Crooked legs, functional disorders caused by the inequality between the legs, and short stature are orthopedic problems that can be treated with the Ilizarov method today. Thanks to this method, which has been successfully applied in the Orthopedics and Traumatology Departments, the difference in length in the legs; Shortness compensation can be equated with shortening the long leg and lengthening the short leg. The Ilizarav method is also successfully applied in the treatment of soft tissue loss, curvatures and shortnesses that occur as a result of nonunion in bone fractures.
What is the Ilizarov Method?
It is a system that can give controlled movement to bone parts with the help of hinges and rods (rods), in which bones are fixed with thin wires and hoops. Surgical interventions can be applied to pediatric or adult patients with arm and leg inequalities that develop after congenital diseases, bone losses and traumas (such as premature closure of the growth cartilage). In this procedure, a low-energy fracture is created in the bone and is gradually lengthened (1 mm/day). In the extension zone, up to 80% of the original length of the bone can be elongated. In parallel with the developing implant technology in appropriate cases, alternative new techniques and technology to the ilizarov technique are also used.
"Distraction osteogenesis", which is defined by Ilizarov, one of the revolutions of orthopedic science in the 20th century, that is, the technique of creating new bone by stretching the repair auxiliary tissue between the broken bone ends, and the lengthening, restructuring of bone cavities and nonunion treatment that emerged with this concept are the main solution methods used in orthopedic surgery today. With the tool called Ilizarov external fixator, acute shortening of the nonunion area and lengthening from the other area in the same bone are performed together with the applications of creating new bone by stretching the tissue that helps the repair. With the Ilizarov method, the union is performed without limiting the daily activities of the patient, the joint functions are preserved, and the length is restored by correcting the curvature. Thanks to this technique, other structural and functional disorders such as closure of bone cavities and infection that may cause disability in the patient are eliminated, and shortness is also compensated.