No abstract

We performed 22 reconstructions by allografts in patients with pelvic sarcoma: 14 Ewing's sarcomas, 7 chondrosarcomas, and 1 osteosarcoma. All patients with Ewing's sarcoma and osteosarcoma received chemotherapy. No patients with chondrosarcoma had adjuvant treatment. 12 reconstructions were iliosacral arthrodesis after resection of an ilium tumor, 1 was iliofemoral arthrodesis and 9 were pelvic reconstructions with total hip prosthesis after resection of an acetabulum tumor. In the surviving patients, the mean length of follow-up was 4 (2-6) years. 2 allografts fractured and 8 allografts developed an infection. The infection was commoner in patients who had chondrosarcomas, large tumors, and a long operation time. Neither chemotherapy nor radiotherapy increased the infection rate. All infected allografts had to be removed.

No abstract

We compared the outcomes of 26 intramedullary cemented massive allografts with 19 allografts without cementation; all allografts were used for reconstruction after excision of bone sarcomas. In the cementation group, 12 allografts were used as osteochondral grafts (proximal humerus 4, proximal tibia 4, and distal femur 4), 7 as intercalary diaphyseal allografts of the femur, and 7 for a knee arthrodesis. In the uncemented allografts, 3 allografts were used as osteochondral grafts (proximal humerus 2, proximal tibia 1), 2 as intercalary diaphyseal allograft of the femur, and 14 for a knee arthrodesis. The average length of follow-up was 40 (25-60) months. 14 of 26 cemented allografts had an excellent (osteotomy line: not visible) or good (fusion > or = 75% of the cortical thickness) healing of the junction site. Infection developed in 1 allograft. Fracture occurred in 4 of 12 cemented osteochondral allografts due to a subchondral collapse (all in the proximal tibia). Fractures at the junction site in the lower extremity developed in 4 of 22 cemented allografts. In 19 allografts without cementation, 11 had excellent or good healing of the junction. Late infection developed in 4 allografts, fracture of the allograft in 3 cases, and junction fracture in 3 of 17 patients with reconstruction of the lower extremity. Intramedullary graft cementation seems to reduce the fracture and infection rates.

Chronic osteomyelitis caused by Staphylococcus aureus small colony variants in combination with osteopetrosis is a unique combination of disorders that confronted us with major challenges. The therapeutic approach included four serial debridements and antimicrobial therapy. The aggressive treatment led to an instability of the brittle and hard osteopetrotic bone, and after 11 weeks, a fracture of the femoral neck occurred. A salvage procedure of the femur was performed, and the cultures obtained during this intervention remained negative. At a 6-year follow-up, the girdlestone situation still showed an acceptable functional outcome without any recurrence of osteomyelitis.

We analyzed the time-dependent results after Coventry osteotomy in 118 patients (129 cases) with uni-compartmental osteoarthrosis of the knee. The median follow-up was 11.6 years (range 0.7-17 years). Data were noted according to the time since surgery. Group I (> 2 years) consisted of all 129 cases, group II (> 4 years) of 41 cases and group III (> 8 years) of 15 cases. The HSS knee score (max. 100 points) improved from 33.2 +/- 20.4 (range 17-60) to 68.3 +/- 25.3 (range 30-90) in group I, to 54.7 +/- 18.9 (range 29-90) in group II and to 43.7 +/- 20.9 (range 23-85) in group III. The improvement started 4.6 +/- 7.8 months (range 0-60 months) after the operation and persisted for 4 years +/- 37.4 months (range 0-125 months). The functional knee score (max. 100 points) changed from 61.7 +/- 14.1 (range 41-70) to 71.7 +/- 13.1 (range 53-87) in group I, to 70.0 +/- 11.8 (range 54-88) in group II and to 64.2 +/- 8.0 (range 42-90) in group III. The initial loss in knee flexion was 5.6 degrees (range 0 degree-20 degrees) and for extension 1.0 degree (range -5 degrees-25 degrees). Anteroposterior ligament stability (max. 10 points) decreased from 9.2 +/- 2.1 (range 2-10) to 5.6 +/- 1.7 (range 2-9) in group III. Lateral ligament stability (max. 15 points) was relatively constant, from 12.6 +/- 1.9 (range 4-15) to 9.7 +/- 1.9 (range 2-14). Complications included one tibia fracture, one infection, six peroneus pareses, four haematomas and one pseudarthrosis. The mechanical axis was corrected to an average knee valgu2 of 5.2 degrees +/- 7.4 degrees, which deteriorated over time. Radiographic evidence of arthrosis appeared independent of the operation.

No abstract

We determined the degree of fibular regeneration at the donor site, using radiographs and dual x-ray absorptiometry, in 53 patients who underwent autogenous nonvascularized fibular transplantation for tumor reconstruction in long bones (mean follow-up 15 (3-26) years). Logistic regression was used to determine whether gender, age at transplantation, time since transplantation, bone mineral density (BMD), and length of the graft were associated with fibular regeneration. 26 patients had spontaneous complete bone regeneration. Younger age at transplant was the only predictor of fibular regeneration. In predicting fibular regeneration, sensitivity was 96% and specificity 74%, using 15 years of age as a cut-off. In the long-term follow-up, we found only gradual changes in the BMD and the values ranged from 24% to 217%. We found no correlations of bone mineral density with age, gender, length of the graft, or time since transplantation.