Int J Cur Res Rev | Vol 13 • Issue 11 • June 2021 256 Comparison of Lateral and Posterior Surgical Approach in the Treatment of Type III Supracondylar Humeral Fracture in Children: A Retrospective Analysis Ghazanfar Ali Shah 1 , Jamil Ahmed Khoso 2 , Zahoor Illahi Soomro 3 , Sajjad Hussain Bhatti 4 , Niaz Hussain Keerio 5 , Syed Muhammad Khalid Karim 6 1 Assistant Professor Orthopedics, SMBBIT/Dow University of Medical and Health Sciences Karachi, Pakistan; 2 Senior Registrar Orthopedic, Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Medical College and Lyari General Hospital Karachi, Pakistan; 3 Associate Professor Orthopedic, Peoples University of Medical & Health Sciences Nawabshah, Pakistan; 4 Assistant Professor Orthopedics, Pir Abdul Qadir Shah Jillani Institute of Medical Sciences GIMS Gamabat, Pakistan; 4 Assistant Professor Orthopedics, Muhammad Medical College and Hospital Mirpurkhas, Pakistan; 5 Assistant Professor Orthopedic, Dow Medical College & Dr. Ruth K.M. PFAU Civil Hospital Karachi, Pakistan. Corresponding Author: Niaz Hussain Keerio, Assistant Professor Orthopedic, Muhammad Medical College and Hospital Mirpurkhas, Pakistan. Email: niaz_h@hotmail.com ISSN: 2231-2196 (Print) ISSN: 0975-5241 (Online) Received: 03.03.2021 Revised: 12.04.2021 Accepted: 18.05.2021 Published: 04.06.2021 INTRODUCTION Among the elbow fractures, the most common elbow fracture observed in children are the supracondylar humeral fracture. The advancement of modern surgical techniques have re- duced the incidence rate of compartment syndrome and mal- union. 1 For the treatment of supracondylar humeral fractures, techniques such as closed reduction, traction, splint closed reduction, open reduction, k-wire fixation, and percutaneous pinning are used. 2 The Gartland classification system is used to classify humeral fractures into four types. Type III Gart- land fracture is a supracondylar fracture in which any kind of contact with the cortex is completely lost due to displace- ment. 3 In the transverse or frontal planes rotation and in the sagittal plane extension are observed. Similarly, sometimes due to fracture the injuries of soft tissues and nerve vessels are observed. For type III treatment, closed reduction with Original Article International Journal of Current Research and Review DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.31782/IJCRR.2021.131145 IJCRR Section: Healthcare ISI Impact Factor (2019-20): 1.628 IC Value (2019): 90.81 SJIF (2020) = 7.893 Copyright@IJCRR ABSTRACT Introduction: Among the elbow fractures, the most common elbow fracture observed in children are the supracondylar humeral fracture. The advancement of modern surgical techniques has reduced the incidence rate of compartment syndrome and malun- ion. For the treatment of supracondylar humeral fractures, techniques such as closed reduction, traction, splint closed reduction, open reduction, k-wire fixation, and percutaneous pinning are used. There are different approaches that are applied for open reduction method which include double incision method (lateral and medial), medial, anterior, posterior and lateral approach. Till date among all these approaches, the posterior approach via muscles of triceps has produced very good results. Different stud- ies have been conducted to compare the anterior and posterior approaches of surgical treatment. Aim: To compare the results of posterior and lateral surgical approaches while treating the type III supracondylar humeral frac- ture in children. Methodology: This study included 82 children, who had undergone the surgical treatment, 52 patients were treated by the posterior approach, and 30 patients were treated by the lateral approach. Both the groups had their follow up till 6 months post- operatively. Results: It was observed that the posterior approach had a very short surgery time as compared to the lateral approach. The results obtained according to the Flynn’s criteria were 80.7% in the posterior group and 80% in the lateral group, and no statisti- cal significance was observed between the two groups. Conclusion: The posterior approach had shorter operating time as compared to the lateral approach, however, no statistical significance was determined between the two groups in terms of functional results and complications. Key Words: Supracondylar humeral fracture, Lateral approach, Posterior approach, Children, statistical significance, Functional results