Marginal (partial articular) sector fracture of the lateral radial head that is displaced — separated from adjacent quadrants, impacted/depressed, or tilted out of alignment.
CondutaVariable, no firm consensus: nonoperative early mobilization for stable fractures without a mechanical block, versus open reduction and internal fixation (or fragment excision) when displacement is larger or motion is blocked.
RiscoOutcomes are variable; fractures are often more comminuted than they appear (three or more fragments in about 73% in one series), which can complicate repair.
Comminuted fracture involving the whole radial head, with fragmentation and displacement of the entire head.
CondutaOperative: radial head excision, or open reduction and internal fixation versus radial head arthroplasty/replacement depending on reconstructability and elbow stability.
RiscoGenerally requires surgery; comparative outcome data favoring one surgical strategy over another are limited.
Any radial head fracture with a concomitant elbow dislocation, irrespective of the radial head fracture pattern (added by Johnston, 1962; later incorporated by Broberg and Morrey).
CondutaOperative and highly variable: ranges from closed management through ORIF to radial head excision or prosthetic replacement, with attention to restoring elbow stability and treating associated ligamentous/coronoid injury.
RiscoHigher-energy injury with associated instability; prognosis not specified per-type in the source.