Zulmi Wan

Long-term effect on foot and ankle donor site following vascularized fibular graft resection in children.

This study was carried out to evaluate the long-term effect on the donor side of the foot and ankle following vascularized fibular graft resection in children. Eight patients underwent resection of the fibula for the purpose of a vascularized fibular graft by a surgical team who practiced leaving at least 6 cm residual distal fibula. The age of these children at the time of surgery was between 3 and 12 years. They were reviewed between 3 and 12 years after surgery. Two patients who underwent resection of the middle shaft of the fibula at 3 and 5 years of age developed abnormal growth of the distal tibia, leading to ankle valgus. They were treated with growth modulation of the distal tibial physis and supramalleolar osteotomy with tibiofibular synostosis. Another patient who underwent the entire proximal fibula resection at the age of 6 years had developed hindfoot valgus because of weakness of the tibialis posterior muscle. He required talonavicular fusion and flexor hallucis to tibialis posterior muscle transfer. Patients operated at the age of older than 8 years neither had ankle nor hindfoot deformity. We concluded that resection of the middle shaft of the fibula for the purpose of a vascularized fibula graft, leaving a 6 cm distal fibular stump in children younger than 6 years old, may give rise to abnormal growth of the distal tibial physis, leading to valgus ankle. The entire proximal fibular resection for the similar purpose in a 6-year-old child may give rise to weakness of tibialis posterior and hindfoot valgus.

Reconstructive treatment following resection of high-grade soft-tissue sarcomas of the lower limb.

Purpose. To review the role of free tissue transfer in reconstructive surgery following resection of high-grade soft-tissue sarcomas of the lower limb. Methods. Medical records of all consecutive patients with high-grade soft-tissue sarcomas of the lower limbs between August 1997 and September 2003 were reviewed. Results. Of 8 patients (6 women and 2 men) aged between 19 and 65 years, 4 had malignant fibrous histiocytoma, one had malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumour, one had synovial sarcoma, one had recurrent liposarcoma, and one had epitheloid sarcoma. The tumour sizes ranged from 132 cm2 to 483 cm2. The soft-tissue defects following tumour extirpation ranged from 153 cm2 to 896 cm2. The flaps used were 3 free latissimus dorsi flaps, 2 free osteoseptocutaneous fibula flaps (one vascularised fibula flap and one ‘double barrel’ fibula flap), one free rectus abdominis flap, 2 free mini-transverse rectus abdominis flaps, and one pedicled rectus abdominis flap. Five patients did not have local recurrence and systemic metastases. Conclusion. Tissue transfer allows early adjuvant therapy facilitating the multimodal approach for the high-grade soft-tissue sarcomas of the lower extremity.

Ki-67 immuno-histochemistry index in stage III giant cell tumor of the bone

BackgroundGiant cell tumor is an infrequent and unpredictable bony lesion. Although numerous attempts have been made to predict the behaviour of GCT, there are no definite biological or histological parameters to determine the prognosis or aggressiveness of this lesionMaterials and methodsWe analyzed Ki 67 immuno-histochemistry of 31 consecutive cases staged III giant cell tumor to determine the clinico-pathological correlation. There were 19 male patients compare to 12 females. The mean age was 33.8 years ranged from 18 to 59 years. Five cases presented with local recurrence prior to wide resection and one case had multiple recurrences there after. Six cases had pulmonary metastases. Expression of Ki 67 antigen was evaluated by immuno-histochemical staining techniques using the avidin-biotin perioxidase complex method using an LSAB2 kit (Dako, Glostrup, Denmark). The primary antibody used in this study was Ki-67 (MIB-I clone, dilution 1:25; Dako).ResultsThe mean value of Ki-67 index obtained as a percentage of 1000 background cells was 8.15 (ranged 1.00 - 20.0). The median Ki 67 index was 7.5 with standard deviation of 5.12. The Ki 67 index of recurrence tumor was 4.323 compared to 6.05 without recurrence and was not statistically significant (mean difference of 0.865 with p value in independent t test of 0.736). The Ki 67 index was also not statistically significant in the presence of pulmonary metastases with the mean value of metastases group of 6.681 compared to 2.890 without metastases (mean difference of 1.895 with p value in independent t test of 0.424).ConclusionKi 67 index is not use-full prognostic marker for aggressive type of giant cell tumor of the bone.

