Fractures of the tibia treated by flexible external fixation

Thirty-four patients with fractures of the tibial diaphyseal shaft were treated by flexible anterior half-frame external fixation. The average time to union in the frame was 12 weeks for a simple closed tibial fracture and 26 weeks for a complex open tibial fracture. Complications included malalignment and loss of initial reduction. Most of the complications could have been avoided if special attention had been paid to technical details of reduction of the fracture and insertion of the pins.