Rotational deformities of the long bones can be corrected with rotationally guided growth during the growth phase

Background and purpose — Coronal and sagittal plane long bone deformities can be corrected with guided growth, whereas trans- verse plane rotational deformities require osteotomy and internal or external fi xation. We investigated whether rotational changes can be introduced with the plating technique. Methods — 45 rabbits (6 weeks old) were divided into 3 groups. The unoperated right tibia was used as control. In groups 1 and 3, two plates were placed obliquely to the long axis and in differ- ent directions. In group 2, a sham operation was performed with screws. Animals in groups 1 and 2 were followed for 4 weeks. In group 3 the implants were removed 4 weeks after the operation to observe rebound effect, and the animals were followed for another 4 weeks. The tibial torsion was assessed on computed tomography (CT). External rotation was accepted as a negative value. Results — In group 1, mean torsion was −20° (SD 7.9) in the right tibia and −2.9° (SD 7.2) in the left tibia (p < 0.001). In group 2, mean torsion was −23° (SD 4.9) in the right tibia and −26° (SD 6.5) in the left tibia (p = 0.2). In group 3, mean torsion was −21° (SD 6.3) in the right tibia and −9.5° (SD 5.3) in the left tibia (p < 0.001). Intergroup evaluation for left torsion showed a signifi - cant difference between group 2 and the other groups (p < 0.001). When the rebound effect was evaluated, there was no statistically signifi cant difference between groups 1 and 3 (p = 0.08). Interpretation — A rotational change was attained with this technique. Although a rebound effect was seen after implant removal, it did not reach statistical signifi cance. The fi nal rota- tional change remained constant.