Nailing versus plating in humerus shaft fractures: a prospective comparative study.

There is a debate about the choice of operative intervention in humerus shaft fractures requiring surgical intervention. A prospective, comparative study of management of acute humeral shaft fractures treated by antegrade interlocking nail fixation and dynamic compression plating was undertaken over a period of three years. Twenty patients of interlocking nailing and sixteen patients of plating were included after considering the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Functional scoring criteria were used for postoperative assessment and the average follow-up period was one year. A higher rate of excellent and good results and a tendency for earlier union was seen with the plating group in our series.