ABSTRACT
@#Introduction: Distal radius fracture (DRF) is the most common orthopaedic injury with a reported incidence of 17.5%. It is commonly seen in young males and elderly females. Over the last two decades, there is an increasing tendency to treat DRF surgically by open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF) with plate and screws owing to improved device design, better fixation and operative technique. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the demographic characteristics, type and method of fixation, and outcome in all surgically treated DRF cases from 2014 to 2018 in a university hospital. Materials and methods: A retrospective review of all surgically treated DRF cases with one year follow-up in a tertiary hospital in Malaysia was done. Patients who left the follow-up clinic before one-year post-surgery or before fracture union were excluded. A total of 82 patients with 88 DRF were finally included into the study and outcome in terms of union time and need of multiple surgeries were analysed along with the predictors. Results: In this study, mean age of the patient was 46.2 years. Motor vehicle accident was the commonest cause of the fracture and AO Type C fracture was the commonest fracture type. Seventeen (19.3%) out of 88 fractures were compound fracture. Open reduction and internal fixation with volar plate was the most common surgical technique done in this series (93.2%). Three (3.5%) out of 88 fractures required multiple surgeries and eighty-three (94.3%) DRF cases were united before nine months of the surgery in this study. There was statistically significant association between clinical type of the fracture and the union time (p-value <0.05). Conclusion: There was a 1.7:1 male-female ratio with AOC fracture being the most common type of fracture. The most common method of fixation was ORIF with volar locked plate. Patients with closed fractures have a higher rate of union compared to open fractures at nine months.
ABSTRACT
@#Delayed wound healing is one of the major complications of diabetes mellitus where it often leads to amputation. Virgin coconut oil (VCO) is a natural oil widely used to treat wounds and burns traditionally. It possesses potent antioxidant and antibacterial activities. This study aimed to determine the effect of VCO on the fibroblast population in diabetic wound healing. Full thickness cutaneous wound tissues were collected from non-treated, VCO-treated, and silver sulfadiazine (SS)-treated diabetic rats. The tissues were then subjected to Verhoeff eosin staining and immunohistology of fibroblast and myofibroblast. Histological analysis showed increased collagen deposition with intact epidermis in the VCO treated group compared to decreased collagen deposition with damaged epidermis in both non-treated and SS-treated groups. Interestingly, more fibroblasts and myofibroblasts were observed in the non-treated group compared to the VCO- and SS-treated groups. VCO significantly promoted wound healing process in diabetic rats via promoting re-epithelialization, and increasing collagen fibres deposition and wound contraction. The results suggested VCO can be used to treat diabetic wounds.