Separate Vertical Wiring for Comminuted Inferior Pole Fractures of Patella: An Effective Technique
Mugundhan M Sengodan, Yuganeswaran Marasamy
Keywords :
Comminuted fracture, Inferior pole of patella, Separate vertical wiring
Citation Information :
Sengodan MM, Marasamy Y. Separate Vertical Wiring for Comminuted Inferior Pole Fractures of Patella: An Effective Technique. J Orth Joint Surg 2024; 6 (2):153-157.
Introduction: Comminuted inferior pole fractures of patella can be up to one-fifth of all patella fractures according to various studies. Management of these fractures is challenging because of very small fragment size to be amenable to conventional fixation techniques. Partial patellectomy is no longer favored due to its high incidence of complications. Separate vertical wiring technique of Yang and Byun is one of the methods of internal fixation reported with successful clinical outcome.
Materials and methods: This is a prospective study of consecutive cases of comminuted inferior pole fractures of patella which were treated with separate vertical wiring technique from January 2017 to February 2020. We have operated 32 cases of which only 28 cases available for a minimum follow-up of 2 years were included in the study. Depending upon the number of comminuted fragments in the inferior pole, three or four vertical tunnels were made. Stainless steel wire of size 0.9 mm (20G) was used for the vertical wiring.
Results: We have analyzed the time taken for union by radiological follow-up at fortnightly intervals. The mean time taken for union in our study was 8.3 weeks. Clinical grading scale by Böstman et al. was used to assess the outcome at 2 years follow-up. The mean score was 28.4 (maximum of 30) in our study.
Conclusion: We conclude that separate vertical wiring is a reliable, reproducible, relatively simple, and cost-effective procedure in the treatment of comminuted inferior pole fractures of patella.
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