Hook plate fixation of Neer type II distal clavicle fractures results in satisfactory patient-reported outcomes but complications and revisions are high

BACKGROUND

Surgical treatment of distal clavicle fractures Neer type II is challenging. A gold standard has not yet been established, thus various surgical procedures have been described. The purpose of this study is to report the radiological and clinical outcomes using hook plate fixation in Neer type II distal clavicle fractures.

METHODS

We retrospectively reviewed data of 53 patients who underwent hook plate fixation between December 2009 and December 2019 with ≥ 2 years of follow-up. Patients with preexisting pathologies or concomitant injuries of the ipsilateral shoulder were excluded. Pre- and postoperative coracoclavicular distance (CCD), bony union and patient-reported outcomes were collected, including the Constant Score (CS) and Subjective Shoulder Value (SSV). Complications and revisions were recorded.

RESULTS

At a mean final follow-up of 6.2 years, mean SSV was 91.0% (range, 20-100) and mean CS was 80.9 points (range, 25-99). The mean preoperative CCD was 19.0 mm (range, 5.7-31.8), the mean postoperative CCD was 8.2 mm (range, 4.4-12.2) and the mean CCD following hardware removal was 9.7 mm (range, 4.7-18.8). The loss of reduction following hardware removal was statistically significant (P = 0.007). Eleven (20.8%) patients had complications, with 5 cases of deep or superficial infection (9.4%), four non-unions (7.5%), one periosteosynthetic fracture, one postoperative seroma, one implant failure and one symptomatic acromioclavicular joint arthritis (all 1.9%). A total of 10 patients (18.9%) underwent revision surgery at a mean of 113 (range, 7-631) days.

CONCLUSION

Medium-term patient-reported outcomes for hook plate fixation of Neer type II distal clavicle fractures are satisfactory; however, one in five patients suffers a complication with the majority of them requiring revision surgery.