Technical Problems of Trigen Intertan Insertion in Indian Population: How to Overcome Them?

In this technical note, we are going to discuss the technical problems( based on experience with 5 patients) that we have faced during fixation of inter trochanteric fractures while using the intramedullary nailing system - The TRIGEN INTERTAN nail (Smith & Nephew, Memphis, Tennessee), in Indian subjects.

Benefit of lag screw placement by a single- or two-screw nailing system in elderly patients with AO/OTA 31-A2 trochanteric fractures

Objective To retrospectively analyze the clinical outcomes of two intramedullary fixation devices, the INTERTAN nail and Gamma3 nail, for treatment of AO/OTA 31-A2 trochanteric fractures in elderly patients. Methods In total, 165 elderly patients underwent treatment for AO/OTA 31-A2 trochanteric fractures in our hospital from June 2017 to June 2018 (INTERTAN group, n = 79; Gamma3 group, n = 86). All patients underwent radiological and clinical investigations and were followed up for an average of 12 months. Age, sex, fracture type, surgical time, intraoperative blood loss, fracture healing time, and complications were compared between the two groups. Results The surgical time was significantly shorter and the intraoperative blood loss volume was significantly lower in the Gamma3 than INTERTAN group (58.2 ± 2.5 vs. 81.7 ± 14.2 minutes and 170 ± 29 vs. 220 ± 16 mL, respectively). However, there were no significant differences in the reduction quality, hospital stay, fracture healing time, Harris hip score, postoperative complications, or 1-year postoperative mortality. Conclusion Both INTERTAN and Gamma3 nails may be effective for surgical treatment of AO/OTA 31-A2 trochanteric fractures in elderly patients. However, the Gamma3 nail was superior to the INTERTAN nail in terms of surgical time and intraoperative blood loss.

Comparison of clinical and radiological outcomes in intertrochanteric fractures treated with InterTAN nail against conventional cephalomedullary nails: a systematic review

Intertrochanteric fractures, accountable for 50% of hip fractures, can be fixed with cephalomedullary devices such as Proximal Femoral Nail Antirotation (PFNA™), Gamma3 nailing system and TRIGEN™ InterTAN™ nail (IT). IT uniquely uses two cephalocervical screws that allow for linear compression and provide additional resistance to femoral head rotation. A literature review assessing clinical outcomes of these devices was conducted, with 14 studies enrolling 3104 patients meeting the inclusion criteria. PFNA and Gamma3 had better intraoperative outcomes compared with IT; however, IT had superior implant-related outcomes of cut-out and screw migration. No difference was found between IT and PFNA or Gamma3 in Harris Hip Scores, time to union, malunion and nonunion. Further long-term studies are needed to evaluate clinical outcomes and cost–effectiveness of cephalomedullary devices.

The Pre-Loaded Set-Screw in InterTAN Nail: Should It Be Tightened or Not Tightened in Pertrochanteric Hip Fractures

Background: InterTAN is a specific type of cephalomedullary nail with a twin interlocking de-rotation and compression screw, which has inherent ability of anti-rotation. Whether to tighten or not to tighten the preloaded setscrew to allow or not allow secondary sliding in InterTan nail is controversial in clinical practice. Methods: We retrospectively collected 4 nonunion cases of unstable pertrochanteric femur fractures (AO/OTA-31A2), all were treated with InterTan nail and the preloaded setscrew was tightened in order to prevent further secondary sliding and femoral neck shortening. Results: After 6 months to 2 years follow-up, the fractures showed nonunion in radiography and the patients complained slight to middle degrees of pain, and had to use walking stick assistant in activities of daily life. Tightening the pre-loaded setscrew to prevent postoperative secondary sliding as static constructs might keep the femoral neck length, but lose the opportunity of telescoping for fracture impaction, and take the risk of healing complications, such as fracture nonunion, femoral head cutout or nail breakage. Conclusions: As the harm outweighs benefit, we advocate the preloaded setscrew in InterTan nail should not be tightened in standard-obliquity pertrochanteric hip fractures (AO/OTA-31A1 and A2).

