Blocking nail technique for treatment of hypertrophic nonunion after femoral interlocking intramedullary nailing / 中华创伤杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To investigate the clinical effect of blocking nail in treatment of hypertrophic nonunion after interlocking intramedullary nailing of femoral shaft fractures.Methods A retrospective case series study was made on 11 patients with hypertrophic nonunion following interlocking intramedullary nailing of femoral shaft fractures from January 2006 to February 2016.There were 8 males and 3 females,aged (32.4 ± 6.8) years (range,19-48 years).Comminuted fractures were noted in three patients,long oblique or spiral fractures in two,multi-segment fractures in two,and transverse fractures in four.Time interval between this surgery and intramedullary nailing of femoral shaft fractures was (11.5 ±3.1) months (range,6-18 months).All blocking nails were inserted into pulp cavity of distal ends of the site of the bone nonunion.Fracture healing time,wound healing and postoperative complications were detected.Outcome was evaluated using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and Oswestry Disability Index (ODI).Results All patients were followed up for (27.2 ± 4.6) months (range,24-36 months).Bone union was observed within (9.8 ± 3.4) months except that bone nonunion occurred in two cases requiring locking plate fixation and autologous bone grafting to provide union,with the healing rate of 91％.No wound infection,nail breakage and nail loosening occurred after operation.At postoperative 3 months,4 months,5 months,6 months,12 months and 24 months,VAS and ODI differed significant from the preoperative detections (P ＜ 0.05).Conclusion Blocking nail technique is associated with increased stability of intramedullary nails and fracture ends,low incidence of complications and high bone healing rate in treatment of hypertrophic nonunion after femoral interlocking intramedullary nailing.