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This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 34/3/431    most recent 0363546505281240v1 Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (2) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Argo, D. Articles by Field, L. D. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Argo, D. Articles by Field, L. D. Related Collections Female Athletes Elbow Operative

Operative Treatment of Ulnar Collateral Ligament Insufficiency of the Elbow in Female Athletes

David Argo, MD^*, Scott W. Trenhaile, MD, Felix H. Savoie, III, MD^, and Larry D. Field, MD

From the ^* Mississippi Sports Medicine & Orthopaedic Center, Jackson, Mississippi, Rockford Orthopaedic Associates, Rockford, Illinois, and the Upper Extremity Service, Mississippi Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Center, and Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Mississippi Medical School, Jackson, Mississippi

Address correspondence to Felix H. Savoie III, MD, 1325 East Fortification Street, Jackson, MS 39202 (e-mail: busavoie{at}aol.com).

Background: As women become more involved in athletic activity, injuries specific to this population also increase. No data exist regarding operative treatment of female patients with elbow instability secondary to ulnar collateral ligament insufficiency.

Hypothesis: Women with symptomatically unstable elbows who failed nonoperative treatment will improve after surgical intervention.

Study Design: Case series; Level of evidence, 4.

Methods: Nineteen women were retrospectively evaluated using the Andrews and Carson Elbow Outcome Score. Patients were included if they underwent repair or reconstruction of the ulnar collateral ligament for symptomatic instability that precluded them from participation in their desired sport or activities, despite nonoperative treatment.

Results: The mean age was 22.0 years (range, 15.1–37.2 years). The mean follow-up was 38.8 months (range, 12.4–68.6 months). Of the 19 patients, 14 were softball players, gymnasts, and tennis players. Only 1 was a pitcher. Eighteen women underwent repair by one of the following procedures: plication (n = 6), repair to bone using anchors (n = 11), or drill holes (n = 1). One patient underwent a palmaris graft reconstruction. The mean overall preoperative outcome score of 120 improved to 191 postoperatively (P < .0001). Seventeen of 18 athletes were able to return to their sport at a mean of 2.5 months postoperatively. One patient did not participate in athletics.

Conclusion: This study demonstrated excellent overall results in 16 and good results in 3 female patients after medial elbow repair or reconstruction. Women appear to be able to consistently return to a high level of function after repair or reconstruction for medial elbow instability.

Key Words: ulnar collateral ligament • female athletes • elbow instability • medial elbow

This article has been cited by other articles:

				M. A. Vitale and C. S. Ahmad The Outcome of Elbow Ulnar Collateral Ligament Reconstruction in Overhead Athletes: A Systematic Review Am. J. Sports Med., June 1, 2008; 36(6): 1193 - 1205. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				F. H. Savoie III, S. W. Trenhaile, J. Roberts, L. D. Field, and J. R. Ramsey Primary Repair of Ulnar Collateral Ligament Injuries of the Elbow in Young Athletes: A Case Series of Injuries to the Proximal and Distal Ends of the Ligament Am. J. Sports Med., June 1, 2008; 36(6): 1066 - 1072. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]