Objective To explore the effects of internal fixation on patients with open tibiofibular fractures after external fixator surgery.Methods A total of 87 patients with open tibiofibular fractures admitted to Ningde Hospital Affiliated to Ningde Normal University were enrolled as the research objects between January 2018 and January 2021. According to different surgical methods, they were divided into group A (42 cases, external fixator) and group B (45 cases, internal fixation after external fixator). The fracture healing, recovery of lower limb function and self-care ability, levels of bone metabolism markers, inflammation response and incidence of complications were compared between the two groups.Results All patients were followed up for 6-8 months. The porosis time, disappearance time of pain and fracture healing time in group B were shorter than those in group A. At 6 months after surgery, fracture healing rate in group B was higher than that in group A (P<0.05). At 3 and 6 months after surgery, scores of knee-ankle function recovery (Merchant), simple Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA), and Barthel effectiveness (BE) of self-care ability in group B were higher than those in group A (P<0.05). At 1 week after surgery, levels of bone alkaline phosphatase (BALP), bone gla protein(BGP) and serum propeptide of type I procollagen (PICP) in group B were higher than those in group A (P<0.05), levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) were lower than those in group A (P<0.05), and total incidence of complications was lower than that in group A (P<0.05).Conclusion The internal fixation is safe and effective after external fixator surgery. It can shorten the healing process of fractures and wounds, promote function recovery, reduce the occurrence of complication and improve prognosis of patients. |