Twenty-three cases of severeopen commiunted fractures of thetibia and fibula were treated byexternal skelatal fixation and skinflaps.The skin defects were repairedby the facio-cutaneous flaps, themusculo-cutanecus flap of the gast-rocnemius muscle or the vascularizedosteo-cutaneous flap of the ilium.Seventeen cases were followed-upfor an average of 13 months.Clinicalbony union was obtained in anaverage of 110 days. The authorsrecommended that it was a satisfact-ory method of traetment if a thoroughdebridment, reduction and fixation of the fracture by external skeletal fixation and repaire of wound and the skin defects by tissues flaps were carried out.
