Classification of Pediatric Supracondylar Fractures: Comparison between the Gartland and the Lagrange & Rigault Classifications

Abstract

Background The supracondylar fracture of the humerus is one of the most common fractures in pediatric age. Many classifications were proposed, with Gartland being the most widely used one and Lagrange and Rigault (L&R) the most used in French-speaking countries.Objectives The goal of this study was to compare the Wilkins-modified Gartland classification with the L&R classification in terms of reproducibility.Methods Three observers with similar training levels classified 35 fractures according to both classifications twice to evaluate both intra and interobserver variation.Results The mean intraobserver variation was 0.78 and 0.77 for Gartland and L&R classifications, respectively, and the mean interobserver variation was 0.55 and 0.62 for Gartland and L&R classifications, respectively.Conclusions Both classifications reveal adequate to usage in clinical and investigational practices, which is consistent with the literature.