Anatomy of clavicle in the Indian population and its applicability in pre-contoured plating.

Background: Fractures of the clavicle are traditionally treated non-operatively, but with the increase of high-energy trauma, there has been an increase in the operative management of these fractures. Controversy exists on the type of fixation for middle third clavicle fractures. The anatomically pre-contoured plates are low-profile mechanically sound plates which do not cause much soft tissue irritation.

Methods: To characterise the clavicular morphology through computerised tomography and determine the applicability of pre-contoured plates for our population.

Results: In this study, the mean total length was 145.31 mm and the apex of superior clavicle bow was located 38.15 mm from the acromial end, thereby giving a zone of 107.16 mm for plating. In the 107.16 mm of platable zone, the zone of ideal fracture location was 43.16 mm. Superior anterior plates had a good fit in 89.3% of the CT subset, whereas superior plates had a good fit in only 71.6% of the population.

Conclusion: Superior anterior pre-contoured clavicle plates have approximately 98% good to fair compatibility for clavicles in the South Indian population without any need for further intra-operative moulding.