Important Information – What is an External Fixator?
For deformity correction and treatment of fractures, there are various treatment methods that the doctor should assess. The appropriate treatment of bone fracture should decrease pain and provide bone union. Your doctor has assessed the needs of your treatment and has decided that exyernal fixator is the best treatment method for you.
As the name implies, external fixator is a device that is fitted outside your body. The device (fixator) is linked to your bone through bone nails (pins). These pins pass through the skin and sometimes muscles in order to link the fixator to the bone. Two or more pins are used to keep the broken bone in place and to connect it with the fixator. Sometimes, wires are used in combination with or instead of the pins in order to preserve bone fragments.
Your doctor uses the external fixator to keep the broken bone in correct position, and to preserve its alignment until it has healed. The period passed with the fixator is approximately 6 weeks for simple fractures, but it can last as long as 1 year in complicated situations.
