Management Of Patellar Fractures By Craniofacial Mesh Plate Osteosynthesis Augmented by Screws

Patellar fractures are challenging orthopedic injuries. Fractures that result in disruption of the extensor mechanism led to significant functional deficits. The goals of treatment for patella fractures include restoration of articular congruity, painless full range of motion of the knee, and recovery of extensor mechanism function.

The biomechanical construct chosen to fix patellar fractures is very important because of the subcutaneous location of the patella and the high level of force transmission that occurs through the patella during flexion and extension of the knee. Some studies have shown that during specific actions like walking or climbing downhill, the patella can see forces as high as 3200 N, equaling four to five times the standard body weight of a person. Achieving biomechanical stability during patellar fracture fixation is imperative as the stability of fixation is tested thousands of times as the knee is put through numerous cycles of flexion and extension during the recovery period. While tension band wiring with or without -K- wire, screw, or cerclage wire augmentation the most widely accepted form of treatment for patellar fractures, plate osteosynthesis is gaining popularity for certain fracture patterns. We present below a novel form of patellar fracture fixation using MatrixNEURO Contourable Mesh plates (Synthes®). Made of titanium with an incredibly low profile, these plates were initially designed for use in midface and craniofacial skeletal trauma.

However, we found that using these plates in treatment of patellar fractures has allowed stable fixation of complex, severely comminuted injuries The benefit of plate is adequate and stable reduction and maintenance of this reduction