Aims

We evaluated a large database with mechanical failure of a single uncemented modular femoral component, used in revision hip arthroplasty, as the end point and compared them to a control group treated with the same implant. Patient- and implant-specific risk factors for implant failure were analyzed.

An analysis of the cement mantle obtained with the Exeter impaction allografting system at one centre showed that it was either deficient or absent in almost 47% of Gruen zones. We therefore examined the mantle obtained using this system at another hospital and compared the results with those from the CPT and Harris Precoat Systems at other centres. The surgical indications for the procedure and the patient details were broadly similar in all four hospitals. There was some variation in the frequency of use of cortical strut allografts, cerclage wires and wire mesh to supplement the impaction allograft. Analysis of the cement mantles showed that when uncertain Gruen zones were excluded, the incidence of zones with areas of absence or deficiency of the cement was 47% and 50%, respectively, for the two centres using the Exeter system, 21% for the CPT system and 18% for the Harris Precoat system. We measured the difference in size between the proximal allograft impactors and the definitive prosthesis for each system. The Exeter system impactors are shorter than the definitive prosthesis and taper sharply so that the cavity created is inadequate, especially distally. The CPT proximal impactors are considerably longer than the definitive prosthesis and are designed to give a mantle of approximately 2 mm medially and laterally and 1.5 mm anteriorly and posteriorly. The Harris Precoat proximal impactors allow for a mantle with a circumference of 0.75 mm in the smaller sizes and 1 mm in the larger. Many reports link the longevity of a cemented implant to the adequacy of the cement mantle. For this reason, femoral impaction systems require careful design to achieve a cement mantle which is uninterrupted in its length and adequate in its thickness. Our results suggest that some current systems require modification

Aims

The aim of this randomized trial was to compare the functional outcome of two different surgical approaches to the hip in patients with a femoral neck fracture treated with a hemiarthroplasty.

Aims

Metaphyseal tritanium cones can be used to manage the tibial bone loss commonly encountered at revision total knee arthroplasty (rTKA). Tibial stems provide additional fixation and are generally used in combination with cones. The aim of this study was to examine the role of the stems in the overall stability of tibial implants when metaphyseal cones are used for rTKA.

After open reduction for developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH), a pelvic or femoral osteotomy may be required to maintain a stable concentric reduction. We report the clinical and radiological outcome in 82 children (95 hips) with DDH treated by open reduction through an anterior approach in which a test of stability was used to assess the need for a concomitant osteotomy. The mean age at the time of surgery was 28 months (9 to 79) and at the latest follow-up, 17 years (12 to 25). All patients have been followed up until closure of the triradiate cartilage with a mean period of 15 years (8 to 23). At the time of open reduction before closure of the joint capsule, the position of maximum stability was assessed. A hip which required flexion with abduction for stability was considered to need an innominate osteotomy. If only internal rotation and abduction were required, an upper femoral derotational and varus osteotomy was carried out. For a ‘double-diameter’ acetabulum with anterolateral deficiency, a Pemberton-type osteotomy was used. A hip which was stable in the neutral position required no concomitant osteotomy. Overall, 86% of the patients have had a satisfactory radiological outcome (Severin groups I and II) with an incidence of 7% of secondary procedures for persistent dysplasia including one hip which redislocated. The results were better (p = 0.04) in children under the age of two years. Increased leg length on the affected side was associated with poor acetabular development and recurrence of joint dysplasia (p = 0.01). The incidence of postoperative avascular necrosis was 7%. In a further 18%, premature physeal arrest was noted during the adolescent growth spurt (Kalamchi-MacEwen types II and III). Both of these complications were also associated with recurrence of joint dysplasia (p = 0.01). Studies with a shorter follow-up are therefore likely to underestimate the proportion of poor radiological results

Aims

Total joint replacement (TJR) is a high-cost, high-volume procedure that impacts patients’ quality of life. Informed decisions are important for patients facing TJR. The quality of information provided by websites regarding TJR is highly variable. We aimed to measure the quality of TJR information online.

Introduction

Studies have addressed the issue of increasing prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal (MSK) pain among different occupations. However, contributing factors to MSK pain have not been fully investigated among orthopaedic surgeons. Thus, this study aimed to approximate the prevalence and predictors of MSK pain among Saudi orthopaedic surgeons working in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Aims

Tibiotalocalcaneal (TTC) fusion is used to treat a variety of conditions affecting the ankle and subtalar joint, including osteoarthritis (OA), Charcot arthropathy, avascular necrosis (AVN) of the talus, failed total ankle arthroplasty, and severe deformity. The prevalence of postoperative complications remains high due to the complexity of hindfoot disease seen in these patients. The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between preoperative conditions and postoperative complications in order to predict the outcome following primary TTC fusion.

