Distal third clavicle (DTC) fractures are increasing in incidence. Due to their instability and nonunion risk, they prove difficult to treat. Several different operative options for DTC fixation are reported but current evidence suggests variability in operative fixation. Given the lack of consensus, our objective was to determine the current epidemiological trends in DTC as well as their management within the UK. A multicentre retrospective cohort collaborative study was conducted. All patients over the age of 18 with an isolated DTC fracture in 2019 were included. Demographic variables were recorded: age; sex; side of injury; mechanism of injury; modified Neer classification grading; operative technique; fracture union; complications; and subsequent procedures. Baseline characteristics were described for demographic variables. Categorical variables were expressed as frequencies and percentages.Aims
Methods
Arthroplasties of the elbow, including total elbow arthroplasty, radial head arthroplasty, distal humeral hemiarthroplasty, and radiocapitellar arthroplasty, are rarely undertaken. This scoping review aims to outline the current research in this area to inform the development of future research. A scoping review was undertaken adhering to the Joanna Briggs Institute guidelines using Medline, Embase, CENTRAL, and trial registries, limited to studies published between 1 January 1990 and 7 February 2021. Endnote software was used for screening and selection, and included randomized trials, non-randomized controlled trials, prospective and retrospective cohort studies, case-control studies, analytical cross-sectional studies, and case series of ten or more patients reporting the clinical outcomes of elbow arthroplasty. The results are presented as the number of types of studies, sample size, length of follow-up, clinical outcome domains and instruments used, sources of funding, and a narrative review.Aims
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Objectives. The objective of this study was to determine if combining variations in mixing technique of antibiotic-impregnated polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) cement with low frequency ultrasound (LFUS) improves antibiotic elution during the initial high phase (Phase I) and subsequent low phase (Phase II) while not diminishing mechanical
Ankle fracture is one of the most common musculoskeletal injuries sustained in the UK. Many patients experience pain and physical impairment, with the consequences of the fracture and its management lasting for several months or even years. The broad aim of ankle fracture treatment is to maintain the alignment of the joint while the fracture heals, and to reduce the risks of problems, such as stiffness. More severe injuries to the ankle are routinely treated surgically. However, even with advances in surgery, there remains a risk of complications; for patients experiencing these, the associated loss of function and quality of life (Qol) is considerable. Non-surgical treatment is an alternative to surgery and involves applying a cast carefully shaped to the patient’s ankle to correct and maintain alignment of the joint with the key benefit being a reduction in the frequency of common complications of surgery. The main potential risk of non-surgical treatment is a loss of alignment with a consequent reduction in ankle function. This study aims to determine whether ankle function, four months after treatment, in patients with unstable ankle fractures treated with close contact casting is not worse than in those treated with surgical intervention, which is the current standard of care. This trial is a pragmatic, multicentre, randomized non-inferiority clinical trial with an embedded pilot, and with 12 months clinical follow-up and parallel economic analysis. A surveillance study using routinely collected data will be performed annually to five years post-treatment. Adult patients, aged 60 years and younger, with unstable ankle fractures will be identified in daily trauma meetings and fracture clinics and approached for recruitment prior to their treatment. Treatments will be performed in trauma units across the UK by a wide range of surgeons. Details of the surgical treatment, including how the operation is done, implant choice, and the recovery programme afterwards, will be at the discretion of the treating surgeon. The non-surgical treatment will be close-contact casting performed under anaesthetic, a technique which has gained in popularity since the publication of the Ankle Injury Management (AIM) trial. In all, 890 participants (445 per group) will be randomly allocated to surgical or non-surgical treatment. Data regarding ankle function, QoL, complications, and healthcare-related costs will be collected at eight weeks, four and 12 months, and then annually for five years following treatment. The primary outcome measure is patient-reported ankle function at four months from treatment.Aims
Methods
