Treatment of femoral supracondylar unstable comminuted fractures - Comparisons between plating and Grosse-Kempf interlocking nailing techniques

A prospective study was done of 66 consecutive unstable comminuted supracondylar femoral fractures in adults, fixed with either plates (28 cases) or Grosse-Kempf interlocking nails (38 cases). Patients were followed up for at least 1 year (average 44 months). Interlocking nails led to a higher union rate and more satisfactory functional results. Nevertheless, the first distal transverse screw hole took a potential risk of breakage due to stress concentration. The authors conclude that for a cooperative patient, a closed static interlocking nail with strict non-weight-bearing should be the treatment of choice, and for an uncooperative patient, a closed static interlocking nail should be supplemented with a cast brace to reduce the complication rate.