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External Fixation for Closed Pediatric Femoral Shaft Fractures: Where Are We Now?

  • Symposium: 2013 Limb Lengthening and Reconstruction Society
  • Published:
Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research®

Abstract

Background

Recent advances in external fixation technique and pin design have sought to minimize complications such as pin site infection and premature removal of the external fixator. Although newer forms of internal fixation have gained popularity, external fixation may still have a role in managing pediatric femoral shaft fractures.

Questions/purposes

We sought to assess the time to healing, limb alignment, and complications observed in a cohort of pediatric patients with closed femoral shaft fractures who were treated with external fixation.

Methods

Over a 15-year period, one surgeon treated 289 pediatric patients with femur fractures, 31 (11%) of whom received an external fixator. The general indications for use of an external fixator during the period in question included length-unstable fractures, metadiaphyseal location, refracture, and pathologic fracture. Six patients (19%) had inadequate followup data and four patients (13%) were treated with a combination of flexible intramedullary nails and external fixation, leaving 21 patients for analysis. Mean age at injury was 10 years (range, 6–15 years) and followup averaged 22 months (range, 5–45 months) after removal of the fixator. Radiographs were examined for alignment and limb length discrepancy. Complications were recorded from a chart review.

Results

Mean time in the fixator was 17 weeks (range, 9–24 weeks). One patient sustained a refracture and one patient with an isolated femur fracture had a leg length discrepancy > 2 cm. There were no pin site infections requiring intravenous antibiotics or additional surgery. One patient with Blount disease and previous tibial osteotomy developed transient peroneal nerve palsy.

Conclusions

Despite improvements in pin design and predictable fracture healing, complications such as refracture and leg length discrepancy after external fixation of pediatric femoral shaft fractures can occur. However, external fixation remains a viable alternative for certain fractures such as length-unstable fractures, metadiaphyseal location, pathologic fractures, and refractures.

Level of Evidence

Level IV, therapeutic study. See Guidelines for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

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Fig. 1A–F
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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Rutgers University–New Jersey Medical School, Doctor’s Office Center, 90 Bergen Street Suite 7300, Newark, NJ, 07103, USA

    Heather Kong MD & Sanjeev Sabharwal MD, MPH

Authors
  1. Heather Kong MD
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  2. Sanjeev Sabharwal MD, MPH
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Heather Kong MD.

Additional information

One of the authors (SS) is the guest editor for the Limb Lengthening and Reconstruction Society (LLRS) Proceedings for CORR®. Although the selected papers were graded by a panel of judges (who were selected by the LLRS Board of Directors), his being a coauthor for this article could be perceived as a potential conflict of interest.

All ICMJE Conflict of Interest Forms for authors and Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research editors and board members are on file with the publication and can be viewed on request.

Each author certifies that his or her institution approved the human protocol for this investigation, that all investigations were conducted in conformity with ethical principles of research, and that informed consent for participation in the study was obtained.

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Kong, H., Sabharwal, S. External Fixation for Closed Pediatric Femoral Shaft Fractures: Where Are We Now?. Clin Orthop Relat Res 472, 3814–3822 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11999-014-3554-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11999-014-3554-5

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