REMOVAL OF INTRAMEDULLARY NAILS FROM THE FEMUR - A REVIEW OF 45 CASES

The excellent biocompatibility of titanium and its alloys may result i n osseointegration, In order to determine if this presents an obstacle to removal of intramedullary nails, we retrospectively reviewed a ser ies of 45 cases of isolated removal of a femoral nail. Indications for removal were persistent pain and discomfort, request of an asymptomat ic patient, or skeletal immaturity. Twenty-three nails were titanium, and 22 were stainless steel. Although removal of the titanium nails ha d a significantly longer operative time (110 vs. 84 min), analysis of variance indicated that this was due to a greater number of crosslocki ng screws in the titanium nails (2.2 vs. 0.6) and a tendency to set th e titanium nails deeper in the femur. The use of the titanium material per se did not pose a risk factor for difficulty in late removal of a n intramedullary nail.