A scaphoid fracture is one of the most common types of wrist fractures, and if treatment is delayed, there is a high possibility of nonunion due to anatomical factors such as limited blood supply to the injured bone. Therefore, it is important to suspect a scaphoid fracture based on the mechanism of wrist injury and physical examination of the patient. A computed tomography scan or magnetic resonance imaging can also aid early diagnosis of the fracture. Stable acute fractures can be treated conservatively, but unstable fractures require surgical treatment, and percutaneous screw fixation is usually performed. Nonunions require bone grafts and are treated with non-vascularized bone grafts and screw fixation. However, if the nonunion is located at the proximal pole, a vascularized bone graft may be considered because there is a possibility of avascular necrosis. Pedicled vascularized and free vascularized medial femoral condyle bone grafts are mainly used in such cases. The treatment of a proximal pole nonunion with impaired blood flow remains controversial. There are conflicting opinions on whether a nonvascularized bone graft is sufficient or whether a vascularized bone graft is necessary.
PURPOSE Recent literature has noted incidences of subtrochanteric atypical femoral fractures (AFFs) in patients who have taken long-term bisphosphonates (BPs). Most cases of subtrochanteric AFFs have been treated with intramedullary nailing and cases of delayed union have been reported. On the other hand, there is no data available on the complications associated with endosteal thickening or cortical thickening. This study evaluated the results of surgical treatment according to the endosteal thickening of the lateral cortex in subtrochanteric AFFs. MATERIALS AND METHODS Investigation was performed at the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Jeju National University Hospital. The study consisted of patients with subtrochanteric AFFs, defined by the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR) major criteria, who underwent intramedullary nailing from March 2012 to October 2014. The cases were categorized into two groups based on the presence of endosteal thickening. The evaluation included the demographic data, radiographic data of initial reduction state, and duration of BPs. RESULTS The demographic data and duration of BPs were similar in the two groups. On the other hand, varus reduction (Group I: 12.5% vs. Group II: 78.9%; p=0.001), delayed union (Group I: 0% vs. Group II: 70.0%; p=0.003), nonunion (Group I: 0% vs. Group II: 47.4%; p=0.017), and union time (Group I: 5.5 months vs. Group II: 8.3 months; p<0.001) were significantly different in the two groups. CONCLUSION Endosteal thickening of the lateral cortex in subtrochanteric AFFs was identified as an independent factor that decides the reduction of the fracture and nonunion. The endosteal thickening should be removed to obtain anatomical alignment for successful surgical results.
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