title: Retrograde intramedullary nailing for nonunions of supracondylar femur fracture of osteoporotic bones.
abstract: Nonunion of supracondylar femur fracture remains a challenging problem because of limited treatment options. The situation is more complex when it occurs in elderly patients with osteoporotic bones. We report the treatment of 3 elderly patients with supracondylar femur fracture nonunion after open reduction and internal fixation with various plate-screw internal fixation systems. Two of these patients had traumatic fractures and the third had a periprosthetic fracture after primary total knee arthroplasty (TKA). After revision surgeries using retrograde nailing techniques, all fractures united eventually. When combined with indirect reduction, these techniques provide superior biomechanical properties and reduce the need for soft tissue dissection.
authors.affiliation: Division of Orthopedic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Far Eastern Memorial Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Jwo-Luen
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Pao
authors.forename: Ching-Chuan
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Jiang
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001858:Bone Nails; D005260:Female; D005264:Femoral Fractures / Q000601:surgery*; D005594:Fracture Fixation, Intramedullary / Q000379:methods*; D005599:Fractures, Ununited / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010024:Osteoporosis / Q000150:complications*