Cortical porosis under plates used for the fixation of fractures is
often attributed to the interference of the plates with cortical perfusion,
resulting in necrosis, which in turn induces remodeling. To our knowledge,
no histomorphometric studies have been published that demonstrate the
correlation between cortical necrosis and porosis. The objective of this
study was to test the hypothesis that cortical necrosis is related to
changes associated with porosis. Standard and railed plates were applied to
intact femora in ten dogs. Histomorphometric studies done at eight and
twenty-four weeks after insertion of the plate failed to show a significant
positive correlation between necrosis and porosis irrespective of the type
of plate used. Porosis was always greater in the inner cortical sector,
where no increased necrosis was noted, than in the outer cortical sector,
where necrosis was present.