Primary total knee replacement for tibial plateau fractures in older patients: a systematic review of 197 patients.

INTRODUCTION: Tibial plateau fractures are typically treated with osteosynthesis. In older patients, osteosynthesis is associated with some complications, risk of post-traumatic osteoarthritis and long partial, or non-weight bearing during the recovery phase. To avoid these problems, primary total knee replacement (TKR) has become an increasingly common treatment option. The aim of this study was to evaluate all the relevant literature and summarize the current evidence-based knowledge on the treatment of tibial plateau fractures with primary TKR in older patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A systematic literature search of studies on total knee replacement (TKR) as primary treatment for acute traumatic tibial plateau fracture was conducted using OVID Medline, Scopus, and Cochrane databases from 1946 to 18 November 2019. We included all studies without restrictions regarding total knee replacement (TKR) as primary treatment for acute traumatic tibial plateau fracture. RESULTS: Of the 640 reviewed articles, 16 studies with a total of 197 patients met the inclusion criteria. No controlled trials were available, and the overall quality of the literature was low. The results, using different clinical scoring systems, were good or fair. Four-year follow-up complication (6.1%) and revision (3.6%) rates after primary TKR appeared to be lower than after secondary TKR (complication rate 20-48%, revision rate 8-20%) but higher than after elective primary TKR. CONCLUSION: Based on low-quality evidence, TKR appears to be a useful treatment option for tibial plateau fractures in older patients. Controlled trials are mandatory to determine the relative superiority of these two options as primary treatment of tibial plateau fractures in older patients.

Diagnostic accuracy of the gravity stress test and clinical signs in cases of isolated supination-external rotation-type lateral malleolar fractures.

We prospectively assessed the diagnostic accuracy of the gravity stress test and clinical findings to evaluate the stability of the ankle mortise in patients with supination-external rotation-type fractures of the lateral malleolus without widening of the medial clear space. The cohort included 79 patients with a mean age of 44 years (16 to 82). Two surgeons assessed medial tenderness, swelling and ecchymosis and performed the external rotation (ER) stress test (a reference standard). A diagnostic radiographer performed the gravity stress test. For the gravity stress test, the positive likelihood ratio (LR) was 5.80 with a 95% confidence interval (CI) of 2.75 to 12.27, and the negative LR was 0.15 (95% CI 0.07 to 0.35), suggesting a moderate change from the pre-test probability. Medial tenderness, both alone and in combination with swelling and/or ecchymosis, indicated a small change (positive LR, 2.74 to 3.25; negative LR, 0.38 to 0.47), whereas swelling and ecchymosis indicated only minimal changes (positive LR, 1.41 to 1.65; negative LR, 0.38 to 0.47). In conclusion, when gravity stress test results are in agreement with clinical findings, the result is likely to predict stability of the ankle mortise with an accuracy equivalent to ER stress test results. When clinical examination suggests a medial-side injury, however, the gravity stress test may give a false negative result.