years of pelvic and acetabular fractures who received percutaneous iliosacral or iliopubic screw fixation under C-arm imaging control and had a 6 months period of clinical and radiographic follow-up. All 16 cases had healed their fractures at follow-up and had full weight-bearing status. 12 cases returned to their pre-fracture activities. One screw break and one wound infection were the complications list. There was no neurological deficit and average blood loss was 10 milliliters. Percutaneous iliosacral or iliopubic screw fixation for respectively posterior pelvic ring or anterior column acetabular injuries are useful surgical treatment options with low complication rates.