Recalcitrant posttraumatic nonunion of the humerus: 23 patients reconstructed with vascularized bone graft

Abstract

We treated 23 patients with recalcitrant posttraumatic humeral shaft nonunion with vascularized bone grafts (fibula 10, femur 10 and scapula 3). 21/23 patients healed primarily. Venous thrombosis in the graft necessitated postoperative thrombectomy in 2 patients. Complications at the donor site were trivial. We used a vascularized fibular graft in patients with a large bone defect and with poor intrinsic stability of the nonunion site and a corticoperiosteal femoral graft in atrophic nonunion without a substantial bone defect. The scapula graft is easy to transfer to the surgical neck of the humerus on its pedicle.