Elbow

Elbow trauma and post-traumatic stiffness

Elbow injuries are described with a fracture classification and followed with an examiner-completed elbow rating, because the arc of motion and the stability that decide function are examination findings that a questionnaire does not capture.

What you are actually deciding

Most daily activities need an arc of about 100 degrees, from roughly 30 to 130 degrees of flexion, so a stiff elbow can score well on a pain-weighted index while still limiting function. Record the arc and the stability finding beside any total score, and add a patient-reported upper-limb measure for what the patient can actually do.

Clinical calculator1

Mayo Elbow Score Calculator8 items
Mayo Elbow Performance ScoreThe Mayo Elbow Performance Score is a 100-point examiner-completed rating of the elbow that combines 45 points for pain, 20 for arc of motion, 10 for stability and 25 for five daily tasks, graded excellent at 90 or above, good at 75 to 89, fair at 60 to 74 and poor below 60.

Classification system1

Mason Classification2 items
Mason Classification of Radial Head FracturesThe Mason classification sorts radial head fractures into four types — non-displaced (I), displaced partial articular (II), comminuted involving the whole head (III), and any radial head fracture accompanied by an elbow dislocation (IV) — and the type broadly separates fractures managed non-operatively from those needing fixation or replacement.