Hardware Removal (Subscribe)  

Nearly 68% of patients improve after hardware removal, but surgery is costly
Outpatient vs. in-hospital removal cost about $4,500 compared to $7,500, but patients paid much more.
Surgeons should be selective about removing orthopedic hardware in the presence of a healed fracture, even if it is painful and patients are symptomatic. Investigators...

Removal of intramedullary nails often is relegated to younger surgeons but may be difficult and challenging. We describe difficulties with removal of an incarcerated expandable femoral nail and a new technique for retrograde mobilization of an intramedullary nail through a small infrapatellar incision. No special device was necessary for successful...

A retrospective study of infected operatively treated ankle fractures has revealed that stable hardware should not be removed until after 3 months postoperative and after suppression of the infection with irrigation and debridement. “It would be helpful to have a multidisciplinary approach with an orthopedic surgeon and an infectious disease specialist....

The decision of whether or not to remove pediatric metallic implants remains a controversial issue. Many factors have been cited both in favor and against routine removal of metallic implants. The purpose of this study was to determine the fracture rate following the routine removal of hardware from patients with...

We report four patients who sustained secondary fractures of the posterior wall of the tibial shaft during the removal of one pattern of intramedullary nail after fracture healing. The cause of this complication is discussed.
Fracture on removal of the ACE tibial nail. Takakuwa M, Funakoshi M, Ishizaki K, Aono T, Hamaguchi...

Discussion of earlier paper describing fracture of the tibial after removal of ACE tibial nails from the VP for Research of the manufacturer. Usefelu response from the authors.
Fracture on removal of the ACE tibial nail. Sohngen G. J Bone Joint Surg Br. 1998 Jan;80(1):182

Results Factors influencing the likelihood of removal were sex and litigation. Factors not influencing the likelihood of removal were age, weight, height, BMI, diameter of IMN, patients' level of activity, insurance claim involvement and WCB involvement. Overall, 72.2% of patients had an improvement in their symptoms after IMN removal.
Conclusion Sex and litigation...

Hardware removal halts the majority of postoperative foot and ankle pain
Patients’ reconstructions fared best if pain decreased after elective hardware removal. By Susan M Rapp ORTHOPEDICS TODAY 2009; 29:34
Many orthopedists offer hardware removal to patients undergoing foot and ankle reconstructive or trauma surgery, but patients frequently do not take advantage of it....

The indications for “hardware removal” have often seemed somewhat subjective. There are those obvious cases where it presents mechanical symptoms or removal is necessary for another procedure to be done. In addition, surgeons often underestimate the time necessary for the removal and the patient’s return to normal activities. I have...

TRODUCTION: There are limited data on hardware removal after femoral fracture healing. We determined the incidence of intramedullary nail (IMN) removal after midshaft femoral fractures. We also studied demographic factors influencing IMN removal. METHODS: The senior author reviewed all adult femoral fractures with IMN placement in the trauma practice between...

Percutaneous plate fixation for peri-articular distal tibial fractures reduces the risk of complications such as non-union and infection when compared to traditional open fixation. To remove such plates whilst minimising soft tissue disruption, carefully open the old incisional scars, locate the plate and remove the screws. Using a simple punch,...

BACKGROUND: Anterior knee pain and young age of the patient have been considered justification for removal of a tibial intramedullary nail. There have been few reports on the outcome after nail removal, however. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We studied 71 patients in whom 72 tibial nails had been removed. We used...