Surgery for pathological proximal femoral fractures, excluding femoral head and neck fractures: resection vs. stabilisation.

Pathological femoral head and neck fractures are commonly treated by arthroplasty. Treatment options for the trochanteric region or below are not clearly defined. The purpose of this retrospective, comparative, double-centre study was to analyse survival and influences on outcome according to the surgical technique used to treat pathological proximal femoral fractures, excluding fractures of the femoral head and neck.

Quality of life after volar plate fixation of articular fractures of the distal part of the radius.

Background: Outcome measurement following surgery is increasingly the focus of attention in current health-care debates because of the rising costs of medical care and the large variety of operative options. The purpose of the present study was to correlate quality of life after volar locked plate fixation of unstable intra-articular distal radial fractures with functional and radiographic results as well as with quality-of-life data from population norms.

Methods: Fifty-four consecutive patients with intra-articular distal radial fractures and a mean age of sixty-three years were managed with a volar locked plate system.

No midterm benefit from low intensity pulsed ultrasound after chevron osteotomy for hallux valgus.

Chevron osteotomy is a widely accepted method for correction of symptomatic hallux valgus deformity. Full weight bearing in regular shoes is not recommended before 6 weeks after surgery. Low intensity pulsed ultrasound is known to stimulate bone formation leading to more stable callus and faster bony fusion.

Volar plate fixation of AO type C2 and C3 distal radius fractures, a single-center study of 55 patients.

Objectives: We hypothesized that volar locked plate fixation of AO type C2 or C3 fractures could effectively maintain radiographic reduction as shown by comparison of immediate postoperative alignment and that seen after more than 12 months' follow-up.

Design: Prospective cohort study.

Setting: Level II trauma center located in a suburban area.

Unplanned 10-year retention of an external fixator for a proximal tibial fracture.

A 45-year-old homeless male patient did not return for follow-up for routine removal 72 days after an external fixator had been placed for a grade II open fracture of the proximal tibia. Ten years later, he was accidentally referred to our institution for newly incurred fractures of the femoral neck on the same side and also for an opposite-side medial malleolus fracture. The patient was still homeless, with signs of poor personal hygiene, but the original external fixator was in place.