Treatment of impending and actual pathological femoral fractures with the long Gamma nail in The Netherlands.

Objective: To compare the results of stabilising impending and actual pathological femoral fractures using the long Gamma nail with the published results of other methods.

Design: Retrospective study.

Setting: 20 hospitals throughout The Netherlands.

Patients: 101 patients with metastases in 110 femurs, which were stabilised with a long Gamma nail.

Main outcome measures: Functional results and complications.

Results: Minimum follow-up was 1.5 years or until death, Mean survival was 12 months (range 0-82). 14 patients died in hospital; 5 had technical complications and fat embolism was suspected in 3 patients. 92% of the patients became mobile and pain was absent or acceptable in 93%.

Conclusion: The use of the long Gamma nail produces better functional results, fewer technical complications, and an incidence of general complications no different from those reported for other methods.