Aims. Proper preoperative planning benefits fracture reduction, fixation, and stability in tibial
Aims. To investigate health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of older adults (aged ≥ 60 years) after tibial
Aims. Our objective was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis, to establish whether differences arise in clinical outcomes between autologous and synthetic bone grafts in the operative management of tibial
Aims. We assessed the value of the Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS) in the prediction of adverse outcome after hip fracture. Methods. Of 1,577 consecutive patients aged > 65 years with a fragility hip fracture admitted to one institution, for whom there were complete data, 1,255 (72%) were studied. Clinicians assigned CFS scores on admission. Audit personnel routinely prospectively completed the Standardised Audit of Hip Fracture in Europe form, including the following outcomes: 30-day survival; in-hospital complications; length of acute hospital stay; and new institutionalization. The relationship between the CFS scores and outcomes was examined graphically and the visual interpretations were tested statistically. The predictive values of the CFS and Nottingham Hip Fracture Score (NHFS) to predict 30-day mortality were compared using receiver operating characteristic area under the curve (AUC) analysis. Results. Significant non-linear associations between CFS and outcomes were observed. Risk of death within 30 days rose linearly for CFS 1 to 5, but
This is a multicentre, prospective assessment of a proportion of the overall orthopaedic trauma caseload of the UK. It investigates theatre capacity, cancellations, and time to surgery in a group of hospitals that is representative of the wider population. It identifies barriers to effective practice and will inform system improvements. Data capture was by collaborative approach. Patients undergoing procedures from 22 August 2022 and operated on before 31 October 2022 were included. Arm one captured weekly caseload and theatre capacity. Arm two concerned patient and injury demographics, and time to surgery for specific injury groups.Aims
Methods
Ankle fractures are common injuries and the third most common fragility fracture. In all, 40% of ankle fractures in the frail are open and represent a complex clinical scenario, with morbidity and mortality rates similar to hip fracture patients. They have a higher risk of complications, such as wound infections, malunion, hospital-acquired infections, pressure sores, veno-thromboembolic events, and significant sarcopaenia from prolonged bed rest. A modified Delphi method was used and a group of experts with a vested interest in best practice were invited from the British Foot and Ankle Society (BOFAS), British Orthopaedic Association (BOA), Orthopaedic Trauma Society (OTS), British Association of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgeons (BAPRAS), British Geriatric Society (BGS), and the British Limb Reconstruction Society (BLRS).Aims
Methods
To report the outcomes of patients with a fracture of the distal tibia who were treated with intramedullary nail versus locking plate in the five years after participating in the Fixation of Distal Tibia fracture (FixDT) trial. The FixDT trial reported the results for 321 patients randomized to nail or locking plate fixation in the first 12 months after their injury. In this follow-up study, we report the results of 170 of the original participants who agreed to be followed up until five years. Participants reported their Disability Rating Index (DRI) and health-related quality of life (EuroQol five-dimension three-level questionnaire) annually by self-reported questionnaire. Further surgical interventions related to the fracture were also recorded.Aims
Methods
National hip fracture registries audit similar aspects of care but there is variation in the actual data collected; these differences restrict international comparison, benchmarking, and research. The Fragility Fracture Network (FFN) published a revised minimum common dataset (MCD) in 2022 to improve consistency and interoperability. Our aim was to assess compatibility of existing registries with the MCD. We compared 17 hip fracture registries covering 20 countries (Argentina; Australia and New Zealand; China; Denmark; England, Wales, and Northern Ireland; Germany; Holland; Ireland; Japan; Mexico; Norway; Pakistan; the Philippines; Scotland; South Korea; Spain; and Sweden), setting each of these against the 20 core and 12 optional fields of the MCD.Aims
Methods
