• INTRODUCTION
    • Adequate treatment for periprosthetic distal femur fractures is challenging because of various reasons, including severe osteoporosis and distal fragments that are too small or too distal. We have introduced a new surgical technique for dual plating of periprosthetic distal femur fractures following total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and determined the clinical and radiological outcomes of minimally invasive plate osteosynthesis (MIPO) with a dual locking compression plate (LCP).
  • MATERIALS AND METHODS
    • Between January 2010 and July 2019, 18 patients [mean age, 74.8 (68-89) years; average follow-up period, 14.8 (12-43) months] underwent MIPO with distal femoral LCP laterally and proximal humeral internal locking system (PHILOS) medially for periprosthetic distal femoral fractures following TKA. The minimum follow-up was 1 year. The clinical and radiological outcomes were assessed using the modified WOMAC scores, knee range of motion, time to callus formation, time to union, and complications of malunion, nonunion, and shortening.
  • RESULTS
    • The average time to union was 18.4 weeks (range, 10-51 weeks) and to callus formation was 7.8 weeks (range, 2-14 weeks). At the 1-year follow-up, the average JLETS was 37.6 (range, 24-53), average knee ROM was 110.3° (range, 80-135°), and average varus-valgus angles of the distal femur were 3.2° (range, -2.9-10.5°). No nonunion, broken plates, or implant failure occurred. Malunion occurred in three patients.
  • CONCLUSION
    • MIPO with dual LCP is a reliable method for stabilizing periprosthetic distal femoral fractures following TKA, with satisfactory bone union rates and low complication rates.