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nonunion

  (nŏn-yūn'yən) pronunciation
adj.
  1. Not belonging to a labor union: nonunion plumbers.
  2. Not recognizing or dealing with a labor union or employing union members: a nonunion shop.
n.

The failure of a fractured bone to heal normally.


 
 

Failure of the ends of a fractured bone to unite.


 
Wikipedia: nonunion
"Nonunion" also means a workforce that does not belong to a trade union.

Nonunion is permanent failure of healing following a broken bone.

Nonunion is a serious complication of a fracture and may occur when the fracture moves too much, has a poor blood supply or gets infected. Patients who smoke have a higher incidence of nonunion. The normal process of bone healing is interrupted or stalled. In some cases a pseudo-joint (pseudarthrosis) develops between the two fragments with cartilage formation and a joint cavity. More commonly the tissue between the ununited fragments is scar tissue.

Since the process of bone healing is quite variable, a nonunion may go on to heal without intervention in a very few cases. In general, if a nonunion is still evident at 6 months post injury it will remain unhealed without specific treatment, usually orthopedic surgery. A non-union which does go on to heal is called a delayed union.

Clinical features

A history of a broken bone is usually apparent. The patient complains of persistent pain at the fracture site and may also notice abnormal movement or clicking at the level of the fracture. An x-ray plate of the fractured bone shows a persistent radiolucent line at the fracture. Callus formation may be evident but callus does not bridge across the fracture. If there is doubt about the interpretation of the Xray, stress Xrays, tomograms or CT scan may be used to make sure.

Untreated prognosis

By definition, a nonunion will not heal if left alone. Therefore the patient's symptoms will not be improved and the function of the limb will remain impaired. It will be painful to bear weight on it and it may be deformed or unstable.

Treatment

Surgical treatment includes removal of all scar tissue from between the fracture fragments, immobilization of the fracture with metal plates, rods or pins and bone graft. In simple cases healing may be evident within 3 months. Ilizarov revolutionized the treatment of recalcitrant nonunions demonstrating that the affected area of the bone could be removed, the fresh ends "docked" and the remaining bone lengthened using an external fixator device. The time course of healing after such treatment is longer than normal bone healing. Usually there are signs of union within 3 months, but the treatment may continue for many months beyond that.

Treated prognosis

This depends on many factors including the age and general health of the patient, the time since the original injury, the number of previous surgeries, smoking history, the patient's ability to cooperate with the treatment. In the region of 80% of nonunions heal after the first operation. The success rate with subsequent surgeries is less.

See also

External links


 
Translations: Translations for: Non-union

Dansk (Danish)
adj. - uorganiseret, ikke medlem af fagforening

Français (French)
adj. - non syndiqué

Deutsch (German)
adj. - keiner Gewerkschaft angehörend, nicht organisiert, von Nichtorganisierten hergestellt

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - ασυνδικάλιστος

Italiano (Italian)
non sindacato

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - não-sindicalizado

Русский (Russian)
не входящий в профсоюз

Español (Spanish)
adj. - no sindicado

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - oorganiserad

中文(简体) (Chinese (Simplified))
不属于工会的, 不承认工会的

中文(繁體) (Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 不屬於工會的, 不承認工會的

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 노동조합에 가입[인정]하지 않는

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - 労働組合に属さない, 労働組合を認めない
n. - 団結しないこと, 癒着不能

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮שאינו שייך לאיגוד מקצועי, לא נעשה או מיוצר ע"י חברי האיגוד המקצועי‬


 
 

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Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Veterinary Dictionary. The Veterinary Dictionary. Copyright © 2007 by Elsevier. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Nonunion" Read more
Translations. Copyright © 2007, WizCom Technologies Ltd. All rights reserved.  Read more

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