Combinación de la fijación externa e interna en el tratamiento de una fractura expuesta del pilón tibial. Presentación de un caso / Combination of external and internal fixation in the treatment of an exposed fracture of the tibial pylon. Case Presentation

RESUMEN Las fracturas expuestas del pilón tibial son lesiones poco frecuentes que se asocian con la aparición de múltiples complicaciones derivadas de la intensidad del trauma, a esto se añade la posibilidad real de sepsis de tejidos blandos o hueso y los trastornos de la consolidación ósea relacionados con la zona afectada. El adecuado manejo de estas afecciones por parte del personal médico evita la aparición de importantes complicaciones, por este motivo se decidió compartir la experiencia en el manejo de estas afecciones mediante la presentación de un caso.

ABSTRACT Exposed fractures of the tibial pylon are infrequent lesions that are associated with the appearance of multiple complications derived from the intensity of the traumain addition to the real sepsis possibility of soft tissues or bone and bone consolidation disorders related to the affected zone. Adequate management of these conditions by the medical staff avoids the appearance of important complications, for this reason it was decided to share the experience in the management of these conditions by presenting a case.

Early and mid-term results of transarticular external fixation in the treatment of supination-external rotation type IV equivalent ankle fractures / 中华创伤杂志(英文版)

<p><b>PURPOSE</b>To investigate the early and mid-term results of open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF) with transarticular external fixation (TEF) but no deltoid ligament repair (DLR) in the treatment of supination-external rotation type IV equivalent (SER IV E) ankle fractures (AO/OTA classification 44-B 3.1) and provide evidence for clinical practice.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>This study cohort consisted of 22 patients with SER IV E ankle fractures that underwent ORIF with TEF but no DLR between December 2011 and December 2014. There were 13 males and 9 females, mean age 38.9 years (range, 17-73 years). Eight cases involved the left side and 14 the right side. The causes of fractures included road traffic accidents (11 cases), falling from height (6 cases) and sports injuries (5 cases). The mean period of hospitalization was 9.8 days (range, 6-14 days). For all the patients, MRI and three-dimensional CT were done before surgery and X-rays done preoperatively and during follow-ups. The external frame was kept for 8-10 weeks. The preoperative American Orthopedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) ankle-hindfoot score was 56.86 ± 4.400, the Medical Outcomes Short Form 36-item (SF-36) questionnaire score was 57.41 ± 4.102 and the visual analog score (VAS) was 5.50 ± 1.058. Patients' main complaints about inconvenience of daily life were also recorded.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>All the 22 patients were followed up for 24-63 months (mean, 33.6 months). None of them developed nonunion during the follow-up; pin site infection was observed in one patient and posttraumatic osteoarthritis in another. At the final follow-up, the average AOFAS score, SF-36 score and VAS score were respectively 90.59 ± 5.096, 79.59 ± 5.394 and 1.82 ± 1.181, which were significantly improved compared with the preoperative data (t = 26.221, p < 0.001; t = 11.910, p < 0.001; t = 11.571, p < 0.001). The therapeutic effect was excellent in 13 cases, good in 7 cases and fair in 2 cases, with a good-excellent rate of 90.9%. Patients' main complaints were inconvenience of clothing (17 cases) and extremity cleaning (5 cases).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>In the treatment of SER IV E ankle fractures, ORIF with TEF but no DLR can achieve satisfactory outcome, but long-term effect should be confirmed by large sample randomized controlled trials.</p>

Efficacy of external fixation combined with limited internal fixation for treatment of patients with C type Tile pelvic fracture / 中国基层医药

Objective To investigate the clinical effect of external fixation combined with limited internal fixation in the treatment of C type Tile pelvic fractures.Methods 60 patients with C type Tile pelvic fractures treated in our hospital were selected,and the patients treated with single external fixation were selected as group A,the patients treated with limited internal fixation were selected as group B,the patients treated with external fixation com-bined with limited internal fixation were selected as group C.The postoperative fracture reduction,functional recovery and complications of the occurrence were compared.Results The excellent and good rate of fracture reduction (95%)and excellent rate of fracture function recovery(90%)of group C had statistically significant differences com-pared with those of group A(65%,75%)and group B(75%,70%)(χ2 =4.91,4.14,3.97,3.92,all P <0.05). The incidence rate of postoperative complications of group C(5%)was significantly lower than group A(30%)and group B(25%),there were statistically significant differences(χ2 =4.33,3.92,all P <0.05).Conclusion C Tile type of pelvic fractures with external fixation combined with external fixation has more advantages in clinical applica-tion,can further improve the functional recovery of patients,reduce the incidence of complications.

Postoperative complications in elderly with high-risk intertrochanteric fracture treated with external fixator / 中华创伤杂志

Objective To analyze the postoperative complications of external fixator in treatment of elderly high-risk intertrochanteric fractures and its effect on length of hospital stay and on in-hospital fees.Methods The study involved 55 elderly patients with high-risk intertrochanteric fractures fixed with Orthofix external fixators from January 2009 to December 2011.There were 21 males and 34 females at age range of 70-79 years.All patients were associated with one underlying disease at least.Relationship of complications with patients' age,preoperative underlying diseases,surgery operation and postoperative care were analyzed.Results Common postoperative complications were lung infection (11％),screw channel exudation (25％),superficial pin tract infection (13％) and pain around the screws (22％).Factors for lung infection included the underlying lung disease and cerebral infarction before operation.Influential factor of screw channel exudation was the degree of damage to soft tissue intraoperatively.Influential factor of the superficial pin tract infection was postoperative care level.Average length of hospital stay was 5.17 days longer for patients who experienced complications after operation.Conclusions Common postoperative complications are influenced by preoperative occurrence of underlying lung disease as well as cerebral infarction,intraoperative damage to soft tissues and postoperative care level.Postoperative complications prolong the length of hospital stay and increase the treatment expense.

