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Complications

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

Most of the complications associated with external fixation can be avoided by careful management. They include:

  • non-union - from overdistraction of the fragments - the fragments are held too far apart to heal
  • delayed union - rigid fixation may shield the fracture from stress, delay healing, and cause osteoporosis - less of a problem with more modern fixators
  • pin track infection - infection may occur at the entrance of the pins into the skin and track into the bone. The skin around the pin is painful and the bone tender
  • joint stiffness and associated muscle dystrophy when used to fix intra-articular fractures

Patients may also find external fixation less convenient than other methods, for example, internal fixation, and may reject it for aesthetic reasons.

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