Comparison of clinical outcomes with proximal femoral nail anti-rotation versus InterTAN nail for intertrochanteric femoral fractures: a meta-analysis

Background A meta-analysis to access the pros and cons of proximal femoral nail anti-rotation (PFNA) versus InterTAN nail for intertrochanteric femoral fractures including available evidence extracted from literature. Methods According to the Cochrane systemic analysis method, randomized control trials (RCTs) and retrospective comparative observational studies which were related to the comparison of PFNA and InterTAN nail in the treatment of the elderly with intertrochanteric fractures were retrieved. Data were independently extracted from the included studies by two reviewers and analyzed using RevMan 5.3, and the quality of the studies was assessed. Results Two RCTs and seven observational studies were recruited, which consisted of 681 patients with PFNA and 651 patients with InterTAN nail. The meta-analyses showed no significant differences between the two approaches on Harris Hip Score, operation time, blood loss, time to union, mean hospital stay, union problems, intraoperative complications, hematoma, infection, and other complications in both RCTs and observational studies. In terms of other outcomes, for the RCTs, results showed that there were shorter tip–apex distance and reduced pain at thigh or hip in InterTAN nail than in PFNA; however, InterTAN nail was not superior to PFNA in cutout, reoperation, and femoral shaft fracture; for observational studies, the risk of the screw migration (RR = 5.13, 95%CI [1.33,19.75], P = 0.02), cutout (RR = 3.26, 95%CI [1.64,6.47], P = 0.0008), the varus collapse of the femoral head (RR = 7.19, 95%CI [2.18,23.76], P = 0.001), femoral shaft fracture (RR = 5.73, 95%CI [2.24,14.65], P = 0.0003) treated by InterTAN nail were significantly decreased, compared with those by PFNA; however, no significant differences were observed in the aspects of tip–apex distance and pain at thigh or hip between these two groups. Conclusion Analysis of a large number of relevant clinical indicators available shows that InterTAN nail has better clinical manifestation than PFNA in treating unstable femoral intertrochanteric fractures.

The pre-loaded set-screw in InterTAN nail: should it be tightened or not tightened in pertrochanteric hip fractures

Background: InterTan is a specific type of cephalomedullary nail with a twin interlocking de-rotation and compression screw, which has inherent ability of anti-rotation. Whether to tighten or not to tighten the preloaded setscrew in InterTan nail is controversial in clinical practice.Methods: We retrospectively collected four nonunion cases of unstable pertrochanteric femur fractures (AO/OTA-31A2), all were treated with InterTan nail and the preloaded setscrew was tightened in order to prevent further sliding and femoral neck shortening. Results: After 6 months to 2 years follow-up, the fractures showed nonunion in radiography and the patients complained slight to middle degrees of pain, and had to use walking stick assistant in activities of daily life. Tightening the pre-loaded setscrew to prevent postoperative secondary sliding as static constructs might keep the femoral neck length, but lose the opportunity of telescoping for fracture impaction, and take the risk of healing complications, such as fracture nonunion, femoral head cutout or nail breakage.Conclusions: As the harm outweighs benefit, we advocate the preloaded setscrew in InterTan nail should not be tightened in pertrochanteric hip fractures (AO/OTA-31A1 and A2).

Trigen Intertan Nail in Unstable Peritrochanteric femur fractures in the Elderly -functional and radiological outcomes in 50 cases

INTRODUCTION: Peritrochanteric femur fractures have increased significantly in recent decades and the trend continues, due to rising age of the population. Surgical treatment, in the form of rigid internal fixation and early mobilization is now the gold standard. One of the recent implant developments is the Trigen Intertan Nail (Smith & Nephew) for the treatment of peri-trochanteric femur fractures that uses 2 cephalocervical screws in an integrated mechanism allowing linear intra-operative compression and rotational 3-point stability of the head/neck fragment. AIMS & OBJECTIVE: To analyse the functional & radiological outcomes using TRIGEN INTERTAN nail for the treatment of peri-trochanteric femur fractures in the elderly population. DESIGN: Prospective study. METHODS: Between March 1, 2016, and March 31, 2019, 50 patients with an intertrochanteric femur fracture were treated with Trigen InterTan Nail (Smith-Nephew). All fractures were classified by OTA/AO Classification. All surviving patients were followed up for a minimum of 6 months post-operatively. Functional and radiographic evaluation were performed at 3 months & 6 months follow up using the modified Harris hip score. RESULTS: The age of the patients was 60-85 years. 2 patients died due to other co-morbidites, 3 did not come for follow up, leaving 45 patients available for final evaluation. The surgical time was 60-90 minutes. All fractures showed radiological union within 12-16 weeks . Radiographic analysis at healing revealed no loss of reduction, no uncontrolled collapse , no non-union, no femoral shaft fractures, and no implant failures. 2 cases had trochanteric split intra-operatively, requiring cerclage wiring, 1 case was poorly reduced and had varus malalignment. Modified Harris hip score was excellent in 20 patients, good in 10 cases, fair in 9 cases and poor in 1 case. CONCLUSIONS: The Trigen Intertan nail appears to be a reliable implant for the treatment of peri-trochanteric femoral fractures. Its design provides for stability against rotation and minimizes neck mal-unions (shortening) through linear intraoperative compression of the head/neck segment to the shaft. As a result of the minimal complication rate and improved clinical and radiological outcomes, this implant is now used as the standard implant for most unstable peri-trochanteric femur fractures at our institution.

