A finite element study of a fractured tibia treated with a unilateral external fixator: The effects of the number of pins and cortical thickness.

Introduction: In the early stage of fracture fixation, the aim of a unilateral external fixator (UEF) to stimulate healing and maintain stability may be suppressed by using inadequate number of pins. Cortical thinning due to age or osteoporosis endangers a successful fracture fixation.

Materials And Methods: This study evaluates the initial strength and stability of the fracture fixation and tissue differentiation under the influences of variable cortical thickness (5 mm to 1 mm) and variable number of pins (1 to 4 in each bone fragment).

Osteosynthesis of diaphyseal tibia fracture with locking compression plates: A numerical investigation using Taguchi and ANOVA.

Performance of the locking compression plate (LCP) is a multifactorial function. The control parameters of plating, such as geometries, material properties, and physical constraints of the LCP components, affect basic functions associated with the bone fixation, including the extent of stress shielding and subsequent bone remodeling, strength and stability of the bone-LCP construct, and performance of secondary bone healing. The main objectives of this research were as follows: (1) to find the appropriate values of control parameters of an LCP construct to achieve the optimized performance throughout bone healing; and (2) to unravel relationships between LCP parameters and the LCP's performance.

A mechanobiological approach to find the optimal thickness for the locking compression plate: Finite element investigations.

This study aimed at finding the acceptable range, and the optimal value for the locking compression plate (LCP) thickness (THK), through simulating the osteogenic pathway of bone healing, and by checking bone-plate construct's strength and stability. To attain the goals of this research, a multi-objective approach was adopted, which should trade-off between some conflicting objectives. A finite element model of the long bone-plate construct was made first, and validated against an experimental study.