Assessing Soft Tissue Perfusion Using Laser-Assisted Angiography in Tibial Plateau and Pilon Fractures: A Pilot Study

Objectives: To determine whether skin perfusion surrounding tibial plateau and pilon fractures is associated with the Tscherne classification for severity of soft tissue injury. The secondary aim was to determine if soft tissue perfusion improves from the time of injury to the time of definitive fracture fixation in fractures treated using a staged protocol. Design: Prospective cohort study. Setting: Academic trauma center. Patients: Eight pilon fracture patients and 19 tibial plateau fracture patients who underwent open reduction internal fixation. Main Outcome Measures: Skin perfusion (fluorescence units) as measured by LA-ICGA. Results: Six patients were classified as Tscherne grade 0, 9 as grade 1, 10 as grade 2, and 2 as grade 3. Perfusion decreased by 14 fluorescence units (95% confidence interval, −21 to −6; P
Source: Journal of Orthopaedic Trauma - Category: Orthopaedics Tags: Original Article Source Type: research