Comparison of clinical outcomes with proximal femoral nail anti-rotation versus InterTAN nail for intertrochanteric femoral fractures: A meta-analysis

Objective: To access the efficacy and safety of proximal femoral nail anti-rotation (PFNA) and InterTAN nail for intertrochanteric femoral fractures.Methods: According to the Cochrane systemic analysis method, randomized control trials (RCTs) and retrospective comparative observational studies which were related to the comparison of PFNA and InterTAN nail in the treatment of the elderly with intertrochanteric fractures were retrieved. Data were independently extracted from the included studies by two reviewers and analyzed using RevMan 5.3 , and the quality of the studies was assessed.Results: Two RCTs and seven observational studies were recruited, which consisted of 681 patients with PFNA and 651 patients with InterTAN nail. The meta-analyses showed no significant differences between the two approaches on Harris Hip Score, operation time, blood loss, time to union, mean hospital stay, union problems, intraoperative complications, hematoma, infection, other complication in both RCTs and observational studies. In terms of other outcomes, for the RCTs, results showed that there were shorter tip–apex distance, reduced pain at thigh or hip in InterTAN nail than in PFNA; however, InterTAN nail was not superior to PFNA in cutout, reoperation, and femoral shaft fracture; for observational studies, the risk of the screw migration (RR=5.13, 95%CI: [1.33,19.75], P=0.02), cutout (RR=3.26, 95%CI: [1.64,6.47], P=0.0008), the varus collapse of the femoral head (RR=7.19, 95%CI: [2.18,23.76], P=0.001), femoral shaft fracture (RR=5.73, 95%CI: [2.24,14.65], P=0.0003) treated by InterTAN nail were significantly decreased, compared with those by PFNA; however, no significant differences was observed in the aspects of tip–apex distance and pain at thigh or hip between these two groups.Conclusion: Analysis of a large number of relevant clinical indicators available shows that InterTAN nail has better clinical manifestation than PFNA in treating unstable femoral intertrochanteric fractures.

Optimizing stability in AO/OTA 31-A2 intertrochanteric fracture fixation in older patients with osteoporosis

Objectives To compare the functional and radiographic outcomes of InterTAN nail (IT) and proximal femoral nail anti-rotation (PFNA) for managing primary AO/OTA 31-A2 intertrochanteric hip fractures (IHFs) in older osteoporotic patients. Methods Patients aged 60 years or older who received surgical treatment for IHFs (AO/OTA 3.1A2.1-A2.3) with IT or PFNA were retrospectively evaluated. The primary outcome was the postoperative treatment failure rate. The secondary outcome was the Harris Hip Score (HHS). Results A total of 326 osteoporotic cases (326 hips: IT, n = 162; PFNA, n = 164) were assessed with a mean follow-up of 43.5 months (range, 38–48 months). For the entire cohort, the incidence of postoperative treatment failure (periprosthetic fracture and reoperation) was 29/326 (8.9%); the IT-treated cohort (7/162, 4.3%) had a significantly lower rate compared with the PFNA-treated cohort (22/165, 13.3%). The incidence of postoperative periprosthetic fractures was significantly lower in the IT-treated cohort than in the PFNA-treated cohort (2.5% vs 7.9%). The postoperative HHS at the final follow-up was not significantly different between the groups. Conclusion IT might show a better outcome in managing osteoporotic AO/OTA 31-A2 IHFs in terms of periprosthetic fracture and reoperation compared with PFNA.