Affiliations: [a] Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, Robert-Koch-Hospital Gehrden, Gehrden, Germany | [b] Institute for Robotics and Process Control, Technical University Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Germany | [c] Trauma Departments, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
Correspondence:
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Address for correspondence: Dr. Sanjay Weber-Spickschen, Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, Robert-Koch-Hospital Gehrden, Von-Reden Str. 1, 30989 Gehrden, Germany. Tel.: +49 177 3887915; Fax: +49 5108 692902; E-mail: weber-spickschen@web.de.
Abstract: Robot assisted fracture reduction of femoral shaft fractures provides precise alignment while reducing the amount of intraoperative imaging. The connection between the robot and the fracture fragment should allow conventional intramedullary nailing, be minimally invasive and provide interim fracture stability. In our study we tested three different reduction tools: a conventional External Fixator, a Reposition-Plate and a Three-Point-Device with two variations (a 40° and a 90° version). We measured relative movements between the tools and the bone fragments in all translation and rotation planes. The Three-Point-Device 90° showed the smallest average relative displacement and was the only device able to withstand the maximum applied load of 70 Nm without failure of any bone fragment. The Three-Point-Device 90° complies with all the stipulated requirements and is a suitable interface for robot assisted fracture reduction of femoral shaft fractures.
