Max was rushed to the surgery by his worried owners having been hit by a car. He was in considerable pain and shock so he immediately received intravenous pain relief and fluids. Once Max was stable we were able to radiograph his injuries, revealing a nasty compound (many pieces) fracture of his femur (thigh bone), with less serious fractures of his pelvis.
Because of the multiple pieces of bone involved in the fracture the repair combined an intramedullary pin (pin down the middle of the bone) ‘tied in’ to an external fixator (external frame) to give a strong and rigid support to the fracture pieces to allow healing. The most important aspect in achieving a successful fracture repair in these cases is to preserve the blood supply to all the individual pieces of bone, rather than achieving perfect re-alignment of the bone shaft. Max’s fracture healed very well and we removed the pin and frame 6 weeks later.
Luckily Max had received a microchip 2 weeks before his accident and the microchips that we use (Tracer Advance®) entitle owners to an automatic 4 weeks of free insurance from Pet Plan™. The owners were relieved to discover that their bill was therefore covered and now appreciate the importance of pet insurance!
For more information about pet insurance please ask us for advice.
