"Frame and buttress" fixation for the treatment of acetabular quadrilateral fractures / 中华骨科杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective:To investigate the efficacy and safety of the "frame and buttress" fixation in the treatment of acetabular quadrilateral fractures.Methods:A total of 26 patients with acetabular quadrilateral fractures treated with the "Frame and buttress" fixation strategy (reconstructing frame and providing buttress for quadrilateral surface) from January 2017 to January 2021 were retrospectively analyzed in the Department of Orthopaedics, Union Hospital of Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, including 17 males and 9 females, aged 47.7±16.5 years, (range, 25-71 years). There were 13 cases from car accidents, 8 cases from falls, and 5 cases from heavy objects. Quadrilateral fractures were classified according to whether the anterior column (A) and posterior column (P) of the acetabulum were fractured and whether the quadrilateral plate (Q) was partially (1) or completely (2) separated from the two columns. Among these cases, there were 5 cases of type AQ1, 1 case of type AQ2, 1 case of type PQ2, 14 cases of type APQ1 and 5 cases of type APQ2. The "frame and buttress" fixation strategy was used to perform open reduction and internal fixation. The Matta scale was used to assess the quality of resurfacing based on pelvic radiographs, and the Matta modified Merle d'Aubigne and Postel scores were referenced to evaluate hip function.Results:All the 26 patients successfully completed the operation, the operation time was 88.1±57.8 min (range, 90-320 min), the intraoperative bleeding was 753.8±309.5 ml (range, 400-1 400 ml). There were 14 cases of anatomical reduction, 8 cases of satisfactory reduction and 4 cases of unsatisfactory reduction with an excellent rate of 85% (22/26), the excellence rate was 85% (22/26). All patients were followed up for 16.3±4.3 months (range, 12-24 months). The hip function score after operation was higher than that before operation, and the difference was statistically significant ( F=19.80, P<0.001). The hip function score was 13.1±2.2 at 3 months postoperatively, increased to 15.9±2.3 at 6 months postoperatively, and increased to 16.6±1.9 at the last follow-up, with a statistically significant difference ( P<0.001). After operation, 5 patients showed symptoms of lateral femoral cutaneous nerve injury such as hypoesthesia and numbness in the anterolateral thigh. During the follow-up, there was no ectopic ossification, traumatic arthritis, necrosis of the femoral head and central dislocation of the femoral head. Conclusion:The "frame and buttress" fixation strategy based on quadrilateral fracture typing for acetabular quadrilateral fracture open reduction internal fixation provides strong fixation, satisfactory reduction quality, and facilitates joint function recovery after operation.