Table 2.
Treatment and outcomes data uploaded to INTELLECT database
| Total (n = 2694) | Femoral fractures (n = 272) | Tibial/fibular fractures (n = 2131) | Hindfoot fractures (n = 291) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time to antibiotics (h)* (n = 2303) | 2 (1–5) | 2 (1–4) | 2 (1–5) | 2 (1–5) |
| Direct transfer to specialist centre (%) (n = 2670) | 75 | 83 | 73 | 78 |
| Wound debridement within 24 h (%) (n = 2580) | 80.2 | 86.3 | 79.6 | 79 |
| Time to debridement (h)* | 10 (4–20) | 6.5 (3–15) | 10 (5–21) | 8 (4–20) |
| Specialties involved in primary debridement (%) (n = 2694) | ||||
| Orthopaedic surgeons | 68 | 80 | 65 | 79 |
| Plastic surgeons | 11 | 4 | 12 | 6 |
| Orthopaedic and plastic surgeons | 14 | 5 | 16 | 11 |
| Trauma surgeons | 7 | 10 | 7 | 4 |
| Seniority of surgeon leading debridement (%) (n = 2619) | ||||
| Consultant level | 80 | 84 | 80 | 81 |
| Non-consultant level | 20 | 16 | 20 | 19 |
| Median time to definitive skeletal fixation (days)* (n = 2670) | 2 (1–9) | 4 (1–9.5) | 2 (1–9) | 1 (0–5) |
| Primary mode of definitive skeletal fixation (%) (n = 2670) | ||||
| Casting | 4 | 1 | 3 | 14 |
| Uni/biplanar external fixator | 7 | 2 | 7 | 6 |
| Frame external fixator | 12 | 5 | 14 | 4 |
| Plate and screws | 33 | 29 | 33 | 38 |
| Intramedullary nail | 36 | 58 | 38 | 2 |
| Kirschner wires | 4 | 1 | 2 | 27 |
| Other | 4 | 4 | 3 | 9 |
| Soft tissue reconstruction required (%) (n = 2672) | 41 | 18 | 44 | 41 |
| Modality of soft tissue closure (%) (n = 1109) | ||||
| Conventional dressings | 6 | 8 | 6 | 9 |
| Negative pressure wound therapy | 5 | 6 | 4 | 11 |
| Skin grafting only | 21 | 56 | 20 | 19 |
| Local flaps | 9 | 4 | 10 | 3 |
| Perforator flaps | 16 | 11 | 17 | 3 |
| Free flaps | 43 | 15 | 43 | 55 |
| Time to soft tissue closure (days)* (n = 1061) | 7 (3–19) | 12 (4–22) | 6 (3–17) | 16 (4–28) |
| Flap survival rate (%) (n = 748) | ||||
| Local and regional flaps | (n = 268) | (n = 7) | (n = 255) | (n = 6) |
| Total flap failure | 3 | 14 | 3 | 0 |
| Partial flap failure | 9 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| Total flap survival | 88 | 86 | 88 | 100 |
| Free flaps | (n = 480) | (n = 7) | (n = 408) | (n = 65) |
| Total flap failure | 6 | 0 | 7 | 2 |
| Partial flap failure | 6 | 29 | 5 | 9 |
| Total flap survival | 87 | 71 | 88 | 89 |
| Deep venous thrombosis (n = 2694) | 35 (1.3) | 4 (1.5) | 27 (1.3) | 4 (1.4) |
| Wound infection (%) (n = 2649) | 16.3 | 12.5 | 16.7 | 16.9 |
| Time to wound infection (days)* | 34 (13–80) | 15 (7–41) | 39 (16–90) | 17 (8–37) |
| Deep wound infection (%) (n = 2655) | 10.3 | 9.4 | 10.7 | 8.6 |
| Time to deep infection (days)* | 63 (23–180) | 52 (19–162) | 69 (27–184) | 32 (14–63) |
| Non-union (%) (n = 2594) | 10.9 | 14.7 | 11.7 | 2.1 |
| Amputation (%) (n = 2624) | ||||
| Immediate | 2.1 | 1.9 | 1.4 | 7 |
| Early | 2.7 | 0.8 | 2.3 | 7.4 |
| Late | 1 | 0.8 | 1.1 | 0 |
| Time to discharge (days)* (n = 2641) | 15 (7–30) | 16 (8–33) | 15 (7–29) | 14 (4–30) |
| Median follow-up (months)* (n = 2448) | 11 (4–20) | 13 (5–22) | 11 (4–20) | 10 (2–19) |
Values in parentheses are percentages unless indicated otherwise; *values are median (i.q.r.). Reported missing values: 2.7 per cent.