The place of the dynamic compression plate in femoral shaft fractures.

A retrospective study of 32 adult patients with fractures of the femoral shaft treated with the AO dynamic compression plate in one centre was carried out. Pathological fractures, transverse and short oblique fractures in the middle third of the femur were excluded from this study. The average follow-up was 3.5 years. The complications were failure of the implant in 6.3 per cent of cases, loosened screws in 3 per cent, refracture in 3 per cent and non-union in 3 per cent. No instance of deep infection was encountered. The average time taken for union was 5.5 months. The overall objective assessment showed excellent or good results in 90.6 per cent of cases. There is a definite place for the AO dynamic compression plate in well-selected cases of fracture of the femoral shaft, provided that close attention to technical details is observed. Timing of the operation and the postoperative care also affect the results.