Femoral fracture is a relatively common cause of trauma admission to the paediatric surgical services in Edinburgh. Our current policy is to use gallows traction for babies and infants under 2 years and external Liston splintage with straight leg balanced skin traction for older children followed by either early mobilization or the application of a hip spica or cast brace. We reviewed the use o...

PURPOSE To compare 2 methods of wound closure-metallic staples or 3-0 undyed vicryl-according to postoperative wound complication rates. METHODS Patients who underwent surgery for proximal femoral fractures were randomised to have wound closure with metallic staples or with subcuticular vicryl suture. Wounds were regularly examined postoperatively and only those with positive wound swabs were...

External fixation can be an exceptional relief solution in the treatment of proximal femoral fractures. We would like to share our experience using external fixation techniques with either the Ilizarov frame or Hofmann system in 23 patients with complicated fractures.

Femoral neck fractures are common in the elderly and are broadly grouped into either intracapsular or extracapsular fractures. We report an unusual femoral neck fracture that had features of both and discuss the management of such a case.

Slipped capital femoral epiphysis is a very frequently seen condition in orthopedics centers worldwide. Even in successfully treated cases, complications related either with the pathology per se or with the chosen synthesis method are not rare. This report presents a case of bilateral slipped capital femoral epiphysis treated with pinning, in which one of the limbs developed a very rare conditi...

We compared the mortality and outcome of 182 patients with proximal fractures of the femur after immediate and delayed surgical treatment. Seventy-nine patients were operated upon within six hours of the fracture (group 1) and 103 patients were operated upon after this period of time (group 2). At six months follow-up, group 1 had a significantly lower mortality rate. There was a good outcome i...

Bisphosphonate, a potent anti-resorptive agent, is generally accepted as a safe, effective, well tolerated treatment for postmenopausal osteoporosis. Atypical femoral fracture (AFF) and bisphosphonate related osteonecrosis of jaw (BRONJ) are the increasing morbidities in patients treated with long term bisphosphonate. Pathogenic mechanisms of AFF and BRONJ are not fully identified and not ident...

Three cases of femoral vein occlusion following a Mc-Vay repair for femoral and inguinal hernias are presented. Phlebography demonstrated constriction of the femoral vein at the site of the repair. This complication is due to compression of the femoral vein by too tight a repair.

Cases of retained surgical guaze are rarely reported because of medico-legal and professional implications. Retained gauze for a period of more than 10 years is even rarer. A case of retained surgical gauze for 11 years, an accidental finding from a plain radiograph of a patient who had sustained proximal femoral fracture, is reported. A review of other reported cases is presented.

Bisphosphonates (BPs) are commonly used drugs in clinical practice. In this pilot study, we investigated whether bisphosphonate-related atypical femoral fractures (AFF) and osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ) occurred simultaneously in the same group of patients. Six ONJ patients were examined by an orthopedic surgeon and 5 AFF patients were examined by a dentist to look for manifestations of simult...