Ipsilateral fractures of the femur and tibia

14 cases of ipsilateral fractures of the femur and tibia were reviewed from the hospital records. The two commonest patterns were fractures of the shafts of the femur and tibia and fractures of the shaft of the femur and the tibial condyle. Rigid internal fixation of both the femur and the tibia in case of fracture through the shaft of both bones gave satisfactory functional end result. For those in whom the femoral shaft fracture was associated with tibial condylar fracture, rigid fixation of the femoral fracture and conservative management of the tibial condylar fracture with traction was found to be more satisfactory. Initial resuscitation of these severe injuries is very important and significant morbidity from this combination of injury can be expected. Associated vascular and knee ligamentous injury in these cases may be overlooked at the initial presentation and must be looked for carefully.