Operative treatments of displaced intra-articular calcaneal fractures with locking plates (33 case reports attached)

Objective To evaluate the clinical outcome of calcaneal locking plates for treatment of severely displaced intra-articular calcaneal fractures.Methods From June 2009 to June 2013,33 patients( 23 males and 10 females) with severely displaced intra-articular calcaneal fractures were treated by open reduction and internal fixation using locking plates.The left side was involved in 15 cases,and the right side in 18 cases.According to Sanders classification,14 cases belonged to type Ⅱ,16 cases to type Ⅲ,and 3 to type Ⅳ.The results were validated using the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society( AOFAS) ankle-hindfoot scale.Results Altogether the 33 patients got a mean follow-up of 9( 6 to 15) months.All fractures healed in a mean time of 11.5( 10 to 14) weeks.Incision dehiscence occurred in two cases,but healed after treatment.According to AOFAS Foot Score standard,the effects of 17 cases were excellent,13 were good,and 3 were fair.The excellent and good rate was 90.9 %( 30 / 33).Conclusion The application of locking plate is an effective treatment for calcaneal fractures,which is beneficial for healing and functional exercise,and the rate of soft tissue complication after operation is low.