At the Policlinico Vanvitelli, forearm reconstruction with cadaver bones

At the Policlinico Vanvitelli, forearm reconstruction with cadaver bones

Forearm reconstructed with cadaver bones and application of stem cells taken from the patient's own marrow to promote callus formation.

The innovative intervention was performed by the team of the UOSD of Orthopedics of the University Hospital Trust “Louis Vanvitelli” of Naples on a 43-year-old from the province of Foggia who, eight months earlier, had been the victim of a serious road accident in which he had suffered a multi-fragmentary exposed fracture of the forearm.

In the hospital where he was initially treated, given the complexity of the clinical and radiographic picture, the patient had been advised to undergo a two-stage surgical operation.

The patient has therefore arrived in the Vanvitelli Polyclinic – directed by manager Antonio Giordano – after almost 8 months from the accident and presented a severely compromised anatomical and functional situation of the forearm and hand, so much so as to significantly limit their use, not only in work activities, but also in common gestures of daily life. Due to the significant alteration of the anatomical-clinical picture, careful surgical planning and a complex reconstruction intervention were necessary, to restore not only the profoundly altered anatomy, but also the function of the upper limb.

The complex surgery involved the synthesis of the fractures, with isolation and preservation of the main nerves and vessels of the upper limb. Specifically dedicated plates were used and a bone graft was used to replace the missing tissue. In addition, stem cells, taken from the patient's own marrow, were added to promote the formation of bone callus. The complex operation (the Orthopedic UOSD is directed by Professor Alfredo Schiavone Panni) lasted about seven hours and was conducted by Dr. Giuseppe Toro (a team composed of doctors Annalisa De Cicco, Annalisa Itro and Dr. Giovanni Landi; anesthetists: Francesco Coppolino and Maria Di Mauro) in synergy with the professionals of the Transfusion Center led by Professor Claudio Napoli. All with the precious and indispensable nursing support of the operating room staff.

"I congratulate the entire team at the Orthopedic Clinic of the Policlinico Vanvitelli for having performed, once again, an extraordinary operation capable of restoring the dynamics and function of the severely compromised upper limb. A team effort among our professionals that goes in the sole direction of ensuring quality care", declared Antonio Giordano, general director of the University Hospital "Luigi Vanvitelli".