Evaluation of the Results of Patients Who Have Retrograde Intramedullary Nailing Surgery for Femur Supracondylar Fractures

Abstract

Introduction: Supracondylar femur fractures are usually seen after high-energy trauma. Our study evaluated the surgical results of patients who underwent retrograde intramedullary nailing surgery. Materials and Methods: Thirty patients were treated with retrograde intramedullary nailing for femoral supracondylar fractures in a single clinic between January 2015 and September 2018. The clinical, functional, and radiological findings were analyzed retrospectively. Demographic data of the patients in our study, length of hospital stay, time until surgery, presence of additional trauma, complication rates, type of trauma, HSS and NEER scoring criteria for functional evaluation, and AO classification were used to determine fracture types. Results: Eighteen (60%) patients had high-energy trauma as the etiological cause, while 12 (40%) had fractures due to low-energy trauma. There were four open fractures and 26 closed fractures in the patients. The patients were evaluated according to the HSS and NEER evaluation systems. According to the HSS scoring system, 8 (26.7%) had excellent, 9 (30%) good, 12 (40%) moderate, and 1 (3%) poor results. According to the NEER scoring system, 7 (23.3%) excellent, 10 (33.3%) good, and 13 (43.4%) intermediate results were obtained. Conclusion: In supracondylar femur fractures, retrograde intramedullary nailing is a method that should be preferred in appropriate cases because of the low amount of bleeding, rapid mobilization, good union since the fracture hematoma is not evacuated, and good postoperative functional results.