Four patients with injuries of the acetabular triradiate cartilage are presented. In three of them premature fusion of the cartilage occurred; two of these developed acetabular deformity and subluxation of the hip. In all patients the sacroiliacjoint also was injured; in two, thejoint was completely disrupted, leading to fusion and growth disturbance of the ilium. As injury ofthe triradiate cartilage is easily missed on the initial radiograph, it is advised that all patients with pelvic trauma should be followed clinically and radiographically foratleast one year. The acetabular triradiate cartilage is the composite growth-plate of the iliac, ischial and pubic bones. Premature closure of this physis is an infrequent complication

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A retrospective study of 23 acetabular fractures in patients up to 17 years of age is presented, with an average follow-up of eight years. Good or excellent functional results were achieved in 21 patients; radiographic results were good or excellent in 16. Conservative treatment gave consistently good results in fractures with minimal initial displacement, stable posterior fracture-dislocations and Salter-Harris type 1 and 2 triradiate cartilage fractures. Less favourable results were seen in type 5 triradiate cartilage fractures and in comminuted fractures, but operation was no better Unstable posterior fracture-dislocations and irreducible central fracture-dislocations need operative treatment but the results may still be unsatisfactory.

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