High-pressure pulsatile lavage irrigation of fresh intraarticular fractures: Effectiveness at removing particulate matter from bone

Objective: To determine the effectiveness of high-pressure pulsatile lavage (HPL) versus bulb syringe (BS) irrigation in removing particulate matter from metaphyseal cancellous bone. Design: Four grams of particulate graphite Were placed in twenty distal femoral intraarticular osteotomies performed on New Zealand rabbit hind limbs. Two groups of ten specimens were then irrigated using either HPL or BS irrigation. A representative coronal section from each specimen was then prepared for histologic evaluation using 400x light microscopy. The number and distribution of graphite particles-present as small (less than 20 micrometers), medium (20 to 50 micrometers), and large (greater than 50 micrometers) aggregates-were then recorded. Results: The mean maximum perpendicular distance of graphite aggregates of all sizes from the osteotomy site was 12.4 millimeters (+/-SD 2.5) in the HPL group and 12.5 millimeters (+/-SD 2.0) in the BS group (p > 0.5). The mean number of aggregates within four 400x fields (1.08 millimeters) of the osteotomy site was 21.9 (+/-SD 22.0) in the HPL group and 21.8 (+/-SD 27.5) in the BS group (p > 0.5). The mean total number of aggregates in the area sun-eyed was 129.4 (+/-SD 79.6) in the HPL group and 137.5 (+/-SD 113.6) in the BS group (p > 0.5). Separate analyses controlling for aggregate size of the specimens also revealed no significant differences between HPL and BS irrigation. Conclusion: HPL and BS irrigation appear equally effective in removing particulate matter from metaphyseal cancellous bone in an intraarticular fracture model. Furthermore, HPL does not appear to drive particulate matter farther into metaphyseal cancellous bone than BS irrigation.