
Foot & Ankle
Unstable ankle fractures: Better clinical results with metal versus biodegradable implants
J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2012 Nov 21;94(22):e1661-7. doi: 10.2106/JBJS.K.01221109 patients with unstable ankle fractures, requiring surgical intervention, were included in this study to compare clinical outcomes of metal and biodegradable implant fixations. Patients who underwent fixation using a metal implant had a shorter mean operative time, required less time to bone union, and had superior American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society ankle-hindfoot scale scores at 12 months. Patients in the metal implant group also had fewer non-unions when compared to the biodegradable implants; however, this difference was not significant.
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