DOI: 10.36347/sasjs.2023.v09i06.008

Pages: 521-527

Our work is a retrospective study over 6 years period on the results obtained from the surgical arthrolysis of post-traumatic stiffness in 21 patients, operated in Department of Traumatology in the Ibn Sina University Hospital in Rabat. The aim of the study consisted to study the functional results of surgical elbow arthrolysis and highlight the prognostic factors which influence the overall results of this therapy. The average age of our patients is 35 years. The predominantly affected side was the right. All the patients had a traumatic history where 57.1% were joint fractures due to falls in 57.1% of cases. On these injuries, 23.8% were neglected and received orthopedic treatment. The type of stiffness was mixed in 76.2% of cases and severe to very severe in 80.9% of cases. Capsulectomy was the most performed surgical procedure. Our immediate results were very good in 42.9% and 52.4% of cases according to the relative gain of MERLE d ́AUBIGNE. The functional sector was obtained in 52.4% of the patients. With an average follow-up of 34 months, our results were successful in 81% of cases according to the relative gain of MERLE d ́AUBIGNE and 47.6% of patients kept a functional area according to the sectorization of ALLIEU and ANJOU. In total, there is an improvement in the performance of the member according to the MAYO score with an excellent result in 33% and a good result in 33% of cases. Thus, elbow arthrolysis is a useful technique for treating stiff elbow and demonstrates the importance of rehabilitation to maintain the operative results.