Fractures of the distal femur in elderly patients: retrospective analysis of a case series treated with single or double plate.

Introduction: We evaluated the radiologic and clinical outcomes of a lateral incision single plate with and a single-incision double plating in elderly patients with osteoporotic distal femoral fractures.
Materials and Methods: We performed a retrospective study of 82 cases of distal femoral fractures from May 2004 to June 2018. Group A consisted of 42 patients who underwent single-plate fixation. Group B consisted of 40 patients who underwent double-plate fixation. The mean patient age was 77 years (67-87 years) and 76 years (64-86 years) in groups A and B, respectively. All patients were evaluated for procedure duration, time to union, range of knee motion, Lysholm knee score, and presence of complications.
Results: The average procedure time was 81 min (66-92 min) and 110 min (95-120 min) in groups A and B, respectively (p = 0.33). One case in group B required bone grafting after 5 months. The average time to union was 14 weeks (9-19 weeks) and 12.2 weeks (8-19 weeks) (p = 0.63), and the mean range of knee motion was 105° (90-125°) and 110.7° (90°-130°) (p = 0.37) in groups A and B, respectively. There was no significant statistical difference between the two groups in the Lysholm knee score (p = 0.44) and knee society score (p = 0.53).
Conclusion: The clinical and radiological outcomes were similar in the 2 groups. In elderly patients, double plate fixation for distal femoral fractures is an useful method for several advantages such as adequate exposure, easy manipulation, anatomical reduction and stable fixation.
(© 2022. The Author(s).)