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Introduction Explanation Trainning Tool Hall of Fame

History Introduction Principle Anatomic Location
The 3 Fracture "Types" of Long Bones The Coding of the Diagnosis
The Qualifications How to use this Classification Glossary References

Principle

The original unifying principle of the CCF, valid for all fractures, is the hierarchical organization into triads. Thus, all fractures of each bone segment are first divided into three Types, and then each Type is further divided into three Groups. Types and Groups are arranged in an ascending order of severity (see below). The subdivision into Subgroups with their Qualifications is often only possible after surgery when the finer details have been established.

The underlying principle of the new format of the CCF is to find with the system of 2 specific questions each of which has only 2 possible answers the 3 characteristic fracture types of each segment. Once the fracture types are determined, we progress to the determination of the fracture groups which is done in the same manner. In determining the fracture groups we use 6 questions each of which once again has only two possible answers. When we come to the subgroups the questions have three possible answers. (For explanations how to determine the qualifications see "The coding of the diagnosis").

Principle of CCF (Format 1996). The scheme demonstrates the hierarchical categorization of the 3 fracture Types and of the 9 Groups of each segment of a generic example of a distal long bone segment. It also demonstrates how to build with binary questioning 4 triads (1 Type, 3 Groups) = 8 questions, each with 2 exactly defined options.

The 3 Types of each bone segment are labelled A, B, and C. Each Type is divided into 3 Groups, labelled A1, A2, A3, B1, B2, B3, C1, C2, C3. Type and Group having been determined with certainty, one should proceed to the determination of the Subgroups and the Qualifications.

Severity: The term implies anticipated difficulties and likely complications of treatment, and the prognosis according to the morphologic complexities of the fracture. The colours green, orange and red indicate the increasing severity: A1 indicates the simplest fracture with the best prognosis and C3 the most difficult with the worst prognosis. Thus, when one has classified a fracture, one has established its severity.