Bone growth after osteotomy and internal fixation in young rabbits
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An Intramedullary Locking Nail for Standardized Fixation of Femur Osteotomies to Analyze Normal and Defective Bone Healing in Mice
Published on: November 13, 2016
S A Albanese1, J A Spadaro, S E Chase
1Department of Orthopedic Surgery, S.U.N.Y., Syracuse 13202, USA.
Insights
Plate fixation after pediatric long-bone fractures did not cause significant femoral overgrowth in a rabbit model. Tibial growth showed a minor increase, but this did not correlate with increased bone formation.
Area of Science:
- Orthopedic surgery
- Pediatric bone healing
- Animal models in research
Background:
- Overgrowth after pediatric long-bone fracture fixation is not well understood.
- Trauma severity and fixation methods may influence growth outcomes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effect of femoral osteotomy and plate fixation on bone growth in a rabbit model.
- To determine if surgical intervention impacts longitudinal bone growth.
Main Methods:
- Unilateral midshaft femoral osteotomy and internal plate fixation in 6-week-old rabbits.
- Comparison of bone length between control and operated femora at skeletal maturity.
- Analysis of tibial growth and technetium-99 methylene diphosphonate uptake in physes.
Main Results:
- No significant difference in femoral length between control and plated femora.
- Shortened plated femora did not exhibit compensatory overgrowth.
- A statistically significant, though small (approx. 2%), length increase was observed in the contralateral tibia.
- Reduced technetium-99 methylene diphosphonate uptake in tibial physes was noted.
Conclusions:
- Femoral osteotomy and plate fixation in rabbits do not lead to significant femoral overgrowth.
- The observed tibial growth increase may be a complex response, not indicative of accelerated growth.
- This rabbit model suggests plate fixation alone is unlikely to cause substantial overgrowth in pediatric long bones.
Abstract:
The factors leading to overgrowth following fixation of long-bone fractures in children have never been clearly understood. The amount of trauma and the type of fixation may play a role. A rabbit model was used to investigate the influence of a femoral osteotomy and plate fixation on subsequent growth. Unilateral midshaft femoral osteotomy was performed in 6-week-old rabbits, and the bone was fixed internally with a plate and screws. End-to-end reduction was performed either at full length or with a segment removed. Bone length measurements at the end of growth revealed no significant difference in growth between the control femur and the femur that had undergone osteotomy and plate fixation. Shortened plated femora also showed no tendency to grow longer or faster than full-length fixed femora or controls. Interestingly, in the ipsilateral tibia a small but statistically significant length increase, equivalent to about 2% increase in additional growth, was observed, whereas technetium-99 methylene diphosphonate uptake was reduced in the tibial physes. In the context of the rabbit experimental model chosen, these results suggest that significant femoral over-growth does not occur following femoral osteotomy and plate fixation.
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