Deformity in flexion of proximal tibia secondary to bifocal fracture and anterior instability of knee (deformity in flexion of tibia and ACL reconstruction).

We present a clinical case of anterior instability of the knee due to chronic rupture of the ACL; where there was also proximal deformity of the tibia, secondary to consolidation in flexion of the proximal fragment in a bifocal fracture of the tibia, treated by non-reamed intramedullary nailing, which consolidated in flexion of the proximal fractured segment, causing a marked increase in the angle of the tibial slope. The patient refers an articular instability, which prevented her from walking correctly and causing her frequent falls. We repaired under same chirurgical act, all the problems of the patient, her vicious consolidation and her articular instability. The result is perfect.

Nonunion of the patella as a late chance observation after reconstructive surgery of the anterior cruciate ligament.

The use of autologous bone-tendon-bone grafts for reconstructive surgery of the anterior cruciate tendon is a widely diffused technique. Fracture of the donor patella constitutes an uncommon complication. It is the purpose of this study to present the clinical case of a patient submitted to reconstructive surgery of the anterior cruciate ligament where the existence of asymptomatic nonunion of the patella was by chance observed.

Indications for prosthetic reimplantation.

It is difficult to establish on the basis of rigorous criteria when a prosthetic implant must be considered loosened, but it is even more difficult to define with certainty whether a loosened prosthesis must be reimplanted, and particularly when it is necessary to act. The authors emphasize the need to act quickly every time there is loss of periprosthetic bone substance that progresses in time, and that may make anatomical reconstruction difficult.

Which length for the revision stem?

The results of 79 stem implantations performed between 1981 and 1992 are presented. Mean clinical and radiographic follow-up was obtained 36 months after surgery. All of the prostheses were substituted due to aseptic loosening: of these 68% were cemented. Femoral osteolytic lesions secondary to loosening was classified based on the Paprosky protocol. A severe femoral osteolytic defect (type 2b, 2c or 3 according to Paprosky) was associated with 4% of the cases of loosened cementless prostheses, and with 37% of the cemented ones. Homoplastic bone grafts were used in 40% of the patients. The length of the stems used for reimplantation was short (12-13 cm) in 43%, standard (17-18 cm) in 49%, and long (> or = 22 cm) in 7% of the cases. These stems were cemented in 32% of the cases. The incidence of cementation was different in relation to length, as 62.5% of the short stems were cemented, as compared to 5.3% of the stems of standard length. Clinical results were excellent in 90% of the cases submitted to surgery with short stems, in 80% of those treated with standard stems, and in 50% of the cases of revision surgery where long stems were used. Radiographically, 97% of the short stems were osteointegrated, as compared to 94% of the standard stems and to 25% of the long ones, which were only used in a very few cases to be considered quite complex ones.

Indications and limits of acetabular reimplantations using screwed prostheses.

The clinical and radiographic results of 95 acetabular reimplantations performed between 1984 and 1992 are presented. A screwed acetabular prosthesis was used in 56 patients, the acetabulum was cemented in 15, and a press-fit acetabulum stabilized by screws (1 case without screws) was used in 24. Mean clinical follow-up was 35.6 +/- 24 months, ranging from 7 to 94 months. Clinical results were good and excellent (> or = 5 points according to Merle D'Aubigné) in 77% of the cases for pain, in 70% for walking, and in 71% for joint movement. Forty months after surgery 48% of the screwed acetabula and 44% of the cemented ones were osteointegrated. The incidence of loosening for the screwed acetabula was 24%. The preliminary results 24 months after the press-fit acetabula with screws had been inserted showed 100% osteointegration. Radiographic results of the screwed acetabula were satisfactory (92% osteointegration) only in reimplantations performed in patients with minimum acetabular osteolytic injury (Paprosky types I and IIA). The use of homoplastic bone grafts did not improve the radiographic results of the screwed acetabula in the cases with severe osteolysis: 57% of the acetabula screwed on grafts distributed throughout the acetabulum were, in fact, loosened.

Arthroplasty in the ankylotic hip.

A total of 30 cases submitted to arthroplasty for the treatment of ankylotic hip are reported. The clinical results show that movement improved in 63% of the cases, with recovery of normal joint excursion in 37%. Severe limping consequent to hypotrophy of the gluteal musculature persisted in 62% of the cases, requiring the use of two canes in 17% of the patients. There was pain < or = 3 based on the Merle D'Aubigné and Postel evaluation scale in 13% of the patients, while 87% remained totally asymptomatic. Radiographic results were favorable: the incidence of aseptic loosening 86 months after surgery in 25 cemented prostheses was 20% for the acetabulum and 12% for the stem, while the 5 cementless prostheses were stable an average of 27 months after surgery. The incidence of aseptic loosening was greater in patients < or = 45 years of age (30% vs 10%). Early complications included dislocation (6.6%), caused by hypotrophy of the gluteal musculature secondary to the ankylosis. Leg length discrepancy, which was present preoperatively in 10 cases with an interval ranging from -5 to 6 cm (mean 3 cm), was corrected in 6 cases and reduced by half in the remaining 4 patients.

Incidence of intraoperative femoral fracture. Straight-stemmed versus anatomic cementless total hip arthroplasty.

The authors report the incidence of intraoperative femoral fractures (16 cases) occurring during the course of 395 cementless total hip arthroplasties performed at the Rizzoli Orthopaedic Institute between November, 1980 and June, 1991. The straight stem (Lord prosthesis) caused an intraoperative fracture in 18% of the cases, whereas the anatomic stem (An.C.A.) caused a fracture in only 1.5% of the cases. An intraoperative fracture occurred in 13% of patients with osteoporosis and only in 1.4% of those with normal mineralization of the proximal femur. Seven cases required circlage wiring; one was treated with interfragmentary screws (in the diaphysis). The remaining patients were treated with casting or delayed weight-bearing. Fifteen fractures consolidated within an average of 10 weeks. One case treated with circlage wiring and screws resulted in a nonunion. After 7 months, internal fixation with a plate and screws was performed with consolidation 5 months later. All stems were radiographically stable at an average follow-up of 40 months.