Minimally invasive percutaneous plate osteosynthesis for closed distal tibial fractures: a consecutive study based on 25 patients

We studied the outcome of minimally invasive percutaneous plate osteosynthesis (MIPPO) using locking plate for closed fractures of distal tibia in a consecutive study consisting of 25 patients. Preoperative variables were age of patient, mode of trauma, type of fracture, and soft tissue status. Postoperative variables included wound status, time to union, return to activity, and AO foot and ankle score. After 1 year, all the fractures had united. The average time to union was 16.8 weeks. There were two cases of superficial infection. We also had two cases of deep infection, which required removal of hardware after the fracture was united. The average AO foot and ankle score was 83.6 in our study. We concluded that using MIPPO is a safe and effective method for the treatment for distal tibial fractures in properly selected patients.