Comparison Of The Inlaid External Fixator And LCP In Treatment For Nonunion Fracture Of Tibial Dlaphysis

Objective: To compare the clinical effects of the inlaid external fixator and LCPinternal fixation combined with bone grafting in the treatment of tibial nonunion,andprovide a reference for the clinical treatment choice.Method: A retrospective study was conducted in40patients who underwent thetreatment of tibial nonunion by the inlaid external fixator or LCP internal fixation inour hospital during October2008–December2010. There were21cases of the inlaidexternal fixator，including12males and9females with an average of40.6(18~47)years; and19cases of LCP internal fixation.including13males and6females with anaverage of38.5(15~55)years.Results: All of the patients were followed up.1. The inlaid external fixator patient group: after an average of15monthsfollow-up,21cases were clinically cured, and bone healing rates were respectively47.62%,85.71%,100%by3,6,12months after operations. fracture healing time was4.74±1.17months; operative time was77.4±12.2min; intraoperative blood losswas70.3±20.4ml; postoperative hospital stay was11.8±3.3days; the excellentfunction rate of knee and ankle joints was85.72%; the most common complicationswere7pin tract infection in4cases.2. The LCP plate fixation patient group: after an average of18months follow-up,16cases were clinically cured, and bone healing rates were respectively15.79%,57.89%,94.74%by3,6,12months after operations.fracture healing time was5.62±1.09months; operative time was96.5±10.6min; intraoperative blood loss was90.7±15.5ml; postoperative hospital stay was13.9±3.1days; the rate of knee and anklejoints excellent function was73.68%; the most common postoperativecomplications was fracture nonunion,and postoperative follow-up combined with theimaging diagnosis found three cases of nonunion.Conclusion: The treatment of tibial nonunion by inlaid external fixation has theadvantage of high fracture healing rate and a short healing time.