eMedicine Specialties > Emergency Medicine > Trauma & Orthopedics
Fracture, Scapular: Follow-up
Updated: Sep 2, 2009
Follow-up
Transfer
- Transfer the patient with a scapular fracture when evaluation or treatment of associated injuries or surgical repair of the fracture is necessary and when neither is available at the initial institution.
Deterrence/Prevention
- Enforcement of traffic safety laws and injury prevention education are the two most productive measures for reducing scapular fractures.
Complications
- After associated injuries are excluded, the most common complication of an isolated scapular fracture is posttraumatic arthritis or bursitis.
Prognosis
- If no significant associated injury exists, the prognosis for complete or near complete recovery is excellent.
Patient Education
- Patient education about the use of sling immobilization, ice, and analgesics is important.
- A critical part of most treatment regimens is early range-of-motion exercises.
- For excellent patient education resources, visit eMedicine's Breaks, Fractures, and Dislocations Center. Also, see eMedicine's patient education articles, Shoulder Dislocation and Broken Collarbone.
Miscellaneous
Medicolegal Pitfalls
- Missed diagnosis
- Failure to consider associated injuries
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References
Zlowodzki M, Bhandari M, Zelle BA, Kregor PJ, Cole PA. Treatment of scapula fractures: systematic review of 520 fractures in 22 case series. J Orthop Trauma. Mar 2006;20(3):230-3. [Medline].
Stephens NG, Morgan AS, Corvo P, Bernstein BA. Significance of scapular fracture in the blunt-trauma patient. Ann Emerg Med. Oct 1995;26(4):439-42. [Medline].
Baldwin KD, Ohman-Strickland P, Mehta S, Hume E. Scapula fractures: a marker for concomitant injury? A retrospective review of data in the National Trauma Database. J Trauma. Aug 2008;65(2):430-5. [Medline].
McAdams TR, Blevins FT, Martin TP, DeCoster TA. The role of plain films and computed tomography in the evaluation of scapular neck fractures. J Orthop Trauma. Jan 2002;16(1):7-11. [Medline].
Bartonicek J, Tucek M, Fric V. [Radiographic evaluation of scapula fractures]. Rozhl Chir. Feb 2009;88(2):84-8. [Medline].
Hart RG, Rittenberry TJ, Uehara DT. Handbook of Orthopaedic Emergencies. Lippincott-Raven; 1999:149-55.
Rosen P, Barkin R. Emergency Medicine: Concepts and Clinical Practice. Mosby Year Book; 2002:584-586.
Simon R, Koenigcknecht S. Emergency Orthopedics: The Extremities. Appleton and Lange; 1995:207-15.
Tintinelli J, Ruiz E, Krome R. Emergency Medicine: A Comprehensive Study Guide. McGraw-Hill; 2000:1784-1787.
Veysi VT, Mittal R, Agarwal S, Dosani A, Giannoudis PV. Multiple trauma and scapula fractures: so what?. J Trauma. Dec 2003;55(6):1145-7. [Medline].
Further Reading
Keywords
scapula, scapular fractures, acromion injuries, scapular neck fractures, glenoid rim fractures, glenoid fracture, stellate glenoid fractures, coracoid process fractures, coracoid fracture, shoulder girdle injuries
Follow-up: Fracture, Scapular