In the Netherlands, general practitioners (GPs) can request radiographs. After a radiologically diagnosed fracture, patients are immediately referred to the emergency department (ED). Since 2020, the Máxima Medical Centre has implemented a new care pathway for minor trauma patients, referring them immediately to the traumatology outpatient clinic (OC) instead of the ED. We investigated whether this altered care pathway leads to a reduction in healthcare consumption and concomitant costs. In this retrospective cohort study, patients were included if a radiologist diagnosed a fracture on a radiograph requested by the GP from August to October 2019 (control group) or August to October 2020 (research group), on weekdays between 8.30 am and 4.00 pm. The study compared various outcomes between groups, including the length of the initial hospital visit, frequency of hospital visits and medical procedures, extent of imaging, and healthcare expenses.Aims
Methods
Frailty greatly increases the risk of adverse outcome of trauma in older people. Frailty detection tools appear to be unsuitable for use in traumatically injured older patients. We therefore aimed to develop a method for detecting frailty in older people sustaining trauma using routinely collected clinical data. We analyzed prospectively collected registry data from 2,108 patients aged ≥ 65 years who were admitted to a single major trauma centre over five years (1 October 2015 to 31 July 2020). We divided the sample equally into two, creating derivation and validation samples. In the derivation sample, we performed univariate analyses followed by multivariate regression, starting with 27 clinical variables in the registry to predict Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS; range 1 to 9) scores. Bland-Altman analyses were performed in the validation cohort to evaluate any biases between the Nottingham Trauma Frailty Index (NTFI) and the CFS.Aims
Methods
To evaluate if, for orthopaedic trainees, additional cadaveric simulation training or standard training alone yields superior radiological and clinical outcomes in patients undergoing dynamic hip screw (DHS) fixation or hemiarthroplasty for hip fracture. This was a preliminary, pragmatic, multicentre, parallel group randomized controlled trial in nine secondary and tertiary NHS hospitals in England. Researchers were blinded to group allocation. Overall, 40 trainees in the West Midlands were eligible: 33 agreed to take part and were randomized, five withdrew after randomization, 13 were allocated cadaveric training, and 15 were allocated standard training. The intervention was an additional two-day cadaveric simulation course. The control group received standard on-the-job training. Primary outcome was implant position on the postoperative radiograph: tip-apex distance (mm) (DHS) and leg length discrepancy (mm) (hemiarthroplasty). Secondary clinical outcomes were procedure time, length of hospital stay, acute postoperative complication rate, and 12-month mortality. Procedure-specific secondary outcomes were intraoperative radiation dose (for DHS) and postoperative blood transfusion requirement (hemiarthroplasty).Aims
Methods
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
Objectives. The monitoring of fracture healing is a complex process. Typically, successive radiographs are performed and an emerging calcification of the fracture area is evaluated. The aim of this study was to investigate whether different bone healing patterns can be distinguished using a telemetric instrumented femoral internal plate fixator. Materials and Methods. An electronic telemetric system was developed to assess bone healing mechanically. The system consists of a telemetry module which is applied to an internal locking plate fixator, an external reader device, a sensor for measuring externally applied load and a laptop computer with processing software. By correlation between externally applied load and load measured in the implant, the elasticity of the osteosynthesis is calculated. The elasticity decreases with ongoing consolidation of a fracture or nonunion and is an appropriate parameter for the course of bone healing. At our centre, clinical application has been performed in 56 patients suffering nonunion or fracture of the femur. Results. A total of 39 cases of clinical application were reviewed for this study. In total, four different types of healing curves were observed: fast healing; slow healing;
It is imperative to understand the risks of operating on urgent cases during the COVID-19 (SARS-Cov-2 virus) pandemic for clinical decision-making and medical resource planning. The primary aim was to determine the mortality risk and associated variables when operating on urgent cases during the COVID-19 pandemic. The secondary objective was to assess differences in the outcome of patients treated between sites treating COVID-19 and a separate surgical site. The primary outcome measure was 30-day mortality. Secondary measures included complications of surgery, COVID-19 infection, and length of stay. Multiple variables were assessed for their contribution to the 30-day mortality. In total, 433 patients were included with a mean age of 65 years; 45% were male, and 90% were Caucasian.Aims
Methods
This study aimed to compare the change in health-related quality
