Evaluation of two different types of radial head prosthesis in practical use. Using either Evolve® or MoPyC® radial head prosthesis in the treatment of comminuted radial head fractures

Tim Friedrich Raven; Lukas Banken; Gerhard Schmidmaier; Stefan Studier-Fischer; Bahram Biglari; Arash Moghaddam

doi:10.4081/or.2020.8386

Evaluation of two different types of radial head prosthesis in practical use. Using either Evolve® or MoPyC^® radial head prosthesis in the treatment of comminuted radial head fractures

Orthop Rev (Pavia). 2020 Apr 28;12(1):8386. doi: 10.4081/or.2020.8386. eCollection 2020 Apr 22.

Authors

Tim Friedrich Raven^{1

2}, Lukas Banken^{2

3}, Gerhard Schmidmaier², Stefan Studier-Fischer⁴, Bahram Biglari⁴, Arash Moghaddam^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ ATORG - Aschaffenburg Trauma and Orthopaedic Research Group, Center of Orthopaedic and Trauma surgery and Sports medicine, Aschaffenburg.
² HTRG - Heidelberg Trauma Research Group, Division of Trauma and Reconstructive Surgery, Center for Orthopaedics, Trauma Surgery and Spinal Cord Injury, University Hospital Heidelberg.
³ Schön Klinik Hamburg- Eilbek, Hamburg.
⁴ BG Trauma Center, Ludwigshafen, Germany.

Abstract

The aim of this retrospective study was to undertake a comparative evaluation of the Evolve^® modular metallic radial head implant prosthesis and the MoPyC^® pyrocarbon prosthesis in acute care. Seventyfive patients having a comminuted radial head fracture with an Evolve^® prosthesis (=G1) and 11 with a MoPyC^® prosthesis (=G2) were available for a follow-up. Postoperative patient outcomes were evaluated according to a standardized follow-up protocol which included the Morrey rating system. Assessment criteria were range of motion (ROM), functional scores, and rate of complications. G1 showed a mean Morrey score of 86 points. Four direct prosthesis complications were observed in this group (n=75). The average achieved Morrey score in G2 was 84 points. In this group (n=11), 2 direct prosthesis complications were diagnosed. The average range of motion did not differ greatly between both groups. Radial head replacement with either prosthesis yielded sufficient to satisfactory results in a mid-term perspective regarding the range of motion and function of the elbow joint when performed in carefully selected patients. The Evolve^® Prothesis appears to show a slightly lower rate of complication by way of a similar functional outcome.

Keywords: Evolve; Fracture; MoPyC; Prosthesis; Radial head.

Grants and funding

Funding: None.