Case report: migration of a broken screw to the knee joint after hardware failure following closing wedge distal femoral osteotomy

BACKGROUND: We report a case of hardware failure after distal femoral osteotomy (DFO) with a broken screw pulled out from the locking hole and positioned within the knee joint. CASE PRESENTATION: A 57-year-old man presented to our orthopedic outpatient department with 3-months history of an unusual painful swelling at the operated area following DFO. The leakage of joint fluid from the penetrated suprapatellar pouch was assumed to be the reason for this complication. CONCLUSIONS: The overall aim of this case report is to provide a lesson to budding surgeons who might experience a similar situation that cannot be easily explained, like the unexpected complication in the present case.