Locking compression plate+T-type steel plate for postoperative weight bearing and functional recovery in complex tibial plateau fractures

Complex tibial plateau fractures can seriously affect quality of life and physical and mental health of patients.The anatomical relationship between the proximal tibial bone and soft tissue is complex,resulting in different types of tibial plateau fractures.Violent trauma can lead to displaced fracture,serious soft tissue injury,and potentially,dislocation of the knee joint.Therefore,tibial plateau fractures are extremely unstable.AIM To assess the use of locking compression plate(LCP)+T-type steel plate for postoperative weight bearing and functional recovery of complex tibial plateau fractures.METHODS Ninety-seven patients with complex tibial plateau fractures who underwent surgery at our hospital were selected for retrospective study.Forty-nine patients had been treated with LCP+T-type steel plate limited internal fixation(study group),and 48 patients with bilateral ordinary steel plate support(control group).The operation process index,postoperative rehabilitation related index,Rasmussen score of the knee joint,tibial plateau varus angle(TPA),tibial plateau retroversion angle(PA),and surgical complications of the two groups were compared.RESULTS The operation time and intraoperative bone graft volume in the study group were lower than those in the control group(P<0.05).There were no significant differences in surgical bleeding,anterior external incision length,postoperative drainage,hospital stay duration,and fracture healing time between the groups(P>0.05).There was no significant difference in the TPA and PA angle between the groups immediately and 18 mo after surgery(P>0.05).At 12 mo after surgery,the Rasmussen scale score was higher in the study group than in the control group(P<0.05).There was no significant difference in the Rasmussen scale score at 18 mo after surgery,and the radiology score at 12 and 18 mo after surgery,between the two groups(P>0.05).The postoperative complication rate in the study group(3.77%)was lower than that in the control group(15.09%;P<0.05).CONCLUSION LCP+T-type steel plate internal fixation has advantages in terms of minimizing trauma and enabling early postoperative functional exercise,promoting functional recovery and lower limb weight-bearing,and reducing postoperative complications.

PERCUTANEOUS REDUCTION AND STABILIZATION OF COMPLEX TIBIAL PLATEAU FRACTURES

Mechanical traction and percutaneous reduction by leverage and fixation by a bilateral groove externalfixator were performed on 23 patients with complex tibial plateau fractures involving a depressed and splitfragments. The fixator is composed of two long groove frames, three to five nuts, hooked bolts and Stein-manns pins.All fractures united in good position in three months with no incision (only pinpricks), llttle operativetrauma and no significant complications but pintract infection, and the flexion-extension range of kneemovement was excllent in all patients, so that this technique is particularly advisable for complex tibialplateau fractures.

Does a staged treatment of high energy tibial plateau fractures affect functional results and bony union?A case series

Purpose:Tibial plateau fracture(TPF)is a devastating injury as it shatters lower articular surface of the largest joint.Apart from bony injury,TPF can lead to great soft tissue envelope compromise which affects the treatment plan and outcome.In the present study,clinical results were assessed in cases of high energy TPFs treated in staged manner.Methods:Twenty-three(20 males and 3 females)patients of high energy communited TPFs(Schatzker typeⅤandⅥ)were consecutively treated.1 All the patient had compromise of overlying skin conditions.They were all successively scheduled for staged treatment plan which comprised of application of bridging knee external fixator on the first day of admission and definitive internal fixation after skin and soft tissue overlying the fracture were healed.Schatzker typeⅠ,Ⅱ,ⅢandⅣwere excluded from the study.Primary survey was done and patient who had head injury,chest and abdominal injury,pelvic injury and contralateral limb injury and open fractures were excluded from the study.The patients were also evaluated in terms of wound complications,axial and rotary alignment of limb,fixation failure,articular congruity and range of motion of the knees and post injury employment.Statistical analysis was done using SPSS software.Results:Maximum follow-up period was 13 months.All the fractures were united at final follow-up.Clinical evaluation was done with the Tegner Lysholm knee scoring scale.2 Excellent results were found in 78%cases and good and fair results in 22%cases.There was significant correlation between range of motion and the Tegner Lysholm knee score(p<0.001,Pearson correlation coefficient=0.741).The correlation between the score and the radiographical union duration was significant(p=0.006,Pearson correlation coefficient=-0.554).Conclusion:A staged treatment plan allows healing of soft tissue envelope,with avoidance of dreadful complications such as compartment syndrome and chronic infection.In addition,a staged treatment strategy does not hamper the fracture reduction,bony union and the functional results.

