Perioperative glucocorticoids have been used as a successful non-opioid analgesic adjunct for various orthopaedic procedures. Here we describe an ongoing randomized control trial assessing the efficacy of a post-operative methylprednisolone taper course on immediate post-operative pain and function following surgical distal radius fixation. We hypothesize that a post-operative methylprednisolone taper course following distal radius fracture fixation will lead to improved patient pain and function.

This study is a randomized control trial (NCT03661645) of a group of patients treated surgically for distal radius fractures. Patients were randomly assigned at the time of surgery to receive intraoperative dexamethasone only or intraoperative dexamethasone followed by a 6-day oral methylprednisolone (Medrol) taper course. All patients received the same standardized perioperative pain management protocol. A pain journal was used to record visual analog pain scores (VAS-pain), VAS-nausea, and number of opioid tablets consumed during the first 7 post-operative days (POD). Patients were seen at 2-weeks, 6-weeks, and 12-weeks post-operatively for clinical evaluation and collection of patient reported outcomes (Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand Score [qDASH]). Differences in categorical variables were assessed with χ2 or Fischer's exact tests. T-tests or Mann-Whitney-U tests were used to compare continuous data.

Forty-three patients were enrolled from October 2018 to October 2019. 20 patients have been assigned to the control group and 23 patients have been assigned to the treatment group. There were no differences in age (p=0.7259), Body Mass Index (p=0.361), race (p=0.5605), smoking status (p=0.0844), or pre-operative narcotic use (p=0.2276) between cohorts. 83.7% (n=36) of patients were female and the median age was 56.9 years. No differences were seen in pre-operative qDASH (p=0.2359) or pre-operative PRWE (p=0.2329) between groups. In the 7 days following surgery, patients in the control group took an average of 16.3 (±12.02) opioid tablets, while those in the treatment group took an average of 8.71 (±7.61) tablets (p=0.0270). We see that significant difference in Opioid consumption is formed at postoperative day two between the two groups with patients in the control group taking. Patient pain scores decreased uniformly in both groups to post-operative day 7. Patient pain was not statistically from POD0 to POD2 (p=0.0662 to 0.2923). However, from POD4 to POD7 patients receiving the methylprednisolone taper course reported decreased pain (p=0.0021 to 0.0497). There was no difference in qDASH score improvement at 6 or 12 weeks. Additionally, no differences were seen for wrist motion improvement at 6 or 12 weeks.

A methylprednisolone taper course shows promise in reducing acute pain in the immediate post-operative period following distal radius fixation. Furthermore, although no statistically significant reductions in post-operative opioid utilization were noted, current trends may become statistically significant as the study continues. No improvements were seen in wrist motion or qDASH and continued enrollment of patients in this clinical trial will further elucidate the role of methylprednisolone for these outcomes.

Background

91% of blood loss in Total Hip Replacement (THR) occurs in the period after skin closure and the first 24 post-operative hours. TRAC-24 was established to identify if an additional 24-hour post-operative oral regime of Tranexamic acid (TXA) is superior to a once-only intravenous dose at surgery.

Background and purpose

To identify methods used to measure free living sedentary behaviour in people with back pain and review the validity and reliability of identified measures.

Introduction: Despite clinical history, examination and plain radiography it is occasionally difficult to locate the origin of hip pain. This is particularly relevant where the management will be a total hip arthroplasty. Local anaesthetic arthrogram of the hip may provide a simple, safe and reliable test to determine if the hip is the source of the patient’s symptoms. The aim of this study was to establish the use of this investigation in the management of hip pain.

Methods: All local anaesthetic hip arthrograms were reviewed from 1999 to 2005. All patients had completed a pain questionnaire following the arthrogram. Patients were classified into 3 groups; 1) Mild osteoarthritic changes on plain radiographs with possible referred pathology; 2) Minimal radiological changes but no obvious other pathology to refer pain; 3) Previous hip arthroplasty with unexplained pain. Those who subsequently had a primary or revision hip arthroplasty were assessed post-operatively by means of the Oxford hip score.

Results: Fifty-seven patients in total underwent a local anaesthetic hip arthrogram. From all the groups 34 patients obtained pain relief and 24 proceeded to primary or revision hip arthroplasty. Twenty three (96%) had a satisfactory post-operative outcome at an average follow-up of 2 years (average Oxford score 28). The remaining 10 patients with positive arthrograms are still waiting for surgery. All negative arthrogram patients were successfully discharged.

Discussion: A positive response to local anaesthetic hip arthrogram predicts a successful response to surgery. This permits accurate information of the results of hip surgery to be given to patients and aids in a management plan for a group of patients that can be otherwise challenging.