FiberTape Cerclage in Canine Long Bone Fractures: Technique Description and Clinical Outcomes from a Short Case Series

Fracture repair with adjunctive FiberTape cerclage has been used successfully in human patients, but no reports of this technique exist in the veterinary literature. The purpose of this short case series is to describe the FiberTape placement technique and detail four cases and their outcomes. FiberTape cerclage can be placed under or over a plate and consists of a single or double wrap around the bone secured with a tensioned racking hitch knot and then secured with square knots. All cases presented for an oblique or spiral fracture of a pelvic limb long bone with varying degrees of comminution. Open reduction and internal fixation were performed using plate-screw constructs and at least one FiberTape cerclage in all cases. External coaptation was used postoperatively in two cases. There were no intraoperative complications. Minor postoperative complications occurred in 50% of dogs in the short-term period, and no major complications occurred. There were no implant-associated infections. At short-term follow-up, 75% of dogs had returned to acceptable or complete function. At mid- and long-term follow-up, all dogs had regained complete function of the operated limb. While it is unknown at this time if FiberTape provides superior outcomes compared with wire, there are potential advantages based on the human literature. It appears to be a safe alternative to metallic cerclage; however, additional biomechanical and clinical research is necessary to further determine any potential benefits of FiberTape cerclage.

Acknowledgment

None.

Publication History

Article published online:
15 July 2025