Selection of Steel Components in Orthopedic Surgeries

I think the further operations is due to weakness in the bone and not the part itself. The metal parts are only there for stability to allow bone growth which is the real repairs. The metal part may be over designed by a great margin.

Osteoporosis or something else may be the real cause because bones are weak and does not grow fast enough.

My friend a Sr.Citizen slipped in bathroom , a common accident. He broke his leg bone, it was fixed with plate and 4 Nos. screws. Latter on two screws sheared off and he could not recover until second operation.

I don't think a patient is supposed to walk without crutches until the bone has healed.

My wife had her leg broken last year and just could not get her crutch stroke right. She was resting the good leg. (It eventually took 7 months to heal)

Good point. A person with a broken leg should only move around in a wheelchair until the bone is strong enough to support the body weight with crutches. Even then, they'll still require physiotherapy to strengthen their muscles until their legs are strong enough to enable them to walk. They shouldn't be walking unaided until then.

History is like this the patient who had recovered after six months started getting pain as two of the screws had broken off and were causing damage to bone and muscles. If screws had remained as it is then then problem would not have arisen.

O.P.: "My question is : Are doctors knowledgeable about selecting proper hardware depending on the weight of the patients and load bearing capacity of the steel components?"

Answer: "To varying degrees, yes!"

I recently had a titanium plate and 4 screws planted in me. I have been told that the purveyors of medical grade hardware have (frequently) remained in the O.R. with surgeons to help them make the most suitable screw/pin/whatever selection for a particular patient.

One would think that such decisions ought to be made PRIOR TO the day of the procedure, based on CT / MRI scan results. Unfortunately, the science isn't yet perfected, and as such, things must sometimes be changed "on-the-fly", while the patient is opened-up.

I'd feel better with a doctor who stayed as close to 100% current as possible in the biological aspects of his surgical/medical practice, and left the "cutting-edge-hardware" decisions to the pros who make it and distribute it.

Just my 2-cents-worth ~ Regards to all!