Stable Fixation and Immediate Weight-Bearing After Combined Retrograde Intramedullary Nailing and Open Reduction Internal Fixation of Noncomminuted Distal Interprosthetic Femur Fractures

J Orthop Trauma. 2018 Jun;32(6):e237-e240. doi: 10.1097/BOT.0000000000001154.

Abstract

With an aging population, treatment of interprosthetic femur fractures continues to pose a challenge to the orthopaedic surgeon. Retrograde intramedullary nailing combined with open reduction internal fixation using a tissue-preserving plating technique was used in our series of 9 patients with noncomminuted, distal femur fractures. No interfragmentary screws, cables, cerclage wires, or supplemental bone grafts of any type were used. Each patient initiated weight-bearing as tolerated after operative intervention. Every fracture healed at an average of 20 weeks (range 18-24 weeks). Use of a lateral locking plate combined with a retrograde intramedullary nailing enables immediate postoperative weight-bearing and stable fixation for patients with interprosthetic femur fractures.

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Bone Nails*
  • Bone Plates
  • Bone Screws
  • Female
  • Femoral Fractures / physiopathology
  • Femoral Fractures / surgery*
  • Fracture Fixation, Intramedullary / methods*
  • Fracture Healing / physiology*
  • Fractures, Ununited / physiopathology
  • Fractures, Ununited / surgery*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Open Fracture Reduction / methods*
  • Weight-Bearing / physiology*