FITBONE^® – the motorized, fully implantable, intramedullary lengthening nail from WITTENSTEIN intens – was one of the highlights at this year's International Limb Lengthening and Reconstruction Society (ILLRS) Congress in Miami, Florida / USA. Both the stimulating discussions at the parallel industry exhibition and the large number of surgeons who signed up for the FITBONE^® Symposium show what a big impact it made.

FITBONE^® provides feedback on treatment progress

FITBONE^® is a fully implantable, intramedullary lengthening nail for compensating limb length discrepancies; if necessary, the surgeon can simultaneously correct limb length discrepancies of the femur and / or tibia as well as axial and torsional deformities in one surgery. Owing to the mature surgical technique, excellent cosmetic results are achieved with only a minimally invasive procedure. In contrast to external fixators, FITBONE^® unites high wearing and treatment comfort for the patient with significantly reduced pain throughout the distraction phase. The drive unit in the intramedullary lengthening nail is controlled by each patient in the comfort of their own home using a handy external control set. FITBONE^® allows the complete distraction process to be monitored – a feature that is particularly appreciated by surgeons and patients alike since no other system in the world provides similar triple feedback. The Control Set not only flashes during the distraction treatment ("activation") and shows the number of impulses sent to the implanted receiver. The sound of the drive unit is also audible through a stethoscope, so that distraction sequences are fully transparent for both the surgeon and the patient.

Keen interest in the FITBONE^® Symposium

Several international FITBONE^® users were invited to the FITBONE^® Symposium held during the ILLRS Congress to report on their positive experience with the planning and execution of the surgical procedure according to Prof. Baumgart and elaborate on the high level of treatment and patient safety FITBONE^® affords. They additionally demonstrated custom-made variants of the intramedullary nail for treating indications such as short residual limbs, bone defects or segment transport following tumour resections and explained how FITBONE^® can be integrated in non-invasively lengthened MUTARS® growing prostheses.

FITBONE^® was also the object of many interesting discussions outside the symposium. FITBONE^® commands an important technology and treatment lead when it comes to correcting leg length discrepancies: miniaturized for implantation in a minimally invasive procedure, easy to handle, largely painless treatment, no risk of infection and perfect cosmetic result.

Photo:
1. The FITBONE^® intramedullary lengthening nail from WITTENSTEIN intens is only implanted by specially trained surgeons.