OBJECTIVETo study the advantage of fir bark splint for the treatmet of distal radius fracture.

METHODSFrom January 2006 to June 2008, 80 cases were randomly divided into two groups and treated by fir bark splint fixation or plaster fixation. There were 40 cases in the fir bark splint group, including 18 males and 22 females with an average age of 45.2 years ranging from 20 to 66 years. There were 40 cases in the plaster group, including 19 males and 21 females with an average age of 44.1 years ranging from 23 to 65 years. Four weeks after manipulative reduction and external fixation, the fixtion effect, function recovery, bone mineral density of secondly metacarpus were obsearved by X-ray film, and the clinical effect were evaluated according to healing time ahead of schedule.

RESULTSAs compared between the two groups, the fixation effect of the fir bark splint group was better than that of the plaster group (Z = -2.844, P = 0.004 < 0.05); the function recovery of the fir bark splint group was better than that of the plaster group (Z = -3.196, P = 0.001 < 0.05); the bone mineral density of secondly metacarpus of the fir bark splint group were better than that of plaster group (t = 4.56, P < 0.001); the curative effect of fir bark splint group was better than that of the plaster group (Z = -2.601, P = 0.009 < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONFir bark splint could effectively keep fixation stability and promote fracture healing as well as function recovery.