1. The clinical features, diagnosis and treatment of osteomalacia are discussed in relation to thirty-seven recently recognised cases. It is suggested that this disease is not uncommon in elderly women, among whom it is liable to be confused with senile osteoporosis. Osteomalacia may be distinguished by, firstly, the history, in which persistent skeletal pain of long duration and muscular weakness are typical of osteomalacia, but not of osteoporosis in which transient episodes of pain usually associated with a fracture are more characteristic. There is a high incidence of previous gastric surgery in the osteomalacia patients. Secondly, the physical examination shows skeletal tenderness in osteomalacia but this is not a particular feature of osteoporosis. A shuffling "penguin gait" suggests osteomalacia. Thirdly, the biochemistry shows a low plasma calcium and phosphate, and raised alkaline phosphatase levels commonly in osteomalacia but these are usually normal in osteoporosis. Reduced twenty-four-hour urinary calcium is characteristic of osteomalacia but not of osteoporosis. Fourthly, radiology will show diminished bone density which is common to both diseases, but if the changes are more marked in the peripheral bones than in the axial skeleton osteomalacia is suggested; the opposite is typical of osteoporosis. Skeletal deformity without fracture suggests osteomalacia, as do stress fractures and greenstick fractures in the elderly. Looser's zones are diagnostic of osteomalacia in which they are the most important radiological feature. Finally, histology will show the presence of excess osteoid tissue in undecalcified sections of bone in osteomalacia. This may be the earliest and most sensitive index of the disease and biopsy is indicated in all doubtful cases. 2. The etiology is discussed and it is suggested that a dietary deficiency of vitamin D, limited exposure to sunlight and mild degrees of malabsorption may all be important either alone or in combination. No satisfactory explanation is offered for the predominant female incidence. 3. A practical method of treatment is given and the dangers of uncontrolled administration of vitamin D indicated. 4. Treatment of osteomalacia is rapidly and consistently successful, and well justifies a thorough screening of all elderly patients presenting with weakness, skeletal pain, pathological fractures or with diminished radiographic density of bone

Aims

Idiopathic scoliosis is the most common spinal deformity in adolescents and children. The aetiology of the disease remains unknown. Previous studies have shown a lower bone mineral density in individuals with idiopathic scoliosis, which may contribute to the causation. The aim of the present study was to compare bone health in adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis with controls.

Aims

To examine the relationship of sex steroid hormones with osteopenia in a nationally representative sample of men in the USA.

Aims

Although good clinical outcomes have been reported for monolithic tapered, fluted, titanium stems (TFTS), early results showed high rates of subsidence. Advances in stem design may mitigate these concerns. This study reports on the use of a current monolithic TFTS for a variety of indications.

1. Individuals who are normal and not osteoporotic seem to show retention of cortical bone at successive decades of life in proportion to the total lean body-mass. In patients with osteoporosis the weight of the skeleton decreases at a rate exceeding the physiological rate of atrophy of muscle, tendon and bone tissue that occurs with the time-dependent process of ageing. 2. Six patients representing the typical forms of osteoporosis commonly found in orthopaedic practice were investigated intensively over a period of three years and compared with individuals in whom there was no osteoporosis by studies of metabolic balance, Sr85 osteograms, and tetracycline deposition. 3. Studies of metabolic balance in patients with osteoporosis showed normal or negative calcium balances, but an equilibrium for the metabolism of nitrogen and phosphorus. Increased intake of calcium in the diet produced retention of calcium but not sufficient phosphorus, nitrogen or gain in weight to prove that the patient had made new bone and healed the osteoporosis. 4. Radio-isotope osteograms showed high, normal or low rates of change of uptake of Sr85 and the accretion rate was calculated to be normal or low in individuals with osteoporosis. High uptake of tetracycline by a small mass of bone tissue and by a relatively small percentage of the total number of osteons suggested that in an adult human being the calcium reserve in the skeleton is enormous. Thirty to 50 per cent of the total bone mass was sufficient to turn over 0·5 to 1·0 gramme, the amount of calcium utilised in twenty-four hours by the human adult. This was accomplished by structural or old bone throughout the entire skeleton, and by labile or newer bone located in approximately 10 per cent of the total number of Haversian cylinders or osteons. 5. Some of the unclosed or half-closed osteons were hyperactive in osteoporotic bones. In the process of remodelling of cortical bone a significant quantity of bone tissue was incompletely restored and there were, presumably as a result, intermittently large or small negative calcium balances. Osteoporosis may have been the cause, rather than the result, of the negative calcium balance. 6. The experimental and clinical literature of the past ten years, and studies on patients described in this critical review, were interpreted to indicate that prolonged calcium deficiency, castration, hyperadrenal corticoidism or a sedentary life may precipitate, accentuate and accelerate osteoporosis in individuals who are genetically predisposed to develop it. Sometimes high calcium intake or sex hormones, or both, may have slowed the rate of resorption but did not replace the deficit in cortical bone. 7. Further research is necessary to find the chief etiological factor and to produce the cure for this increasingly common disorder of the skeleton

Aims

Severe acetabular bone loss and pelvic discontinuity (PD) present particular challenges in revision total hip arthroplasty. To deal with such complex situations, cup-cage reconstruction has emerged as an option for treating this situation. We aimed to examine our success in using this technique for these anatomical problems.