Posterior wall acetabulum fracture-dislocation with subsequent ipsilateral pipkin IV fracture-dislocation: How many hits can a hip take?

The treatment of acetabulum fractures is a technically-demanding task for orthopaedic trauma surgeons. The treatment of femoral head fractures associated with acetabulum fractures, pipkin IV fractures, presents difficulty as usually the femoral head fracture requires treatment through an anterior approach and the acetabulum fracture, which is commonly a posterior wall fracture, requires treatment through a posterior approach. Recently, surgical dislocation of the hip has become an accepted option for treatment of these fractures as it allows treatment of the femoral head fracture and posterior wall acetabulum fracture through one approach.