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Short Versus Long Intramedullary Nails in the Treatment of Proximal Femur Metastasis.

Not Applicable
Not yet recruiting
Conditions
Pathological Fracture
Pathological Fracture, Left Femur
Bone Metastases
Pathological Fracture, Right Femur
Interventions
Device: Internal fixation with short intramedullary nails
Device: Internal fixation with long intramedullary nails
Registration Number
NCT05969470
Lead Sponsor
National Taiwan University Hospital
Brief Summary

The goal of this interventional randomized controlled trial is to compare the clinical outcomes in treating extremities pathological fractures (fractures of limbs caused by metastatic tumors) or impending pathological fractures with short or long intramedullary nails. The main questions it aims to answer are:

1. What is the rate of developing new distant metastasis of the operated extremities?

2. Does treating extremities (impending) pathological fractures with long intramedullary nails have lower or similar reoperation rate than the short nails?

3. Are there any differences when comparing the surgical-related complication, functional outcomes and life quality assessment between treating extremities (impending) pathological fractures with long or short intramedullary nails.

Participants who meet surgical indication will be randomized into either the long or short intramedullary nail group after informed consent. The patient will receive bone fixation with the corresponding prosthesis.

Detailed Description

Participants will be randomized into either long or short intramedullary nail groups. Participants in the long intramedullary nail group will be fixed with a longer intramedullary nail (defined as greater than 2/3 of the patient's femur) for proximal femoral (impending) pathological fractures, while patients in the short intramedullary nail group will be fixed with a shorter intramedullary nail (defined as less than 2/3 of the patient's femur) for proximal femoral (impending) pathological fractures. Follow-up will be performed at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months after surgery to analyze the patient's function, blood sampling values, and imaging follow-up. The functional capacity will be evaluated by PROMIS questionnaire.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
NOT_YET_RECRUITING
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
50
Inclusion Criteria
  • Femur (impending) pathological fracture that is suitable for intramedullary nail fixation as determined by the physician
  • Patient is willing to participate in this clinical trial and cooperate with follow-up
Exclusion Criteria
  • The patient has a more appropriate treatment alternative to single intramedullary nail fixation as determined by the multidisciplinary decision, such as,

    • The metastatic lesions involved the femur head
    • The metastatic lesions involved the pelvis
    • The metastatic lesions compromised the greater or lesser trochanter to a certain extent that arthroplasty was indicated
    • The metastatic lesions involved/occurred more distal than the intertrochanteric line
  • There are justified, clinically significant rationales that either long or short intramedullary nails be a more appropriate treatment during pre-operative assessment

  • The patient has imaging-confirmed distant femoral metastases before treatment

  • Patient has renal cell carcinoma or sarcoma

  • Patient is unable to cooperate with follow-up or to understand the trial protocol

  • Patient is unable to communicate in Chinese

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Short intramedullary nailsInternal fixation with short intramedullary nailsThe patients receives bone fixation with short intramedullary nails for extremity metastases.
Long intramedullary nailsInternal fixation with long intramedullary nailsThe patients receives bone fixation with long intramedullary nails for extremity metastases.
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Reoperation rateUp to 1 year after the intervention

Percentage of patients receiving revision surgery within 1 year after the intervention. The primary outcome should be compared using non-inferior tests. The non-inferior margin was pre-specified at 25.4%.

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Change from baseline in functional outcome on the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System-29 scoring at 1,3,6,12 months after the interventionAt 1,3,6,12 months after the intervention

The Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) is a set of person-centered measures that evaluates physical, mental, and social health in adults and children. It's used to measure symptoms and other aspects of health status in a wide variety of chronic diseases. PROMIS-29 is a particular version of this system that covers multiple domains of health and function. It consists of 29 items in total, spanning seven domains: physical function, anxiety, depression, fatigue, sleep disturbance, ability to participate in social roles and activities, and pain interference. Each domain has four questions, with the exception of the pain interference domain, which has five. Each question is scored from 1-5, the higher score indicates better function or quality of life. The sum of the PROMIS results in the raw score, which lies between 4 and 20. There's also a single question evaluating pain intensity, as assessed by pain intensity numeric rating scale.

Cardiopulmonary complication rate within 30 days after the interventionUp to 30 days after the intervention

Cardiopulmonary complication includes the following events developing within 30 days after the intervention: O2 desaturation, shock, embolic event, or coma and death.

Mortality rate at 1,3,6,12 months after the interventionAt 1,3,6,12 months after the intervention

Percentage of demise at 1,3,6,12 months after the intervention

Percentage of of participants with distant femoral metastasisUp to 1 year after the intervention

Newly formed metastatic lesions on the same limb distant to the operation site within 1 year after the intervention

Cost-effectiveness analysisUp to 2 year after the intervention

Utility comparison using Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System-29 (PROMIS-29) questionnaire

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