Treatment of Tibial Bone Defect and Bone Nonunion with Limb Shortening using External Fixator and Reconstituted Bone Xenograft

Objective: To explore the effect of external fixator and reconstituted bone xenograft(RBX) in the treatment of tibial bone defect,tibial bone nonunion and congenital pseudarthrosis of tibia with limb shortening. Methods: Twenty cases, with tibial bone defect, tibial bone nonunion or congenital pseudarthrosis of tibia with limb shortening were treated with external fixator. The shortened length of the tibia was in the range of 2～9cm with an average of 4.8cm. For bone graft, RBX was used in 12 cases. Result: All the 20 cases were followed up for 8 months to 7 years, 4 years and 3 months on average, with satisfactory function of the affected extremities. The average healing time of 12 cases with RBX was 4.8 months. Conclusion: The operative method has superiority of little trauma, simple operation and satisfactory functional recovery of the affected extremities. RBX is safely used in the treatment of bone nonunion and has reliable effect in promoting the healing of bone.