Bone transport for the treatment of infected forearm nonunion

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the treatment of infected forearm nonunion by bone transport.

We retrospectively reviewed 16 patients with infected forearm nonunion treated by bone transport. Our study included 10 males and 6 females with a mean of age 38.25 years. The site of bone defects involved 9 radius and 7 ulna. The average length of the bone defects after radical debridement was 3.81cm (range 2.2-7.5cm).

The mean follow-up after removal of the frame was 39.63 months (range 26-55 months). No patient was lost to follow-up. All the patients had bone union and no recurrence of infection was observed. The mean external fixation time was 6.19 months (range 3-10 months), and the mean external fixation index was 1.63 months/cm (range 1.14-2.00 months/cm). The mean degrees of wrist flexion were 49.69° (range 45-55°), and the mean degrees of wrist extension were 50.63° (range 40-60°). The mean degrees of elbow flexion were 143.12° (range 135-150°), and the mean degrees of elbow extension were 4.69° (range 0-20°). The mean degrees of forearm pronation were 82.50° (range 70-90°), and the mean degrees of forearm supination were 83.75° (range 75-90°).

Our study suggested that bone transport in the treatment of infected forearm nonunion acquired satisfied functional results. Radical debridement is the key step to control bone infection.