Objective To study the method and effect of the vascularized fibular combined with iliac grafting after the tumor extensive resection for giant cell tumor of the bone around the knee. Methods Twenty-five patients with giantcell tumor of the bone around the knee were reviewed, who had been admitted to our hospital from October 1996 to November 2002, including 17 patients undergoing the fibular and iliac transplantation with the vessels anastomosed afterthe extensive excision of the bone tumor. By the surgicallystaged manner of Enneking, all the patients were grouped in the stage of ⅠA; by the Campanicci’s radioactive image staging, 11 patients were grouped in stage Ⅰ, 5 in stage Ⅱ, and 1 in stage Ⅲ; by the Jaffe’s pathological staging, 9 patients were grouped in stage Ⅰ, 7 in stage Ⅱ, and 1 in stage Ⅲ. Of the patients, 9 were treated by the vascularized fibular combined with iliac grafting in the proximal tibia after the tumor extensive resection, and 8 were treated by the distal femur reconstruction by the operation. The following items were also analyzed: postoperativeinfection, growth of the bone graft, rate of local recurrence, tumor metastasis, and bone death. The function of the knee joint was evaluated. Results According the follow-up of the 17 patients for 26-87 months (mean, 54 months), all thebone graft healed well within 75-120 days (mean, 93 days) after operation. Twopatients had a local recurrence and 3 had a mildly-narrowed joint. The flexion and extension function of the knee joint recovered, with a range of motion of thereconstructed distal femur of 80°-105° (mean, 96°) while the proximal tibia had a range of motion of 90-120° (mean, 110°). The functional outcome wasexcellent in 11 patients, good in 3 patients, fair in 1 patient, and bad in 2 patients,with a total satisfactory rate of 82.4%. Conclusion The vascularized fibular combined with iliac grafting after the tumor extensive resection to treat giant cell tumor of the bone around the knee has advantages of complete resection of the tumor and well-restored or reconstructed structure and function of the knee joint.
Objective To analyze the clinical features, treatment methods, and recurrence factors of giant cell tumor of the bone and to investigate the surgical therapy choice for the tumor around the knees. Methods Thirty-eight patients (13 males and 25 females; average age 31.1 years, range 14-59 years) withgiant cell tumor of the bone were treated and followed up from January 1993 to January 2005. The patients’ diagnoses were established by biopsies of the specimens from the preoperative punctures or operations. The clinical features and the radiological and laboratory data from the 38 patients were reviewed. By the Campanicci’s radiological grading system, 5 patients were in Grade Ⅰ, 22 in GradeⅡ, and 11 in Grade Ⅲ. By the Enneking classification, 9 patients were in Grade Ⅰ, 21 in Grade Ⅱ, and 8 in Grade Ⅲ. By the Jaffe’s classification, 7 patients were in Grade Ⅰ, 24 in Grade Ⅱ, and 7 in Grade Ⅲ. The intralesional excision (curettage) with the bone grafting was performed on 4 patients; the curettagewith some adjuvant treatments (highspeed burring, phenol, alcohol, cement, hydrogen peroxide, 50％ ZnCl2, 3% iodine tincture, or bone cement) was used in 26 patients; and resection of the whole tumor was performed on 8 patients. Results The follow-up of the 38 patients for 12-144 months (average, 67 months) revealedthat giant cell tumor of the bone was found around the knees in 29 of the 38 patients (13 at the distal femur, 16 at the proximal tibia), at the proximal femurin 2, at the proximal ulna in 2, at the distal radius in 2, at the sacroiliac area in 2, and at lumbar spine in 1. Of the 38 patients, 4 had a recurrence after simple curettage, 8 had no recurrence after resection of the whole tumor, and 8 of the remaining 26 patients had a recurrence after curettage with some adjutant treatments. Five patients in Grade Ⅰ (Campanicci’s radiological grading) hadno recurrence, 6 of the 11 patients in Grade Ⅱ had a recurrence, and 6 of the 11 patients in Grade Ⅲ had a recurrence. Two of the 9 patients in Grade Ⅰ (Enneking grading) had a recurrence, 6 of the 21 patients in Grade Ⅱ had a recurrence, and 4 of the patients in Grade Ⅲ had a recurrence; all the recurrent lesions were around the knee, with a duration of the recurrence ranging from 2 months to 36 months (average,14.3 months). Of the patients with the recurrence, 12 underwent reoperations (8 by the total resection of the recurrent tumor, 4 by the curettage with adjuvant treatments), and there was no recurrence after the reoperation. Conclusion Giant cell tumor of the bone usually recurs around the knee joint, especially at the proximal tibia, usually graded as Grade Ⅱ or Ⅲ bythe Campanicci’s radiological grading system. Simple curettage has a higher recurrence rate; therefore, extensive curettage and resection of the lesions combined with some adjuvant treatments after the correct diagnosis can beused to reduce the high recurrence rate of giant cell tumor of the bone.