Trends in treatment and epidemiology of radial head fractures

Objective: We aimed to assess the recent trends in the demographics of radial head and neck fractures and their management based on displacement.

Methods: TriNetX was queried for cases from 1 January 2017, through 31 December 2022. ICD diagnosis codes were used to define patient cohorts with radial head or neck fractures. CPT codes were searched to determine the operative patient cohorts. All cases not included under any CPT codes were defined as the nonoperative cohort.

Results: A total of 103,432 patients were included. The female-to-male ratio was 4:3. The average age of individuals with radial head fractures was 43 ± 25 years, with a greater age in the replacement cohort compared to the fixation group. The incidence rates of displaced and nondisplaced fractures were similar across the years. Nonoperative management was overwhelmingly preferred over operative management. Regarding operative management, internal fixation rates were higher than replacement rates.

Conclusion: The trend of fracture incidence and the type of operative management has remained constant over the past 6 years. However, an increase in the number of radial head replacements is expected with an aging population. Moreover, radial head and neck fractures are among the benign injuries most frequently managed nonoperatively.