A 60-year-old woman falls on an outstretched hand. She has a dinner-fork deformity of the wrist. X-ray shows dorsal displacement and tilt of the distal radial fragment with impaction. This fracture is called:

• A Colles' fracture ✓
• B Smith's fracture
• C Barton's fracture
• D Chauffeur's fracture

Explanation

Colles' fracture is the most common fracture of the wrist, occurring in elderly osteoporotic women after a fall on the outstretched hand. It is defined as a fracture of the distal radius within 2.5 cm of the wrist joint with dorsal displacement, dorsal tilt, radial shift, and impaction — producing the classic dinner-fork deformity. Smith's fracture (reversed Colles') has volar displacement. Barton's fracture involves a marginal rim of the distal radius.

Reference: Maheshwari Essential Orthopaedics, 6th ed.

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Written and medically reviewed by the StethoPrep medical team.