Ilizarov bone transport for the treatment of fibular osteomyelitis: a report of five cases

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the treatment of fibular osteomyelitis by Ilizarov bone transport. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 5 patients with fibular osteomyelitis treated by Ilizarov bone transport. Our study included 4 males and 1 female with a mean of age 29.2 years. The average length of the bone defects after radical debridement was 7.6 cm (range 6.5-10 cm). RESULTS: The mean follow-up was 24.8 months (range 14–34 months). No patient was lost to follow-up. All the patients had bone union and no recurrence of infection was observed. The mean external fixation time was 8.8 months (range 8-10 months), and the mean external fixation index was 1.18 months/cm (range 0.90-1.43 months/cm). There was no sign of knee or ankle instability by clinical examination in all the patients. According to Association for the Study and Application of the Method of Ilizarov (ASAMI) classification, bone results were excellent in 3 patients, good in 2 patients; functional results were excellent in 3 patients, good in 2 patients. CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggested that Ilizarov bone transport may be a good choice for the treatment of fibular osteomyelitis, especially for the patient with distal fibular loss.