Objective To evaluate the application effect of three dimensional(3 D) printing in the treatment of terrible triad of the elbow. Methods Forty patients with terrible triad of the elbow who were admitted to the hospital between April 2017 and January 2019 were selected as subjects. They were randomly divided into the observation group and the control group, 20 cases in each group. For the control group, preoperative design was completed through X-ray, CT plain scan and 3 D reconstruction.The finite element software mimics and 3 D printing were applied for the observation group to visualize fracture reduction and internal fixation, by which preoperative design was completed. All the medial and lateral ligament complexes of both groups were repaired with suture rivets. The surgical effect, elbow function(Broberg-Morrev elbow function scores) and pain degree[pain visual analogue scale(VAS) scores] before and after surgery, and incidence of postoperative complications were compared between the two groups. Results The operation time, amount of intraoperative blood loss, frequency of intraoperative fluoroscopy and fracture healing time of the observation group were shorter or less than those of the control group(P<0.05). Broberg-Morrev scores of the observation group at 3 months, 6 months and 9 months after surgery were higher than those of the control group(P<0.05). VAS scores of observation group at 1 month, 3 months and 6 months after surgery were lower than those of the control group(P<0.05). There was no significant difference in incidence rate of complications between the two groups within 9 months after surgery(P>0.05). Conclusion The application of 3 D printing in the treatment of terrible triad of the elbow can improve the surgical effect, promote postoperative recovery of elbow function, and alleviate pain, without significantly increasing the risk of complications.