Clinical outcomes of revision with retrograde intermedullary nailing for failed plating of distal femoral fractures: a retrospective study

Purpose To assess the feasibility and effectiveness of retrograde intramedullary nail (RIN) revision surgeries for locking compression plate (LCP) failure in distal femoral fractures. Methods This retrospective study included 13 patients who suffered from metalwork failures after they initially underwent open reduction and LCP fixation. In patients who eventually underwent RIN revision from January 2014 to December 2016, range of motion (ROM) and Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) scores obtained before surgery and at the final follow-up time were analysed. Results The average operative time was 155 minutes (range, 120–210 minutes), and the average blood loss volume was 650 ml (range, 200–1350 ml). There were two cases of complications (15.38%): one was calf muscle vein thrombosis, and the other was a superficial infection. No deep tissue infection or deep vein thrombosis was observed post-operatively. The average follow-up time was 16 months (range, 12–24 months). All fractures healed in a mean of 6.5 months (range, 4–12 months), and one patient underwent an additional bone graft surgery that did not involve a bone graft during the RIN revision operation (this eventually healed at 12 months post-operatively). The mean ROM before the operation was 86.92 ± 12.34°. At the final follow-up, the mean ROM was 112.69 ± 9.27°. There was a significant difference between pre-operative and post-operative ROM ( P < 0.01). The mean HSS score improved significantly from 38.85 ± 9.62 points pre-operatively to 79.62 ± 5.42 points post-operatively. There was a significant difference between pre-operative and post-operative HSS scores ( P < 0.01). Conclusions RIN revision surgery achieved excellent clinical results in patients with LCP failure.