of life of patients receiving a traditional cemented monoblock Thompson
hemiarthroplasty compared with a modern cemented modular polished-taper
stemmed hemiarthroplasty for displaced intracapsular hip fractures. This was a pragmatic, multicentre, multisurgeon, two-arm, parallel
group, randomized standard-of-care controlled trial. It was embedded
within the WHiTE Comprehensive Cohort Study. The sample size was
964 patients. The setting was five National Health Service Trauma
Hospitals in England. A total of 964 patients over 60 years of age who
required hemiarthroplasty of the hip between February 2015 and March
2016 were included. A standardized measure of health outcome, the
EuroQol (EQ-5D-5L) questionnaire, was carried out on admission and
at four months following the operation.Aims
Patients and Methods
Approximately half of all hip fractures are displaced intracapsular fractures. The standard treatment for these fractures is either hemiarthroplasty or total hip arthroplasty. The recent National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance on hip fracture management recommends the use of ‘proven’ cemented stem arthroplasty with an Orthopaedic Device Evaluation Panel (ODEP) rating of at least 3B (97% survival at three years). The Thompsons prosthesis is currently lacking an ODEP rating despite over 50 years of clinical use, likely due to the paucity of implant survival data. Nationally, adherence to these guidelines is varied as there is debate as to which prosthesis optimises patient outcomes. This study design is a multi-centre, multi-surgeon, parallel, two arm, standard-of-care pragmatic randomised controlled trial. It will be embedded within the WHiTE Comprehensive Cohort Study (ISRCTN63982700). The main analysis is a two-way equivalence comparison between Hemi-Thompson and Hemi-Exeter polished taper with Unitrax head. Secondary outcomes will include radiological leg length discrepancy measured as per Bidwai and Willett, mortality, re-operation rate and indication for re-operation, length of index hospital stay and revision at four months. This study will be supplemented by the NHFD (National Hip Fracture Database) dataset.Background
Design
Current studies on the additional benefit of using computed tomography
(CT) in order to evaluate the surgeons’ agreement on treatment plans
for fracture are inconsistent. This inconsistency can be explained
by a methodological phenomenon called ‘spectrum bias’, defined as
the bias inherent when investigators choose a population lacking
therapeutic uncertainty for evaluation. The aim of the study is
to determine the influence of spectrum bias on the intra-observer
agreement of treatment plans for fractures of the distal radius. Four surgeons evaluated 51 patients with displaced fractures
of the distal radius at four time points: T1 and T2: conventional
radiographs; T3 and T4: radiographs and additional CT scan (radiograph
and CT). Choice of treatment plan (operative or non-operative) and
therapeutic certainty (five-point scale: very uncertain to very
certain) were rated. To determine the influence of spectrum bias,
the intra-observer agreement was analysed, using Kappa statistics,
for each degree of therapeutic certainty. Objectives
Methods
The objective of this study was to determine if a synthetic bone
substitute would provide results similar to bone from osteoporotic
femoral heads during Pushout studies were performed with the dynamic hip screw (DHS)
and the DHS Blade in both cadaveric femoral heads and artificial
bone substitutes in the form of polyurethane foam blocks of different
density. The pushout studies were performed as a means of comparing
the force displacement curves produced by each implant within each
material.Introduction
Methods
Osteochondral injuries, if not treated adequately, often lead
to severe osteoarthritis. Possible treatment options include refixation
of the fragment or replacement therapies such as Pridie drilling,
microfracture or osteochondral grafts, all of which have certain
disadvantages. Only refixation of the fragment can produce a smooth
and resilient joint surface. The aim of this study was the evaluation
of an ultrasound-activated bioresorbable pin for the refixation of
osteochondral fragments under physiological conditions. In 16 Merino sheep, specific osteochondral fragments of the medial
femoral condyle were produced and refixed with one of conventional
bioresorbable pins, titanium screws or ultrasound-activated pins.
Macro- and microscopic scoring was undertaken after three months. Objectives
Methods
Small animal models of fracture repair primarily investigate
indirect fracture healing via external callus formation. We present
the first described rat model of direct fracture healing. A rat tibial osteotomy was created and fixed with compression
plating similar to that used in patients. The procedure was evaluated
in 15 cadaver rats and then Objectives
Methods