Long-term outcome of free fibula osteocutaneous flap and massive allograft in the reconstruction of long bone defect

Reconstruction of massive bone defects in bone tumors with allografts has been shown to have significant complications including infection, delayed or nonunion of allograft, and allograft fracture. Resection compounded with soft tissue defects requires skin coverage. A composite osteocutaneous free fibula offers an optimal solution where the allografts can be augmented mechanically and achieve biological incorporation. Following resection, the cutaneous component of the free osteocutaneous fibula flaps covers the massive soft tissue defect. In this retrospective study, the long-term outcome of 12 patients, who underwent single-stage limb reconstruction with massive allograft and free fibula osteocutaneous flaps instead of free fibula osteal flaps only, was evaluated. This study included 12 consecutive patients who had primary bone tumors and had follow-up for a minimum of 24 months. The mean age at the time of surgery was 19.8 years. A total of eight patients had primary malignant bone tumors (five osteosarcomas, two chondrosarcomas and one synovial sarcoma), and four patients had benign bone tumors (two giant-cell tumors, one aneurysmal bone cyst, and one neurofibromatosis). The mean follow-up for the 12 patients was 63 months (range 24-124 months). Out of the 10 patients, nine underwent lower-limb reconstruction and ambulated with partial weight bearing and full weight bearing at an average of 4.2 months and 8.2 months, respectively. In conclusion, augmentation of a massive allograft with free fibula osteocutaneous flap is an excellent alternative for reducing the long-term complication of massive allograft and concurrently addresses the soft tissue coverage.

p53 Expression Immuno-histochemistry Index in Stage III Giant Cell Tumor of the Bone

We analyzed the p53 expression of 50 consecutive cases of stage III giant cell tumor to determine the clinico-pathological correlation. There were 29 male patients compared to 21 females. The mean age was 36.42 years and ranged from 19 to 66 years. Tumors were located mainly around the knee (48%) followed by distal radius (28%). Sixteen percent (16%) had local recurrence, and twenty four percent (24%) presented with or eventually developed lung metastasis. There were 3 patients who had both local recurrence and pulmonary metastasis. The expression of p53 antigen was evaluated by immuno-histochemical staining techniques, using the avidin-biotin perioxidase complex method, using an LSAB2 kit (Dako, Glostrup, Denmark). The scoring was done by counting the positively stained cell in the background of 1000 mononuclear stromal cells. Data was analyzed using PASW version 18.0. The mean value of p53 index obtained as a percentage of 1000 background cells was 37.68 (ranged 1.00 – 20.0), with standard deviation of 28.33. The p53 index of recurrent tumor was 65.38 compared to 32.42 of those without recurrence, and was statistically significant (mean difference of 32.97 with p value in independent t test of 0.002). The p53 index was also statistically significant in the presence of pulmonary metastases with the mean value of 66.92 compared to 28.45 of those without metastasis (mean difference of 38.47 with p value in independent t test of 0.001). In conclusion, p53 expression is a good prognostic marker to predict the risk of local recurrence and lung metastasis in the giant cell tumor of the bone.

Breakage of an intramedullary rod after bone union in congenital pseudoarthrosis of the tibia: a report of two cases

We report 2 patients with congenital pseudoarthrosis of the tibia who underwent intramedullary Rush rod transfixation through the ankle joint following refracture and nonunion of vascularised fibular grafting 6 and 8 months earlier. After 9 and 5 years, both Rush rods were broken at the level of the ankle joints, while the reconstructed area was solidly united. The growth of the distal tibia increased the distance of the tips of the broken rod and hence the ankle joint motion. The broken tips may damage the articular cartilage and result in valgus deformity of the ankle and limb length discrepancy.