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ABSTRACT
Purpose/Aim: This meta-analysis compares the clinical outcomes of surgical versus conservative treatment of displaced, 3- or 4-part, proximal humeral fractures. Materials and Methods: Medline, Cochrane, EMBASE, and Google Scholar were searched for studies published until October 2013, reporting functional outcomes of 3- or 4-part fractures of the proximal humerus in skeletally mature patients. Only randomized controlled trials were included. The treatments that were evaluated included non-surgical, open surgery, intramedullary pin, locking plate, arthroplasty, and minimally invasive surgical treatments. A meta-analysis was performed on the difference in functional outcomes and quality of life (QoL) between participants undergoing surgical versus non-surgical treatment. Results: Out of 254 participants in the studies who were analyzed, 127 were treated surgically. The difference in mean values of functional score showed similar results between surgical and non-surgical treatments (difference in mean values = 0.015, 95% CI = –0.232 to 0.261, p = .908).The difference in mean values of QoL showed that surgical treatment provided better post-operative QoL than non-surgical treatment (difference in mean values = 0.146, 95% CI = 0.052 to 0.240, p = .002). Conclusions: Surgical treatment of displaced, multi-fragment fractures of the proximal humerus did not improve shoulder functional outcome, based on the Constant–Murley Score, when compared with conservative and non-surgical treatments. However, health-related QoL was significantly improved with surgical treatment compared with conservative treatment.