Complications in the management of closed high-energy proximal tibial plateau fractures

Purpose： To report complications in the management of complex closed proximal tibial fractures. Method： A retrospective study was conducted to analyze the infectious and noninfectious complications encountered in the management of high-energy Schatzker type V and VI tibial plateau fractures. All patients were treated at the level 1 trauma centre between January 20tl and March 2014. Sixty two patients were included in the study. The mean patient age was （43.16 ±11.59） years with 60 males and 2 females. Infectious complications like superficial and deep infection, wound dehiscence, malalignment in the immediate postoperative period and in follow-up period were noted. Results： The overall complication rate was 30.65% （19 out of 62）. Infectious complications were noted in 20.97% cases （13162）. In majority of the cases （8113）, superficial infection was seen which managed with regular dressing and antibiotic administration. The patients （5/13） who had developed deep-seated infection were subjected to repeated debridements, flap coverage, implant removal or amputation depending upon the host response. Thirteen patients had experienced noninfectious complications. Hardware related complications were noticed in six patients and four among them received a secondary procedure. Malalignment was observed in seven patients but only single patient underwent subsequent operative intervention. Conclusion： Proximal tibial plateau fractures especially Shatzker type V and VI are associated with extensive soft tissue damage even in closed injuries. The complications encountered in the management of these fractures can be minimized with appropriate patient selection and minimal soft tissue dissection.

Effect of BMI on outcomes of surgical treatment for tibial plateau fractures： A comparative retrospective case series study

Purpose： Tibia plateau fracture （TPF） treatment aims at achieving a stable, aligned, mobile, painless knee and preventing post-traumatic osteoarthritis. To achieve this goal, surgeons consider criteria such as patients＇ characteristics, severity, risk of complications, fracture displacementJdepression, degree of soft tissue injury. However, body mass index （BMI） is not considered as a risk factor in literature. Our study was conducted to find out any possible correlation between BMI and functional scores or radiological score separately. Methods： Retrospective analysis of case series between 2011 and 2014 was done on the database of a tertiary hospital in Istanbul. There were 67 TPF patients （54 males, 13 females） in the study. Relationship between BM1 and functional knee scores or radiological score was compared statistically. Closed fractures with both high-energy and low-energy injury were included in the study. Patients with open fracture, multi-trauma presence, meniscus and/or ligamentous injury, increased co-morbidity, inadequate records （25 cases in all） were excluded. Surgery type, Schatzker classification, injury side, trauma energy, and gender were considered as possible risk factors. Binary regression analysis was done for possible factors affecting functional knee scores and radiologic score. Results： Model summary calculations were done as Nagelkerke R2 test for Knee Society score, Lysholm knee score, and Ahlback and Rydberg radiologic scores, which were 0.648, 0.831, and 0.327 respec- tively. Homer-Lemeshow test values were 0.976, 0.998, and 0.362, respectively. There is negative correlation between BMI and both knee function scores. There is no correlation between BMI and radiologic score. Conclusion： An increase in BMI has a negative effect on functional knee scores after surgical treatment of TPFs. Therefore, BMI should be considered as a risk factor for surgical treatment of TPFs.

New Developments in Treatments of Tibial Plateau Fractures

Tibial plateau fractures account for 1.66–2.0% of all fractures in adults and about 8% of fractures in the elderly.[1] Tibial plateau fractures should be considered as complex injuries representing a wide fracture spectrum： soft-tissue compromise, neurovascular damage, compartment syndrome, and ligament and meniscus tears, which remain a big challenge, even for experienced orthopedic trauma surgeons. Although the best treatment modality remains controversial, we aimed to present new developments in the treatment of tibial plateau fractures for reference.

Arthroscopically assisted treatment for Schatzker type Ⅰ-Ⅴ tibial plateau fractures

