Complications of Minimally Invasive Percutaneous Plating for Distal Tibial Fractures

BACKGROUND The management of distal tibia fractures continues to remain a source of controversy and debate. OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to evaluate the various complications of minimally invasive percutaneous plate osteosynthesis (MIPPO) using a locking plate for closed fractures of distal tibia in a retrospective study. PATIENTS AND METHODS Twenty-five patients with distal tibial fractures, treated by minimally invasive percutaneous plate osteosynthesis, were evaluated in a retrospective study. We studied the rate, probable etiological factors and preventive and corrective measures of various complications associated with minimally invasive plating of distal tibia. RESULTS Mean age of the patients was 41.16 years (range 22 - 65). There were 13 male and 12 female patients. All fractures united at an average duration of 16.8 weeks. There were two cases of superficial and two cases of deep infection, and deep infections required removal of hardware for cure. There were four cases of ankle stiffness, most of them occurring in intra-articular fractures, three cases of palpable implant, three cases of malunion, one case of loss of reduction and one patient required reoperation. The average AO foot and ankle score was 83.6. CONCLUSIONS We found MIPPO using locking plate to be a safe and effective method for the treatment of distal tibial fractures in properly selected patients yet can result in a variety of complications if proper precautions before, during and after surgery are not taken care of.