A Phemister graft is a type of bone graft which uses bone tissue harvested from the patient to treat slow-healing, or delayed union bone fractures.[1] Thus, it is a form of autotransplantation. Typically, the tissue used in the graft is cancellous bone harvested from the patient's Iliac crest and laid in strips across the fracture site.[2][3] The use of the patient's living bone stimulates osteogenesis, the growth of bones.[4]
| Phemister graft | |
|---|---|
 Illustration of an autograft harvested from iliac crest | |
| Specialty | Orthopedic surgery |
The Phemister graft was first described in a paper published in 1914 by American surgeon Dallas B. Phemister, and it was named for him.[5] Its efficacy was confirmed the same year by Canadian surgeons William Gallie and D.E. Robertson.[5] In 1949, Phemister described a variation on the technique where the graft tissue was inserted into the base of the greater trochanter and femoral neck in order to treat osteonecrosis.[6] A 1967 study found the original Phemister graft to be more effective than the cortical sliding graft and cancellous graft for fractures of the tibia.[7]
The Phemister graft is preferred when a fracture demonstrates delayed union, meaning the fracture is slow to heal.[4] Due to internal forces, the procedure is not recommended for the femur, humerus, or radius bones.[8] It can be used for areas of bone which have undergone the first two stages of osteonecrosis.[9] For example, in young patients, or those with sickle cell disease, it can serve as an effective long-term treatment for osteonecrosis, as long as it is performed in the early stages.[10] In this instances, it is a more conservative treatment, and in the long term can postpone the need for a hip replacement.[11] In the later stages of osteonecrosis (3 through 6), where the bone has begun to collapse or has fully collapsed, the Phemister graft is not recommended.[9][12]