Operative treatment of trimalleolar fractures in the elderly / 中华老年医学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To estimate the effect of open reduction and internal fixation for treating the trimalleolar fracture in the elderly.Methods 57 aged patients suffered from the trimalleolar fracture and were treated with internal fixation from January 2009 to June 2012.25 males and 32 females with an average age of 71.5 years ranged from 65 to 81 years were involved in this study.The supination-external rotation type were in 41 cases and pronation-external rotation type in 16 cases according to Lauge-hansen's classification.The posterior and lateral approach was taken for surgical procedure of lateral malleolar frature.The routine or locking plates were used to fix the fratures.The posterior malleolar fractures were usually fixed through the posterolateral approach as well.The screws or tension band fixation was selected for fixing the medial malleolar fragments.The parallel screwing fixation could be helpful for fixing the tibiofibular syndesmosis.Results The ankle function was evaluated by the criteria system of the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS).The efficacy was excellent in 23 patients,good in 24 patients,fair in 7 patients.The skin problems such as super facial infection and delayed union of incision were in 7 cases.Conclusions If choosing reasonable operation method and suitable internal plant,the open reduction and internal fixation has better effect in treating the trimalleolar fracture in the elderly,with fewer complications.