Evaluation of short term complications following use of retrograde intramedullary femoral interlocking nail for fractures of distal femur

Abstract

Background: Supracondylar fractures of femur constitute 6-7% of all femoral fractures. In elderly patients, they are invariably low-energy fractures predisposed by osteoporosis. Aim of this article is to assess the complications of retrograde intramedullary femoral interlocking nail (RIFIN). Materials and methods: The study was conducted at a tertiary health care centre, cases were selected from November 2017 to December 2018. This prospective study was performed on 37 patients with supracondylar femoral fractures (AO type A and C). Results: Complications in our study included knee stiffness in 8 patients, anterior knee pain in 6 patients, shortening (1-2cm) in 3 patients, 3 patients had implant failure due to early weight bearing ambulation (one patient had distal screw back-out, one patient distal screw breakage and one patient had nail breakage), 2 patients had non-union (in which one patient had infected non-union), one patient had peri-implant fracture and one patient had protruding nail. Conclusion: RIFIN is mostly limited for use in extra-articular distal femoral fractures. Although it has a high incidence of complications, it requires a greater amount of attention to the operative technique and patient selection in order to prevent these complications.