Floating Knee and New Classification

The term “floating knee” is used to describe the flail knee separated from the ipsilateral hip and ankle. Its various forms are expressed in the classification framework. The objective of this research was to review the authenticity of previous floating knee classifications. In a retrospective study, 74 patients (64 males, 10 females) with floating knee, the epidemiology of this trauma and the prevalence of its various kinds of fractures were studied in relation to the five existing classifications. The study was done in two educational trauma centers in Mashhad, in a two year period at one and 3 year period at the other hospital. The mean age of the patients was 25.6 years. In classification of patients, there was some non-conformity with the previous classifications. In previous classifications there are some weaknesses such as not to have location for open fractures, cases with both injured epiphyses and cases that have more than two fractures around the knee. In the new classification ''the floating knee'' has been divided into three types: Conventional floating knee (A,B,C), Complex knee fractures (D,E) and variant floating knee (the hip and ankle ipsilateral fractures). Each subgroup is marked with one of the numerical codes (0,I,II) which determines the open or closed status of the fracture(s). In this research 12% of injuries were complex knee fractures. In the new classification, fractures’ types are classified as relatively comprehensive and simple and are coded.