Dall'Oca C, Christodoulidis A, Bortolazzi R, Bartolozzi P, Lavini F. Treatment of 103 displaced tibial diaphyseal fractures with a radiolucent unilateral external fixator.
Arch Orthop Trauma Surg 2010;
130:1377-82. [PMID:
20361199 DOI:
10.1007/s00402-010-1090-7]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2009] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE
The authors report their experience in the treatment of the diaphyseal tibial fractures, using the unilateral radiolucent External Fixator (EF) XCaliber.
DESIGN
A total of 100 patients (average age 35 years, range 16-76) with 103 displaced diaphyseal tibial fractures were treated with the XCaliber. There were 59 type A fractures, 35 type B, and 9 type C (according to the AO classification) and 35 were open fractures.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS
During the last assessment, patients were evaluated for level of pain, ability to perform weight-bearing activities, and number of residual deformities.
RESULTS
The average follow-up time was 24 months, 3 patients (4 fractures) were excluded for final assessment and 1 patient moved abroad. Of the remaining 98 fractures, 83 (84.7%) healed with a single operation in a mean 21 weeks (SD 3.97; 12-38 weeks), 10 fractures had a delayed union and 5 fractures proceeded to a non-union. There were 13 complications. Among them, a loss of reduction was observed in 3 cases due to overload of the EF, in 3 cases, deep pin track infections were observed and 2 fractures healed with more than 1 cm of shortening.
CONCLUSIONS
The results are encouraging, since both complex and open fractures were included in this study. The XCaliber was shown to be a valid unilateral external fixator, combining the advantage of radiolucency during application and radioscopic follow-up with a stable and flexible fracture fixation. This represents the first report in the literature specifically examining treatment of tibial diaphyseal fractures with a radiolucent external fixator.
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