Treatment of high-energy distal femoral fractures is highly demanding. Advances in osteosynthesis tech-niques now allow for successful treatment, but extensive bone defects associated with the injury can preclude stable bone healing. Modular arthroplasty may be an effective alternative in such cases. Most commonly used during periarticular tumour resection procedures, modular arthroplasty enables functional recovery of the limb. It has been proven to be effective also in traumatic bone defects. The most important limitation of this method is a high level of technical difficulty and possible complications that may require reoperation. The most common complications are infections, periprosthetic fractures and implant wear and loosening. This report presents a case of high-energy injury to the distal femur, with a considerable bone defect treated successfully by modular post resection arthroplasty using a Biomet OSS implant. A spontaneous implant fracture occurred nine years after surgery. This complication had not been previously described in the available literature. A re-vision arthroplasty was performed with similar implants, resulting in functional recovery of the limb and patient satisfaction.
Keywords: arthroplasty; complication; fracture; knee joint; revision surgery.