Abstract：Objective To investigate the clinical efficacy of membrane induction technique in the treatment of postoperative infection of tibial plateau fractures in adults. Methods A retrospective case series study was conducted to analyze the clinical data of 21 adult patients with postoperative infection of tibial plateau fractures treated with membrane induction technique from April 2013 to May 2017 in Southwest Hospital of Army Medical University. There were 19 males and two females, aged 1960 years ［(44.1±5.8)years］. There was one patient with type IV fractures, 14 with type V, and 6 with type VI according to the initial fracture typing by Schatzkers classification. There were three patients with infection period of within 3 weeks, 12 of 3-10 weeks, and 6 of over 10 weeks. All patients underwent twostage operation using membrane induction technique to place cement in the bone defect area. After removal of internal fixation and thorough debridement, antibiotic cement and internal fixation plate were placed at stage I. Bone graft and reconstruction was performed at stage II. The infection indicators were recorded. Infection indices were monitored, including white blood cell count (WBC), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP). Clearance of infection, bony union and complications were evaluated. Range of motion (ROM) and scoring of Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) were used to evaluate the function of knee joint. Results All patients were followed up for 12-62 months with an average of 23.5 months. Compared with 3 months after stage II, the indicators of infection at stage I showed that WBC was decreased from (10.6±2.3)×10.9/L to (6.7±3.5)×10.9/L, ESR decreased from (26.0±5.3)mm/h to (12.1±4.3)mm/h, and CRP decreased from (10.0±1.5)mg/L to (5.8±1.0)mg/L (P<0.05). Infection was cleared in 17 patients after stage I operation, and the other 4 patients had infection recurrence, which were given stage I debridement again to control the infection. Two patients were treated with local flap transfer to cover the wound because of skin soft tissue defect after debridement. Another two patients underwent knee arthrodesis, and none was amputated. X-ray film indicated bony union in 21 patients at 46 months (mean, 4.5 months) after operation, and clinical bone healing was acquired in all 21 patients. One patient showed donor site infection. No nonunion, recurrence of infection after stage II, deep vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolism occured after the second stage. At the latest follow-up, ROM in patients with infection periods within 3 weeks and 3-10 weeks was singnificantly improved from ［(95.2±10.4)° and (85.7±11.5)°］ to ［(120.2±10.5)° and （98.6±12.2）°］ (P<0.01), but not in patients with infection periods of over 10 weeks (P>0.05). The HSS score in all patients was significantly improved after operation ［(65.6±8.2)points vs. (82.0±6.6)points］(P<0.01). Conclusion For adult patients with tibial plateau fracture, membrane induction technique can effectively control the postoperative infection, achieve clinical bone healing and improve the knee function.
