Multiple fracture of medullary tube during intramedullary nailing of long bone fractures.

Intramedullary nailing is an accepted treatment for the fixation of femoral and tibial shaft fractures. There is a low but significant incidence of intraoperative complications during intramedullary nailing. During this procedure, a medullary tube may be used to exchange the bent olive-tipped reaming guidewire for the straight guidewire. A review of the literature found only one report of a fracture of the medullary tube. Two cases in which the medullary tube fractured into multiple pieces are presented.

Open synovectomy with cryosurgical adjuvant for treatment of diffuse pigmented villonodular synovitis of the knee.

Pigmented villonodular synovitis (PVNS) is an uncommon, benign disorder usually affecting the synovial membrane of large joints. The diffuse form of PVNS is extremely difficult to control, and long-term recurrence inevitably results in arthrodesis or arthroplasty. Current treatments include surgical, chemical, and radiation synovectomy, but all have significant failure rates. In hope of obtaining a more complete synovectomy, we used cryosurgery as an adjuvant to open synovectomy in three patients. Two patients presented with multiple failed arthroscopic synovectomies, and one patient presented with arthroscopically unresectable PVNS. The surgical approach involved take down and repair of the anterior meniscal attachments, and direct entry into the posterior space through medial and lateral femoral capsular attachments. Cryosurgical surface spray was used on all non-cartilaginous surfaces. At follow-up of 14, 30, and 31 months, all three patients remained symptom-free and there were no indications of clinical recurrence. There were no obvious complications or morbidity from the cryosurgical procedure and all patients had excellent functional recovery. All patients returned to sports and their jobs without restrictions. In the past, it has been shown that cryosurgery is a safe and effective treatment modality for proliferative joint disease. We propose the use of adjuvant cryosurgery for PVNS patients selected for open synovectomy.

Polypropylene mesh repair of sacroperineal hernia following sacrectomy with long-term follow-up. A case report and literature review.

Sacroperineal hernia is an uncommon complication following sacrectomy. We review previous techniques of repair and report a simple method of reconstructing the operative defect using polypropylene mesh. This case has been without complication or repeat herniation at six years follow-up.

Augmented amputations of the lower extremity.

Ten patients who had amputations of a lower extremity for high-grade sarcomas underwent bone augmentation with either allograft or autograft between 1988 and 1996. There were eight transfemoral amputations and two transtibial amputations. The transferred segments consisted of one proximal tibia and six distal tibia autografts, two allografts, one autograft talar dome and first metatarsal, and one with a patellar cap of a supracondylar amputation. The average length of followup was 54 months. There were no nonunions of any of the grafts. There were three wound problems requiring additional operations. One autograft resorbed, and one autograft had a late infection. There was one local recurrence. Augmentation to provide length resulted in a 42% increase in bone length in those performed purely for length. All patients were able to use standard prostheses. Functional outcome was appropriate to the amputation level. Half of the patients avoided more proximal levels of amputation because of the ability to augment the osteotomy. The use of nonvascularized structural autografts or allografts is a simple procedure that can produce a superior residual limb in patients undergoing amputation. Its use should be considered in patients for whom traditional amputation techniques will result in poor function, difficulty in fitting a prosthesis, or greater than necessary anatomic loss.

Complete pelvic ring failure after posterior iliac bone graft harvesting.

STUDY DESIGN: Case report. OBJECTIVE: To present a rare complication of posterior iliac bone graft harvesting. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Although iliac bone graft harvesting is a common procedure in spinal surgery, it is not without complications. One such complication is fracture of the ilium that is seen most often in older women with osteopenia. METHOD: In this case a severe complication of posterior iliac bone graft harvesting was identified in a patient with steroid-induced osteoporosis that led to multiple pelvic fracture, nonunions, and eventual failure of the entire pelvic ring. Imaging studies showed osteoporotic bone and multiple nonunions of the pelvis with structural collapse. RESULTS: Staged sequential platings of the iliac wings were performed to stabilize the pelvis. The initial fixation of the left iliac wing apparently united after hardware failure. The right iliac wing was successfully fixed with plates supplemented with bone cement and allograft. Anterior fixation was planned. CONCLUSIONS: Care should be taken when considering autograft harvesting in patients with risk factors for osteoporosis. The outcome could be debilitating.

Adamantinoma arising in the distal fibula treated with distal fibulectomy: a case report and review of the literature.

Adamantinoma is a rare primary bone tumor occurring in the mandible and the long tubular bones. The diaphysis of the tibia is the most common site of extragnathic presentation. Fibular involvement is rare and usually has coexisting tibial involvement. Adamantinoma arising in the distal fibular metaphysis has not been previously reported. This is a case of a teenage boy presenting with a cystic lesion of the distal fibula, initially diagnosed and treated as a unicameral bone cyst. Aggressive behavior ultimately led to a diagnosis of adamantinoma. He was treated with distal fibulectomy without surgical reconstruction with good functional outcome.

Glomus tumor of the plantar arch: a case report with magnetic resonance imaging findings.

A 55-year-old woman with a 12-year history of a painful nodule in the subcutaneous fat layer of the plantar arch was evaluated with magnetic resonance imaging, followed by excisional biopsy. Pathology revealed a glomus tumor, which is extremely rare in the plantar surface of the foot. The magnetic resonance imaging studies are presented. The literature on glomus tumors in the foot is reviewed. This entity should be considered in the differential diagnosis of solitary plantar nodules when marked sensitivity to temperature or pressure is exhibited.