Objective: To investigate the clinical effects of internal fixation with double endobutton for the treatment of acromioclavicular joint dislocation of Tossy Grade III.
Methods: From 2007.7 to 2008.12, 27 patients with acromioclavicular joint dislocation of Tossy Grade III were fixed with double endobutton. Among the patients, 17 patients were male and 10 patients were female, with an average age of (35.0 +/- 1.3) years (ranged from 23 to 60 years). Fourteen patients were injured by traffic accident, 6 patients were work-related injuries, 4 patients were sports injuries, and 3 patients were injured by falling down. Sixteen patients had injuries in the left, and 11 patients in the right. All the patients were Tossy III type dislocation without clavicle fracture. The therapeutic effects were evaluated by Karlsson criteria based on range of motion of acromioclavicular joint, pain, muscle force and postreduction X-ray.
Results: All the patients were followed up for 6 to 14 months, mean 10.2 months. According to the Karlsson score criteria, 24 patients obtained an excellent result, 2 fair and 1 poor.
Conclusion: Fixation with double endobutton is to be a new method for the treatment of acromioclavicular joint dislocation, which has the advantages of minimal trauma, reliable fixation, early functional rehabilitation and so on.