Outcomes of Patients Treated for Open Pilon Fractures at a County Hospital.

Abstract

Introduction: Open pilon fractures represent a challenging injury for both patients and physicians. Patients must contend with prolonged non-weightbearing, wound complications, and the possibility of post-traumatic arthritis. Surgeons also deal with a fracture which is difficult to treat and that is prone to poor outcomes. To better understand these challenging injuries and identify details that may portend better patient outcomes, we performed a retrospective review of open pilon fractures treated at a level 1 trauma county hospital by orthopedic trauma-trained surgeons.

Materials and methods: A search was performed for patients treated for open pilon fractures at our institution. Demographics and fracture information for each patient, as well as pre and postoperative details for each patient, were collected. We also identified complications such as infection, nonunion, and the need for additional surgeries in patients. Patients were then compared to one another, and they were also stratified according to their Gustilo-Anderson classification of open fracture to identify differences.

Results: Patients in our study who sustained type 3 open injuries were older, more often required additional surgeries, sustained nonunion of their fracture, became infected or underwent amputation than patients with type 1 and 2 injuries. 20% of all patients with type 3 open injuries underwent 4 or more additional procedures, while only 13% did not require additional surgery. In contrast, over half of all patients with type 1 and 2 open injuries did not require any additional surgeries.

Conclusions: Despite following currently recommended guidelines for the treatment of open pilon fractures, these injuries are still prone to complications. Elderly patients and those with type 3 injuries are especially at high risk for negative postoperative outcomes due to the increased severity of soft-tissue damage. Further research is necessary to identify optimal protocols for these devastating injuries, especially in vulnerable populations.

Levels of evidence: Level III.