Objective： To report the clinical outcome of arthroscopically assisted treatment for tibial plateau fractures. Methods： A total of 39 patients with tibial plateau fractures were treated by arthroscopic fixation from February 2002 to December 2005, including 11 patients with bony avulsion of the anterior cruciate ligament and 19 with meniscal injury. There were 4 cases of type Ⅰ fracture, 12 type Ⅱ, 9 type Ⅲ, 12 type Ⅳ and 2 type Ⅴ according to Schatzker criteria. Firstly, the combined injuries were treated. Then the plateau fractures with the displacement over 3 mm or more were reduced and fixed. Finally, the internal fixation was observed by X-ray equipment. Postoperative management was early motion and delayed weight bearing. Results： All the fractures healed in 3 or 4 months. All patients were followed up for 1 to 5 years after operation.No case had severe complications, such as poor wound healing, infection, osteofascial compartment syndrome and osteoarthfitis. According to the Rasmussen scoring system, 36 cases obtained excellent or good results and the other 3 cases had moderate clinical results. The average score was 26 ± 3. Conclusions： As an adjuvant treatment of intraarticular fractures such as tibial plateau fracture, arthroscopy has many advantages. It can treat associated intraarticular soft tissue components, visualize the chondral surface reduction, lavage the hematoma and smaller loose fragments, decrease soft tissue dissection, reduce the risk of scarring and promote rapid recovery.

Comparison between computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging in clinical diagnosis and treatment of tibial platform fractures

BACKGROUND Tibial plateau fracture is one of the common fracture types.It occurs mainly in teenagers and is usually caused by a fall.After the occurrence of fracture,knee swelling,pain,limited activity,etc.greatly affect the patient’s exercise habits and lifestyle.X-ray,computed tomography(CT)and magnetic resonance imaging(MRI)were used in this examination.X-rays are relatively new and easy to operate.However,there are some errors in the observation of fracture collapse and fracture displacement.In recent years,CT and MRI have been actively used to diagnose various types of clinical fractures.They have more diagnostic power than X-ray film.However,some scholars believe that CT is also prone to errors in clinical application.The volume effect leads to missed diagnosis and misdiagnosis in some cases,while the multidirection scanning of MRI technology can effectively overcome the shortcomings of CT.To facilitate the selection of clinical examination regimens,this study further observed the diagnostic ability of these two regimens in the diagnosis of tibial plateau fractures.AIM To explore the value of nuclear MRI and CT in the clinical diagnosis of tibial plateau fractures.METHODS A total of 120 patients with tibial plateau fractures admitted from September 2017 to August 2019 were included.All patients were examined by nuclear MRI and CT scanning.The results were sent to senior physicians in our hospital to complete the diagnosis.RESULTS Nuclear magnetic resonance showed the same effects as CT in four aspects:fracture displacement,bone defect,fracture site and fracture comminution.There was no significant difference in the score data(P>0.05).Nuclear magnetic resonance and CT tended to be consistent in the B3,C2 and C3 fracture diagnosis coincidence rate,combined injury detection rate and fracture detection rate.The diagnostic coincidence rate of type B1,B2 and C1 fractures and the accuracy rate of overall fracture classification indicated that the MRI technique was significantly better than that of CT(P>0.05).CONCLUSION MRI and CT have good diagnostic typing in the diagnosis of tibial plateau fractures,but MRI is more accurate and may be preferred.

An unclassified tibial plateau fracture： Reverse Schatzker type Ⅳ

The most commonly accepted system of classification for tibia plateau fractures is that of Schatzker. Increasingly, both high energy injuries and atypical osteoporotic fragility failures have led to more complex, unusual and previously undescribed fracture patterns being recognized. We present a case of a patient with a previously unreported pattern of tibia plateau fracture and knee dislocation. We highlight the challenges confronted and present the management and the outcomes of his injury. A 28-year old male motorcyclist was involved in a head on collision with a truck and was transferred by helicopter to our level I major trauma centre emergency department. His injuries were a circumferential degloving injury to his left leg and a right lateral tibial plateau fracture/knee dislocation. The pattern of the lateral tibial plateau fracture was unique and did not fit any recognised classification system. The patient received a spanning external fixator initially and after latency of 12 days for soft tissue resuscitation he underwent definite fixation through an antero-lateral approach to the proximal tibia with two cannulated 6.5 mm partially threaded screws and an additional lateral proximal tibia plate in buttress mode. A hinged knee brace was applied with unrestricted range of motion post-operatively and free weight bearing were permitted post operatively. At the 6 months follow up, the patient walks without aids and with no limp. Examination revealed a stable joint and full range of motion. Plain radiographs revealed that the fracture healed with good alignment and the fixation remained stable. High energy injuries can lead to more complicated fracture patterns, which challenge the orthopaedic surgeons in their management. It is crucial to understand the individual fracture pattern and the possible challenges that may occur. This study reports a lateral tibia plateau fracture/dislocation which perhaps is best described as a reverse Schatzker IV type fracture.

