Objective:To investigate the application of combined distractor in the treatment of refractory distal radius fractures.Methods:From March 2018 to February 2020, the data of 32 patients with refractory distal radius fractures treated with combined distractor-assisted reduction were retrospectively analyzed. The propensity score matching method was used to establish a non-distractor group according to 1∶1 matching, with a total of 32 patients. In the distractor group, there were 15 males and 17 females, age 54.9 ±15.8 years (range, 18-77). According to AO classification, 3 cases were A3, 3 cases were B3, 16 cases were C2, 10 cases were C3. In the non-distractor group, there were 12 males and 20 females, age 59.7±14.8 years, 4 cases were A3, 5 cases were B3, 12 cases were C2 and 11 cases were C3. Main measures: surgical time, radial height, palm inclination, ulnar deviation, range of motion of the wrist, visual analogue scale (VAS), and functional assessment using disability of arm, shoulder and hand (DASH) and modified Mayo wrist score (MMWS).Results:A total of 64 patients were included in this study, and all patients successfully completed the operation and were followed up for 12-54 months, with an average of 17.8 months. The operative time of the distractor group was 91.2±14.6 min, which was significantly lower than that of the non-distractor group 137.6±27.3 min, and the difference was statistically significant ( t=8.48, P<0.001); the radial height in the distractor group 11.5±1.4 mm was significantly higher than that in the non-distractor group 10.6±1.3 mm, and the difference was statistically significant ( t=2.59, P=0.012). At the last follow-up, there were no statistically significant differences in the palm inclination 7.9°±4.4° vs. 7.5°±3.5°, ulnar deviation 23.3°±5.7° vs. 22.3°±4.5°, wrist flexion 63.2°±15.3° vs. 62.6°±11.1°, dorsiflexion 63.5°±10.7° vs. 62.4°±15.2°, pronation 69.2°±11.8° vs. 67.0°±11.0°, supination 73.1°±10.4° vs. 72.0°±8.7°, VAS 0.8±0.5 points vs. 0.9±0.7 points, DASH score 12.9±6.6 points vs. 13.4±7.0 points amd MMWS 84.1±5.8 points vs. 83.5±6.2 points ( P>0.05). One patient in the distractor group had symptoms of extensor muscle irritation, and the symptoms disappeared after the internal fixation was removed; 2 patients in the non-spreader group developed carpal tunnel syndrome, which improved after incision and decompression treatment. Conclusion:For refractory distal radius fractures, the use of combined distractor can achieve better radius height recovery and shorten the operation time, and has a satisfactory postoperative effect.

Objective To propose a concept of irreducible tibial shaft fractures and to discuss their imaging characteristics and clinical significance.Methods A retrospective study was performed in 21 patients with tibial shaft fracture who had received intraoperative intramedullary nailing after limited open reduction at Department of Orthopaedics,The Second Affiliated Hospital to Anhui Medical University from November 2013 to June 2018.They were 14 males and 7 females,aged from 21 to 66 years (average,34.9 years).There were 15 left and 6 right sides.Firstly,closed reduction was performed followed by traction,folding and rotation,but repeated attempts failed to achieve smooth reduction or insertion of guide wire.Next,local limited open reduction had to be performed for intramedullary nailing.The X-ray and CT images of the tibial fractures were collected to analyze their imaging characteristics.The imaging manifestations were characterized into 4 types:single-segment type with intact fibula,multiple-segment type,interlocking type where the distal and proximal ends interlock commonly seen in short spiral and short oblique fractures,and incarceration type where the fracture interspace is blocked by a bone fragment.The therapeutic efficacy was evaluated at the final follow-up by knee scores of The Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) and Kofoed ankle scores.Results Of the 21 patients,2 were single-segment type,4 multiple-segment type,13 interlocking type and 2 incarceration type.They were followed up for 7 to 50 months (average,22.7 months).The fractures united after 5 to 16 months (average,7.3 months).Postoperative knee pain was observed in 3 cases and delayed fracture union in 2.Osteomyelitis,superficial wound infection,implant breakage or malunion occurred in none of the patients.The therapeutic efficacy evaluated at the final follow-up by HSS knee scores and Kofoed ankle scores revealed 15 excellent,4 good and 2 fair cases,yielding an excellent to good rate of 90.5％.Conclusion The concept of irreducible tibial shaft fractures may lead to preoperative awareness on the part of the surgeons so that ineffective repeated reductions can be spared and the damage to the blood supply to the fracture ends and the operation time can be reduced.

Objective:To explore the short-term therapeutic outcomes of femoral neck fractures fixated by Femoral Neck System (FNS).Methods:A retrospective analysis was conducted of the 16 patients with femoral neck fracture who had been admitted to the Department of Traumatology & Orthopedics, The Second Affiliated Hospital to Anhui Medical University from January to December 2019. They were 6 males and 10 females, aged from 24 to 69 years (average, 47.5 years). According to the Garden Classification, there were 3 cases of type Ⅱ, 7 cases of type Ⅲ, and 6 cases of type Ⅳ. All the 16 patients were fixated with FNS. Recorded were operation time, frequency of intraoperative fluoroscopy, intraoperative blood loss, quality of postoperative fracture reduction, hospital stay, fracture healing time, and efficacy and complications at the last follow-up.Results:The 16 patients were followed up for 5 to 16 months after operation (average, 9.3 months). According to the Garden indexes, fracture reduction was evaluated as satisfactory in all the 16 patients. The operation time in this group ranged from 25 to 115 min with an average of 41.5 min, the frequency of intraoperative fluoroscopy from 14 to 47 times with an average of 26 times, the intraoperative blood loss from 35 to 210 mL with an average of 76 mL, the hospital stay from 3 to 9 days with an average of 4.6 days, and the fracture healing time from 3 to 6 months with an average of 4.5 months. By the Harris hip scores at the last follow-up, the function of the affected hip was rated as excellent in 10 cases, good in 5 and fair in one. Follow-ups revealed no complications like infection or implant loosening.Conclusions:The FNS is a new type of simple, reliable, safe and minimally invasive internal fixation for the treatment of femoral neck fractures. The plate, bolt, anti-rotation screws and locking screws in FNS can be inserted through a single minimally invasive incision, leading to reliable fixation, limited irritation to the lateral muscular soft tissues, and fine short-term outcomes.