Early fracture external fixation in treatment of severe traumatic brain injury combined with extremity fracture / 中华创伤杂志

Objective To discuss clinical effects of early (<48 hours after injury) fraeture exter-nal fixation in treatment of severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) combined with extremity fracture. Meth-ods The study involved patients with no statistical difference in aspects of age, sex, GCS, fracture ,distri-bution and general condition. According to different treatment methods at early stage (<48 hours), the pa-tients with TBI were divided into Group A (early extremity fracture external fixation) and Group B (early extremity fracture traction or cast immobilization). A comparative observation was done on complications in-cluding bedsore, pneumonia and deep venous thrombosis and on duration in ICU, hospitalization, time for fracture healing and mortality in two groups. Results Incidence rate of bedsore, pneumonia, deep ve-nous thrombosis and mortality in Group A was lower than that in Group B (P<0.05), and Group A had shorter time for ICU, hospitalization and fracture healing (P < 0.05). Conclusion For patients with se-vere TBI combined with extremity fracture, early fracture external fixation is more effective to reduce com-plications, shorten the recovery time and reduce mortality, compared with conservative methods.

Treatment of supra-condylar fractures of the humerus with a unilateral external fixator / 中华创伤骨科杂志

Objective To evaluate the treatment of supra-condylar fractures of the humerus (12-B1.2 by AO classification) with a unilateral external fixator. Methods From 2003 to 2006,28 cases of supra-condylar fractures of the humerus were treated with a unilateral external fixator. They were 15 males and 13 females. Their average age was 43 (24 to 58) years old. They were all closed fractures and 2 cases complicated with radial nerve injury. Results All were followed up for an average of 28 (12 to 54) months. All fractures united with an average healing time of 4.5 months. The 2 cases of radial nerve injury recovered completely. Five cases had infection of pin holes. The patients had an average elbow score (Money and Bryan system) of 97 and an average shoulder score (Constant and Murley system) of 98. Conclusion The unilateral external fixator is appropriate for supra-condylar fractures of the humerus ( 12-B1.2 by AO classification),because it provides not only effective fixation but also early functional rehabilitation.

Clinical evaluation of the treatment of open comminuted tibiofibular fractures near articulation with three dimensional external fixators / 中华创伤骨科杂志

Objective To evaluate the method, clinical effects and influential factors of using three dimensional external fixators in the treatment of severe open comminuted tibiofibular fractures 5 cm near the knee or ankle joints. Methods We retrospectively analyzed 32 cases of open comminuted tibiofibular fracture 5 cm near the knee (11 cases) or ankle joints (21 cases). They were treated with three dimensional external fixators from October 2000 to May 2005. The patients with small wounds were treated with manipulative reduction or leverage reduction through the wound under the guidance of C-arm radiography. In case of malreduction or soft tissue being tangled by the fracture ends, visible reduction was carried out after the wound was lengthened or a small incision was added. Limited internal fixation was used in case of necessity. The results were evaluated in terms of shortening of the fractured limbs, X-ray manifestation, bilateral flexion differences and postoperative walking complaints. Results Follow-ups from 5 to 18 months (nine months on average) showed that all the cases achieved osseous union. The mean union time was 5.6 months. The total excellent and good rates of fracture healing and functional recovery were 81.3% and 87.5% respectively. Conclusion Application of the three dimensional external fixator is appropriate for the treatment of severe open comminuted tibiofibular fracture 5 cm near the knee or ankle joints, because its operative procedure is simple, the injury it causes is minimal, its fixation is reliable and its complications are quite limited.

Transarticular fixation with external fixators in unstable distal radius fractures / 中华创伤骨科杂志

Objective To retrospectively analyze the results of closed reduction and static trans-articular fixation with unilateral external fixators in the treatment of unstable distal radius fractures.Methods From June 2000 to March 2005,45 patients with 50 unstable distal radius fractures were treated with closed reduction and static transarticular fixation by unilateral external fixators.Their average age was 44.8 years(15 to 78 years).All the fractures were classified with AO-scheme.There were five A3-fractures,four B3-fractures,three C1-fractures,nine C2-fractures and 29 C3-fractures in 24 cases.Follow-ups lasted from 8 to 48 months(averaging 20 months).Results The time of bone healing was 6 to 8 weeks(averaging 7.6 weeks).At the latest follow-up,the radiological outcomes were excellent in 42 fractures(39 patients)and good in eight fractures(six patients)according to the Sarmiento rating system modified by Ste wart et al.The functional results included 37 excellent cases(34 patients),nine good ones(eight patients)and four fair ones(three patients)according to the Gartland-Werley assessment.There were only four cases of superficial pin site infection settled with oral antibiotics and mild disinfectants.Conclusions Closed reduction by manipulation and static transarticular fixation with unilateral external fixators is an effective method to treat severely comminuted distal radius fractures caused by high-energy injury.Radial nerve injury and iatrogenic fracture of the 2nd metacarpal bone can be avoided,pin tract infection and pin loosening can be decreased,and early postoperative mobilization of hand can be facilitated by insertion of external pins at appropriate sites.It is unnecessary to apply supplementary bone grafting to promote bone healing.