Dual split and dislocation——a variant of Schatzker type-I tibial plateau fracture: A case report

Schatzkter type-I tibial plateau fracture is a split fracture of the lateral tibial plateau in sagittal plane,consequent to valgus impaction caused by low velocity of trauma.However,a deep understanding of the different columns of the tibial plateau and patho-mechanisms of the injury led to the unmasking of atypical fractures around the tibial plateau.We have encountered 2 cases with unusual fracture pattern of the lateral tibial condyle caused by road traffic accidents.The fracture pattern and severity of injury deviate from the original description of Schatzker type 1;in view of dual plane split,there is rotation of the posterolateral column fragment along its sagittal plane plus grade-III medial collateral ligament injury.The patients were initially treated with knee spanning external fixator and after a latency of 5 days,definitive fracture specific fixation was done,combined with repair of grade-III medial collateral ligament injury.At the 6 months follow-up both the patients achieved satisfactory knee functions(knee society score case 1:100 and case 2:92)and returned to their jobs.The severity of fracture pattern and displacement as described should prompt for examination of associated ligament injury.Because of timely diagnosis,early and appropriate care promised an excellent function outcome even in such a severe nature of knee injury.To prompt the description of injury pattern we coined the name"dual split and dislocation"of lateral tibial plateau,as a complex injury variant of split fracture of lateral tibial plateau fracture.

Electric scooter injuries:Incidence and injury patterns at a level I trauma center

Purpose:Electric scooters(e-scooters)have become an increasingly popular mode of public transportation in recent years.As the incidence of related injuries rises,it is important to understand specific fracture patterns unique to e-scooters and electric bikes(e-bikes)to help guide management.The purpose of this study was to review the prevalence and describe specific fracture patterns of e-scooter and ebike related injuries at the busiest level 1 trauma center in the borough of Manhattan.Methods:Chart review to determine mechanism of injury was performed on all patients for whom an orthopedic consult was requested from 1/1/2021 to 12/31/2021.All patients whose injuries were sustained due to an e-scooter or e-bike were further reviewed for demographics,injury characteristics including fracture pattern,and definitive injury management.Any patients who had an orthopedic consult placed for a reason other than an acute injury were excluded.Descriptive statistics are reported as frequency(percentage)for categorical variables and means for continuous variables.Results:Of the 1815 orthopedic consults requested,1357(74.8%)were for acute injury management.Of those with acute injuries,119(8.8%)sustained 136 e-scooter or e-bike related injuries.There were 92(77.3%)males at an average age of(33.8±15.7)years.Approximately one-fifth of all patients presented in June 2021(26,21.8%).There was a 9.2%rate of open fractures.The 136 injuries were evenly split between the upper and lower extremities,with 57(47.9%)upper extremity,57(47.9%)lower extremity injuries,and 5(4.2%)concomitant upper and lower extremity injuries.The most common fracture patterns were ankle fractures(16,11.7%),followed by tibial shaft(14,10.2%),tibial plateau(13,9.5%),and radial head fractures(11,8.0%).There was a 33.3%incidence of associated posterior malleolar fractures in the spiral tibial shaft fractures,31.0%of posterior malleolar involvement and 18.8%of isolated vertical medial malleolar fractures in the ankle fractures,and 61.5%of posterior comminution in the tibial plateau fractures.Conclusion:E-scooter and e-bike related injuries have a high incidence of tibial shaft fractures,ankle fractures,tibial plateau fractures,and radial head fractures.There should be a high index of suspicion for posterior and medial involvement in lower extremity fractures sustained due to e-scooter or e-bikes.Identifying specific fracture patterns seen in e-scooter and e-bike related mechanisms will help guide management of these injuries.

Preventable iatrogenic cause of foot-drop in knee injuries with literature review

Purpose Common peroneal nerve palsy is quite disabling and every effort should be made to prevent its injury during the treatment.Methods We retrospectively reviewed the prospectively collected data of 7 cases of tibial plateau fractures in association with proximal fibula fracture from January 2019 to September 2019 who presented to emergency room of our hospital.Results In addition to fibular neck fracture,the first case had type 6 tibial plateau displaced fracture and the second case had displaced acetabular fracture with instability of knee with tibial tuberosity avulsion.common peroneal nerve palsy developed following application of distal tibial skeletal traction in both the cases.Other 6 such cases remained neurologically intact as traction was not applied to them.Conclusion Such iatrogenic complication could have been prevented if the injury pattern of"concomitant medial and lateral columns"of the proximal leg is kept in mind by the treating surgeon before applying skeletal traction.