What is physeal arrest?

What is physeal arrest?

Physeal arrest refers to the disturbance or complete cessation of normal growth of skeletally immature bone at the physeal growth plate due to the latter’s premature closure.

Can you fix growth arrest?

There are several common methods of epiphysiodesis surgery. Surgeons can drill the growth center, place screws across the growth center, or tether each side of the growth center with a small plate to prevent the bone from growing. They can also remove the remaining cartilage to permanently stop growth.

How common is growth arrest?

Growth arrest occurs in 5–10% of cases in those with physeal fractures. The incidence of growth arrest is quite variable depending on physeal location, type of injury, and treatment received.

What are physeal injuries?

It is a combination of a horizontal fracture line through the physis and a vertical fracture line which runs from the growth plate through the epiphysis to the articular surface. Displaced injuries may result in a physeal bar, leading to growth disturbance and joint incongruity, leading to arthritis.

What is an Epiphysiodesis surgery?

Epiphysiodesis is the surgical ablation of a physis to stop its future growth, generally used to correct a leg length discrepancy. Prediction of leg length discrepancy at skeletal maturity can be difficult and multiple methods have been developed to provide an estimate.

What is a Physeal bar?

A physeal bar or partial premature physeal arrest is a result of injury or infection to an unfused physis. It consists of a bony bridge crossing the growth plate that results in growth disturbance and/or deformity.

What is a Epiphysiodesis surgery?

What is a Physeal bridge?

How many types of Physeal fractures there are?

There are nine types of Salter–Harris fractures; types I to V as described by Robert B Salter and W Robert Harris in 1963, and the rarer types VI to IX which have been added subsequently: Type I – transverse fracture through the growth plate (also referred to as the “physis”): 6% incidence.

How long is epiphysiodesis surgery?

Hemi-epiphysiodesis surgery (in which a growth plate is used) is performed under anesthesia and generally takes about an hour. During the procedure, the surgeon will make a 1 inch incision at the growth plate, through which a titanium plate is secured to the bone with two small titanium screws.

What does it mean to have a physeal arrest?

Physeal arrest refers to the disturbance or complete cessation of normal growth of skeletally immature bone at the physeal growth plate due to the latter’s premature closure Physeal arrests can be either complete 10, i.e. premature closure of the entire physeal growth plate, or partial.

How are radiographs used to diagnose physeal arrest?

Sequential radiographs can be used for determining physeal arrest following a physeal fracture, especially for the assessment of limb length discrepancy: tiny metal markers are inserted into the metaphysis and epiphysis, proximal and distal to the fractured physis, and into the contralateral physis 4,10.

When does growth arrest occur in distal radius?

Although rare, growth arrest is possible with fractures involving or near the physis Fractures of the distal radius are common and represent 31% of fractures occurring in children (Randsborg, 2013). Their peak incidence is 11-12 years in girls and 13-14 years in boys with the incidence being 1.5 times greater in males than females.

What kind of Echo is used for physeal arrest?

A 3D spoiled gradient echo sequence with fat saturation is used to perform physeal bar mapping, wherein the physeal cartilage is bright and bone is dark 1-3,6. Accurate mapping and sizing of a physeal bar is important for directing management 1,2,8,9. The aim of treatment is to avoid deformity and limb length discrepancy.