Clinical Application and Effects of Sodium Hyaluronate-Carboxymethylcellulose (Guardix®) in Surgery of Ankle Fractures / 대한족부족관절학회지

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: Reducing tenderness or pain on the ankle joint and improving the range of motion are thought to be possible using hyaluronate-based anti-adhesive agents. On the other hand, there are more aspects to be studied regarding the incidence of complications, such as resting pain, tenderness, and stiffness, after surgery. Therefore, the aim of this study was to prove the effectiveness of the agents after ankle fracture surgery. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients, who underwent open reduction and internal fixation surgery due to ankle joint fractures from June 2015 to May 2016, were studied prospectively. Thirty patients of them received a Guardix® injection during their surgeries and were included in the injection group. The other 30 patients were included in the control group. Postoperatively, tenderness on the scar, a delay in wound healing, and the active range of motion were evaluated at 2, 6, and 12 weeks after surgery. RESULTS: A significant difference in tenderness on the scar was observed 2 weeks after surgery. On the other hand, there was no significant difference at 6 and 12 weeks after the surgery. The agent-using group showed a 6.7% delay in wound healing and a 93.3% non-delaying. In the non-using group, the delay was 63.3%, while non-delay was 36.7% (p < 0.001). The group that underwent Guardix® usage showed an effective result in the visual analogue scale, which was statistically significant (p < 0.001). The result at 6 and 12 weeks after surgery showed a significant difference. CONCLUSION: Improvement was observed in the patients who underwent a Guardix® injection, regarding the range of motion, visual analog scale, and healing of the wound postoperatively.