[Prevention of complications in the spring nailing according to Ender and Simon-Weidner]

Since 1977, the Ender and Simon-Weidner nailing technique has been increasingly used at the Surgical University Clinic in Tübingen. This is an simple, gentle, low-risk procedure for surgical stabilization of pertrochanter femoral fractures and fractures of the lateral femoral neck in elderly people. Errors in external rotation are not always avoidable with this procedure, but they are tolerated with a lower surgical mortality than in the more complex method of osteosynthesis. Intraoperative complications are caused by faulty positioning, bad reposition of the fracture, false selection of the pinning site and nail length as well as insufficient splaying of the nails in the femoral head. Postoperative complications occur with distal as well as cranial displacement of the nails. Further complications are caused by placing a normal burden on the fracture too quickly and by the necessity of changing nails. Instructions will be given as to how these errors can be avoided.