Aims. The aims of this study were to assess the exposure and preservation of the abductor mechanism during primary total hip arthroplasty (THA) using the posterior approach, and to evaluate gluteus maximus transfer to restore abductor function of chronically avulsed gluteus medius and minimus. Patients and Methods. A total of 519 patients (525 hips) underwent primary THA using the posterior approach, between 2009 and 2013. The patients were reviewed preoperatively and at two and five years postoperatively. Three patients had mild acute laceration of the gluteus medius caused by retraction. A total of 54 patients had mild chronic damage to the tendon (not caused by exposure), which was repaired with sutures through drill holes in the greater trochanter. A total of 41 patients had severe damage with major avulsion of the gluteus medius and minimus muscles, which was repaired with sutures through bone and a gluteus maximus flap transfer to the greater trochanter. Results. Abductor
The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to gather epidemiological information on selected musculoskeletal injuries and to provide pooled injury-specific incidence rates. PubMed (National Library of Medicine) and Scopus (Elsevier) databases were searched. Articles were eligible for inclusion if they reported incidence rate (or count with population at risk), contained data on adult population, and were written in English language. The number of cases and population at risk were collected, and the pooled incidence rates (per 100,000 person-years) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated by using either a fixed or random effects model.Aims
Methods
The December 2022 Research Roundup360 looks at: Halicin is effective against
Several studies have reported that patients presenting during the evening or weekend have poorer quality healthcare. Our objective was to examine how timely surgery for patients with severe open tibial fracture varies by day and time of presentation and by type of hospital. This cohort study included patients with severe open tibial fractures from the Trauma Audit and Research Network (TARN). Provision of prompt surgery (debridement within 12 hours and soft-tissue coverage in 72 hours) was examined, using multivariate logistic regression to derive adjusted risk ratios (RRs). Time was categorized into three eight-hour intervals for each day of the week. The models were adjusted for treatment in a major trauma centre (MTC), sex, age, year of presentation, injury severity score, injury mechanism, and number of operations each patient received.Aims
Methods
This study aimed to investigate the estimated change in primary and revision arthroplasty rate in the Netherlands and Denmark for hips, knees, and shoulders during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 (COVID-period). Additional points of focus included the comparison of patient characteristics and hospital type (2019 vs COVID-period), and the estimated loss of quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) and impact on waiting lists. All hip, knee, and shoulder arthroplasties (2014 to 2020) from the Dutch Arthroplasty Register, and hip and knee arthroplasties from the Danish Hip and Knee Arthroplasty Registries, were included. The expected number of arthroplasties per month in 2020 was estimated using Poisson regression, taking into account changes in age and sex distribution of the general Dutch/Danish population over time, calculating observed/expected (O/E) ratios. Country-specific proportions of patient characteristics and hospital type were calculated per indication category (osteoarthritis/other elective/acute). Waiting list outcomes including QALYs were estimated by modelling virtual waiting lists including 0%, 5% and 10% extra capacity.Aims
Methods
The conventionally described mechanism of distal biceps tendon rupture (DBTR) is of a ‘considerable extension force suddenly applied to a resisting, actively flexed forearm’. This has been commonly paraphrased as an ‘eccentric contracture to a flexed elbow’. Both definitions have been frequently used in the literature with little objective analysis or citation. The aim of the present study was to use video footage of real time distal biceps ruptures to revisit and objectively define the mechanism of injury. An online search identified 61 videos reporting a DBTR. Videos were independently reviewed by three surgeons to assess forearm rotation, elbow flexion, shoulder position, and type of muscle contraction being exerted at the time of rupture. Prospective data on mechanism of injury and arm position was also collected concurrently for 22 consecutive patients diagnosed with an acute DBTR in order to corroborate the video analysis.Aims
Methods
To test the hypothesis that reseeded anterior cruciate ligament (ACL)-derived cells have a better ability to survive and integrate into tendon extracellular matrix (ECM) and accelerate the ligamentization process, compared to adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADMSCs). Acellularized tibialis allograft tendons were used. Tendons were randomly reseeded with ACL-derived cells or ADMSCs. ACL-derived cells were harvested and isolated from remnants of ruptured ACLs during reconstruction surgery and cultured at passage three. Cell suspensions (200 µl) containing 2 × 106 ACL-derived cells or ADMSCs were prepared for the purpose of reseeding. At days 1, 3, and 7 post-reseeding, graft composites were assessed for repopulation with histological and immunohistochemical analysis. Matrix protein contents and gene expression levels were analyzed.Aims
Methods
