Clavo Intramedular de Sign en Rodilla Flotante: Una serie de casos

BACKGROUND: “Floating knee” describes ipsilateral fractures of the femur and tibia, where the knee is disconnected from the rest of the limb. The mechanism is usually a high-energy trauma. Rates of infection, lack of union, stiffness of the knee, excessive blood loss, fat embolism, are relatively high; leading to functional impairment and often unsatisfactory results. Immediate definitive reduction and fixation of fractures by intramedullary nail reduces the incidence of complications. METHODS: A descriptive study was carried out, a case series report of 7 patientes treated by the SIGN Intramedullary Nail (IMN); to establish the functional results, concomitant injuries, complications and advantages of this nail, in our practice. RESULTS: The majority of the patients were male, with a mean age of 26 years. All injuries were caused in traffic accidents, 50% of the fractures were exposed fractures. According to the Blake & McBryde classification, 6 were Type I and one case Type IIa. Functional results were evaluated according to the Karlström and Olerud criteria; excellent and good results were obtained in 85% of cases. All of the fractures healed; one case of superficial infection was described, one patient presented limb shortening <3 cm and minor limitation of the knee motion range. CONCLUSION: The SIGN intramedullary nail, was efficient and versatile for the treatment of floating knee in adults. It had good functional results (85%) and low incidence of complications. KEYWORDS: FLOATING KNEE, FEMUR FRACTURE, TIBIAL FRACTURE, FRACTURE FIXATION, INTRAME-DULLARY.