Dual plating or dual plating combined with compression bolts for bicondylar tibial plateau fractures: a retrospective comparative study

The aim of this study was to compare secondary loss of reduction outcomes in dual plating fixation and dual plating combined with compression bolt fixation for bicondylar tibial plateau fractures (TPFs). We performed a retrospective study from January 2015 to April 2019. A consecutive series of 72 bicondylar TPFs underwent surgical treatment and was divided into two groups: group 1 (dual plating, n=46) and group 2 (dual plating combined with compression bolts, n=26). The outcomes collected included demographic characteristics, imaging characteristics, intraoperative indicators, clinical outcomes and reduction quality after surgery. Functional outcome was rated according to the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) score and Lysholm score. The secondary loss of reduction rate in group 2 was reduced compared with that in group 1 (P=0.025), and the mean HSS score of group 2 was higher than that of group 1 (P=0.013). The rate of complications was 30.4% (14/46) in group 1 and 30.8% (8/26) in group 2 (P=0.976). Compared with single dual plating fixation, dual plating combined with compressing bolt fixation reduced the secondary loss of reduction rate for patients with bicondylar TPFs and showed better functional outcomes.