Salvage of tibial pilon fractures using fusion of the ankle with a 90 degrees cannulated blade-plate: a preliminary report.
Six patients with ankle joint destruction and delayed metaphyseal union after tibial plafond fracture were surgically treated with tibiotalar arthrodesis and metaphyseal reconstruction, using a fixed-angle cannulated blade-plate. The procedure was performed through a posterior approach in five cases and a lateral approach in one case. The subtalar joint was preserved in all cases. Metaphyseal union and a stable arthrodesis were obtained in all cases without loss of fixation and with no mechanical failure of the blade-plate. Union was obtained in an average of 26 weeks. No secondary procedures were required to obtain union. All six patients were ambulatory at last follow-up. Stable internal fixation for simultaneous tibiotalar fusion and metaphyseal reconstruction can be achieved with a cannulated blade-plate while preserving the subtalar joint in complex plafond fractures.
University of Southern California Department of Orthopaedics, Los Angeles, USA. smorgan@DHHA.org
S J
SJ
Morgan
D B
DB
Thordarson
L E
LE
Shepherd
D000328:Adult; D016512:Ankle Injuries / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D001174:Arthrodesis / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D001860:Bone Plates; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D016879:Salvage Therapy; D013978:Tibial Fractures / Q000145:classification / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D014945:Wound Healing