My Orthopaedic Surgeon

AONA posting of the AO Classification of Long Bone Fractures

Tibial fractures encompass a wide spectrum of mechanisms of injury, from high-energy, trauma to low-energy, rotational injury. The papers presented at the Annual Meeting of the Orthopaedic Trauma Association, September 14-16, 2000, focused on the management techniques and outcome of open tibial shaft fractures, metadiaphyseal nailing, and plateau fractures. Medscape 2000

Because the tibia is a subcutaneous bone, tibial fractures are frequently open fractures.
When an individual presents with an open tibial fracture, the physician strives to save the life of the patient and the limb, to unite the fracture, and to prevent infection. Maintaining a functional limb is the goal; when that is not possible, the physician must consider amputation.
Synonyms and related keywords: open tibial fracture, tibial fracture, broken leg, fractured leg, fractured tibia, MESS, Mangled Extremity Severity Score, Gustilo-Anderson fracture, Gustilo fracture, reamed nailing
Patel & Herzenberg 2006

Open Type IIIC Tibial Fractures: Salvage vs. Amputation

From the OTA Fracture & Dislocation Compendium

A broken or fractured shinbone (tibia) is the most common long-bone injury. Several types of fractures can occur, ranging from the hairline stress fractures common in runners to severe open fractures (where the skin is broken) resulting from motor vehicle crashes.
Contents - Toddler's Fracture Growth Plate Fractures Stress Fractures Closed Fractures Open Fractures Complications

The floating knee: epidemiology, prognostic indicators & outcome following surgical management Ulfin Rethnam , Rajam S Yesupalan and Rajagopalan Nair
Journal of Trauma Management & Outcomes 2007, 1:2
onclusion The associated injuries and the type of fracture (open, intra-articular, comminution) are prognostic indicators in the Floating knee. Appropriate management of the associated injuries, intra-medullary nailing of both the fractures and post operative rehabilitation are necessary for good final outcome.

Index to over 40 subjects relating to fractures of the tibia
Wheeless' Textbook of Orthopaedics

Margaret McQueen and colleagues[6] from the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland, presented the results of a study that determined the mortality rate of patients older than 65 years admitted with tibial shaft fractures. In a 10-year period, 238 such patients were treated at their institution, with follow-up available for 233 patients. Most patients were women (73%). Most of the fractures were closed (70%), although among the open fractures there was a predominance of Gustilo type IIIA injuries. The overall mortality rate 120 days after injury was 17%. Mortality was not different between men and women but was higher in older patients and in those with more severe open fractures.
Medscape Report

James Goulet, MD, from the University of Michigan Medical Center, moderated a group of presentations given at the 14th annual Vail Orthopaedics Symposium discussing traumatic injury of the tibia. This relatively common type of traumatic injury presents a unique set of challenges, particularly in the case of open fractures.
Medscape 2000 Kyle & Winquist