Reducing intraoperative duration and ionising radiation exposure during the insertion of distal locking screws of intramedullary nails: a small-scale study comparing the current fluoroscopic method against radiation-free, electromagnetic navigation

A novel dynamic electromagnetic tracking navigation system for distal locking of intramedullary nails

BACKGROUND

The accurate distal locking of intramedullary (IM) nails is a clinical challenge for surgeons. Although many navigation systems have been developed, a real-time guide method with free radiation exposure, better user convenience, and high cost performance has not been proposed.

METHODS

This paper aims to develop an electromagnetic navigation system named TianXuan-MDTS that provides surgeons with a proven surgical solution. And the registration method with external landmarks for IM nails and calibration algorithm for guiders were proposed. A puncture experiment, model experiments measured by 3D Slicer and cadaver experiments (2 cadaveric leg specimens and 6 drilling operations) are conducted to evaluate its performance and stability.

RESULTS

The registration deviations (TRE) is 1.05± 0.13 mm. In the puncture experiment, a success rate of 96% can be achieved in 45.94 s. TianXuan-MDTS were evaluated on 3 tibia model. The results demonstrated that all 9 screw holes were successfully prepared at a rate of 100% in 91.67 s. And the entry point, end point, and angular deviations were 1.60±0.20 mm, 1.47±0.18 mm, and 3.10±0.84°, respectively. Postoperative fluoroscopy in cadaver experiments showed that all drills were in the distal locking holes, with a success rate of 100% and the average time 143.17± 18.27 s.

CONCLUSIONS

The experimental results indicate that our system with novel registration and calibration methods could serve as a feasible and promising tool to assist surgeons during distal locking.

Does Surgical Experience Decrease Radiation Exposure in the Operating Room?

BACKGROUND

Intraoperative fluoroscopy facilitates minimally invasive surgery, and although it is irreplaceable in terms of intraoperative guidance, it results in substantial radiation exposure to the patient and surgical team. Although the risk of radiation exposure because of equipment factors has been described, there is little known about the impact of surgeon experience on radiation exposure. The aim of this study was to determine whether there is a relationship between years of surgical experience and total dose of radiation used for an archetypal pediatric orthopaedic surgical procedure that requires intraoperative fluoroscopy.

METHODS

This was a retrospective cohort study of children undergoing closed reduction and percutaneous pinning for supracondylar humerus fractures at a level I pediatric trauma center. Information pertaining to radiation dosage was gathered including fluoroscopic time, total images acquired, magnification use, and dose area product (DAP). Regression analysis was used to evaluate the effect of surgeon experience on the outcome variables.

RESULTS

A total of 759 pediatric patients treated by 17 attending surgeons were included. The median surgeon experience was 8.94 years (interquartile range, 5.9 to 19.8). Increased number of pins was associated with increased DAP (P<0.001) and lower years of experience (P=0.025). There was significantly higher fluoroscopy time in seconds (56.9 vs. 42.1 s, P=0.001), DAP (179.9 vs. 110.3 mGy-cm2, P=0.001), use of magnification (39.5 vs. 31.9 s, P=0.043), and total number of images obtained (74.5 vs. 57.6, P=0.008) in attending surgeons with <1 year of experience compared with those with greater experience. An operator extremity was visible in at least 1 saved image in 263 of 759 (35%) cases.

CONCLUSION

Increased surgical experience was significantly associated with decreased fluoroscopy usage, including time, number of images, and dose. Surgeon inexperience increases radiation exposure for patients and staff by over 60% when treating supracondylar humerus fractures. This study clearly identifies methods to reduce radiation exposure, including use of pulsed fluoroscopy instead of continuous fluoroscopy, decreasing use of magnification, removing the operator's extremity from the field, and judicious use and placement of each additional pin.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level III.

Kuntscher Nail: A Forgotten Entity Yet a Reliable Modality in Treatment of Winquist Type I and II Closed Femoral Shaft Fractures

Background

Interlocking intramedullary nail is used for almost all types of femoral shaft fractures worldwide because of its better mechanical stability. In countries like India with limited healthcare infrastructure, the use of Kuntscher nail (K-nail) in Winquist type I and type II isthmic fractures is still debated. Therefore, we conducted this study to compare the functional outcome, radiation exposure, and cost of the implant between closed reduction and internal fixation of Winquist type I and II fractures in the middle one-third shaft region by K-nail and intramedullary locked nails (IMILN), respectively.

Methods

This was a hospital-based non-blinded randomized trial which included 56 patients with closed Winquist type I and II femoral shaft fractures of the middle one-third femoral shaft (isthmic and paraisthmic zone). All the patients were either treated by K-nail or IMILN. The patients were followed up every three weeks for the initial six months and quarterly thereafter. Per operative duration of surgery and radiation exposure by C-arm was documented and assuming scattered radiation 20%, radiation exposure to the surgeon was calculated and patients were assessed clinically and radiologically for union.

Results

The patients were divided into two groups: group I (K-nail, n = 25) and group II (IMILN, n = 31). In groups I and II, the patients achieving radiological union were 88% (n = 22/25) and 84% (n = 27/31) at six months’ duration, respectively. The mean duration for the radiological union was 3.65 ± 0.55 months in group I (K-nail) and 3.76 ± 0.59 months in group II (IMILN), respectively. There was no statistically significant difference in the duration of the union (p = 0.4963). The average number of C- arm exposures was 16.36 ± 3.18 in group I as compared to 27.29 ± 4.01 in group II, and the mean scattered radiation was 5.0 ± 1.63 in group I and 6.61 ± 4.06 in group II. This difference was statistically significant.

Conclusion

Kuntscher intramedullary nailing can provide comparable rates of union as is achieved with interlocking intramedullary nailing with an advantage of less radiation exposure and duration of surgery, provided the patient selection is proper (isthmic and paraisthmic zone).