Functional outcome in floating knee injuries: An analytical study

Abstract

Introduction: Floating knee injuries are fractures of ipsilateral femur and tibia. They are high velocity injuries commonly associated with other soft tissue and bony injuries and various complications. Our study aims at assessing the functional outcome of these injuries and to find out the factors that affect the final outcome. Materials and Methods: a total of 45 patients with floating knee injuries managed surgically at Tejasvini hospital and SSIOT between June 2011 to June 2015 were studied. Fraser classification was used to classify these injuries. Management was individualized according to the nature of injury and patient condition. Patients were followed up for a minimum of 6 months and The final outcome was assessed by karlstorm and olerud criteria and various factors that affect the outcome were studied and correlated Results: These injuries were most common in 20-30 years age group and males were predominantly affected. Road traffic accident was the most common mode of trauma. Most cases belonged to fraser type 1 classification. Excellent-good outcome was seen in 30 cases (66.66%) and acceptable-poor outcome in 15 cases(33.4%). good outcomes were seen in closed extraarticlar simple fractures treated with IM nailing while poor outcomes were associated with open complex intraarticular fractures managed with plate fixation/fixators. Conclusion: pattern of injuries and surgical method used has a high impact on the final functional outcome of floating knee injuries. Properly and timely managed injuries can yield good outcomes with fewer complication rate.