I will list the potential complications in descending severity
Fat embolism
Happens, and there is no cure, but is almost always caused by a surgical error -- for example poor osteotomy or not connecting a ventilation pipe. Make sure your surgeon takes this seriously. Embolisms are the only life-threatening complication.
Coagulant-induced embolisms/thrombosis
This is when your blood itself thickens to cause blockages. These can be prevented by religiously taking your blood thinners, drinking a lot of water. Being fat or immoble after surgery also increases your risk blood clots.
Non-union
Non-union of bones is very rare, and occurance of which will likely lead to another surgery. Doing tibias (less blood flow) being old/female (slow bone growth), and not walking (slows consolidation) all increases your chance of non-union. So do femur, be young and walk as much as possible to prevent non-union.
Infection
Likely the most common serious complication after surgery. The risk is very low at advanced hospitals in developed countries. Developing countries tend to be much more lax around maintaining steril environments. Using external fixiators significantly increases the likihood of infection. Surface infections are easy to treat with antibiotics. Infections that run deep into the bone will require additional surgeries to cut away.
Nerve Damage
Surgical nerve damage occur when your surgeon is incompetent enough to cut a nerve during surgery. This can be completely prevented by not cheapening out on a surgeon. External fixiators also run higher risk of damaging nerves. Lengthening too quickly is another cause for nerve damage. These are semi-permanent, meaning that while nerves do heal, they never recover to their original state.
Widelegs/Duckass
This is something almost everyone except the most dedicated stretchers will get during lengthening. However, it is almost always resolvable with enough stretching. There are four important muscle groups: hip flexors, quadriceps, hamstrings, and TFL (connected to the IT Band) that you need to stretch. Wide legs is usually caused by inadequate stretching of the TFL and hip flexors which causes the ITB to pull your legs apart. Duckass or anterior pelvis tilt is caused by tight hip flexors/upper quads and weak glutes. Focus on your hip flexors and TFL, as quads/hamstrings are relatively easier to stretch.
Abornomal Gait
If you're gait is abnormal, it is almost always due to weak gluteous muscles. You lose your butt almost completely throughout lengthening because you are walking less and your muscles are so tight, that they are literally blocking the contractions needed to maintain muscle mass. Weak glutes cause you to tilt and take smaller steps when walking as you don't have the strength to keep your pelvis straight. This complication is almost always resolvable with strength training.
Actionable Conclusion
Blood clots, infections and nerve damage can almost always be prevented by choosing a reputable surgeon in a developed country. Not only are they more competent on the surgical table, they can also give you better diagnosis of potential serious complications before they come serious.
Non-union, widelegs/duckass, and gait can be overcome by being young, and putting in the effort to stretch/walk as much as humanly possible. This is also what makes weightbearing nails superior to non-weightbearing nails.
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Topic: Listed complications vs most common ones in practice internal femur? (Read 392 times)