TABLE I.
Criteria Used to Define Clinical Fracture Union*
| Clinical Criteria Used to Define Fracture Union | Number of Articles (N = 77) |
|---|---|
| 1. No pain/tenderness when bearing weight | 38 (49%) |
| 2. No pain/tenderness on palpation/examination | 30 (39%) |
| 3. Ability to bear weight | 14 (18%) |
| 4. Ability to walk/perform activities of daily living with no pain | 11 (14%) |
| 5. Ability to walk/perform activities of daily living | 9 (12%) |
| 6. No residual pain at fracture site | 8 (10%) |
| 7. No motion at fracture site on examination | 4 (5%) |
| 8. Full range of motion at adjacent joint | 4 (5%) |
| 9. “Clinically stable/asymptomatic” | 2 (3%) |
| 10. No residual warmth at fracture site | 1 (1%) |
| 11. Full range of motion at adjacent joint without pain | 1 (1%) |
| 12. Fracture stiffness measured mechanically† | 1 (1%) |
*
The clinical criteria were grouped into twelve similar categories and were arranged in order of most to least common use.
†
A fracture stiffness of >15 Nm/deg in two orthogonal planes was reported to indicate sufficient healing for external fixator removal in the case of a tibial fracture9.