To analyze the short-term outcome of two types of total wrist arthroplasty (TWA) in terms of wrist function, migration, and periprosthetic bone behaviour. A total of 40 patients suffering from non-rheumatoid wrist arthritis were enrolled in a randomized controlled trial comparing the ReMotion and Motec TWAs. Patient-rated and functional outcomes, radiological changes, blood metal ion levels, migration measured by model-based radiostereometric analysis (RSA), bone mineral density (BMD) measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), complications, loosening, and revision rates at two years were compared.Aims
Methods
Aims. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of
sarcopenia and to examine its impact on patients with degenerative
lumbar spinal stenosis (DLSS). Patients and Methods. This case-control study included two groups: one group consisting
of patients with DLSS and a second group of control subjects without
low back or neck pain and related leg pain. Five control cases were
randomly selected and matched by age and gender (n = 77 cases and
n = 385 controls) for each DLSS case. Appendicular muscle mass,
hand-grip
The evidence demonstrating the superiority of early MRI has led to increased use of MRI in clinical pathways for acute wrist trauma. The aim of this study was to describe the radiological characteristics and the inter-observer reliability of a new MRI based classification system for scaphoid injuries in a consecutive series of patients. We identified 80 consecutive patients with acute scaphoid injuries at one centre who had presented within four weeks of injury. The radiographs and MRI scans were assessed by four observers, two radiologists, and two hand surgeons, using both pre-existing classifications and a new MRI based classification tool, the Oxford Scaphoid MRI Assessment Rating Tool (OxSMART). The OxSMART was used to categorize scaphoid injuries into three grades: contusion (grade 1); unicortical fracture (grade 2); and complete bicortical fracture (grade 3).Aims
Methods
Factors associated with high mortality rates in geriatric hip fracture patients are frequently unmodifiable. Time to surgery, however, might be a modifiable factor of interest to optimize clinical outcomes after hip fracture surgery. This study aims to determine the influence of postponement of surgery due to non-medical reasons on clinical outcomes in acute hip fracture surgery. This observational cohort study enrolled consecutively admitted patients with a proximal femoral fracture, for which surgery was performed between 1 January 2018 and 11 January 2021 in two level II trauma teaching hospitals. Patients with medical indications to postpone surgery were excluded. A total of 1,803 patients were included, of whom 1,428 had surgery < 24 hours and 375 had surgery ≥ 24 hours after admission.Aims
Methods
The aim of this study was to develop and evaluate machine-learning-based computerized adaptive tests (CATs) for the Oxford Hip Score (OHS), Oxford Knee Score (OKS), Oxford Shoulder Score (OSS), and the Oxford Elbow Score (OES) and its subscales. We developed CAT algorithms for the OHS, OKS, OSS, overall OES, and each of the OES subscales, using responses to the full-length questionnaires and a machine-learning technique called regression tree learning. The algorithms were evaluated through a series of simulation studies, in which they aimed to predict respondents’ full-length questionnaire scores from only a selection of their item responses. In each case, the total number of items used by the CAT algorithm was recorded and CAT scores were compared to full-length questionnaire scores by mean, SD, score distribution plots, Pearson’s correlation coefficient, intraclass correlation (ICC), and the Bland-Altman method. Differences between CAT scores and full-length questionnaire scores were contextualized through comparison to the instruments’ minimal clinically important difference (MCID).Aims
Methods
Studies of infant hip development to date have been limited by considering only the changes in appearance of a single ultrasound slice (Graf’s standard plane). We used 3D ultrasound (3DUS) to establish maturation curves of normal infant hip development, quantifying variation by age, sex, side, and anteroposterior location in the hip. We analyzed 3DUS scans of 519 infants (mean age 64 days (6 to 111 days)) presenting at a tertiary children’s hospital for suspicion of developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH). Hips that did not require ultrasound follow-up or treatment were classified as ‘typically developing’. We calculated traditional DDH indices like α angle (αSP), femoral head coverage (FHCSP), and several novel indices from 3DUS like the acetabular contact angle (ACA) and osculating circle radius (OCR) using custom software.Aims
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Objectives. All-suture anchors are increasingly used in rotator cuff repair procedures. Potential benefits include decreased bone damage. However, there is limited published evidence for the relative
We aim to explore the potential technologies for monitoring and assessment of patients undergoing arthroplasty by examining selected literature focusing on the technology currently available and reflecting on possible future development and application. The reviewed literature indicates a large variety of different hardware and software, widely available and used in a limited manner, to assess patients’ performance. There are extensive opportunities to enhance and integrate the systems which are already in existence to develop patient-specific pathways for rehabilitation. Cite this article:
