Periprosthetic infection after total joint replacement is a catastrophic complication. Current rates of infection have been decreasing and in most centers now are in the range of 0.1–1%. Peri-operative intravenous antibiotic therapy is used routinely in total hip arthroplasty patients at this time. With rates this low and mixed evidence that antibiotics in bone cement for routine total hip replacement are beneficial at reducing joint infection, routine use of this practice seems unnecessary and has potential disadvantages. Cost of antibiotics being added to cement on a routine basis will increase the cost of the arthroplasty $300–$500. Although small addition of bone cement also has a negative effect on the mechanical properties of the cement. The major disadvantage remains the danger of resistant bacterial strains from excessive use of antibiotics particularly vancomycin resistant organisms when it is used routinely. Although rare with the aminoglycosides, allergic reactions may occur if cephalosporins are used as prophylaxis. Use of antibiotics in bone cement should be considered in high risk patients for infection undergoing total hip replacement but not routinely because of cost, emergence of resistant organism and possible allergic reaction

Aim. Patients reporting penicillin allergy do often receive clindamycin as systemic antibiotic prophylaxis. The effect of clindamycin has however not been compared to antibiotics with proven effect in joint arthroplasty surgery. The aim of the study was to reveal if there were differences in the rate of revision due to infection after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) depending on which antibiotic was used as systemic prophylaxis. Method. Patients reported to the Swedish Knee Arthroplasty Register having a TKA performed due to osteoarthritis (OA) during the years 2009 – 2015 were included in the study. The type of prophylactic antibiotic is individually registered. For 80,018 operations survival statistics were used to calculate the rate of revision due to infection until the end of 2015, comparing the group of patients receiving the beta-lactam cloxacillin with those receiving clindamycin as systemic prophylaxis. Results. Cloxacillin was used in 90% of the cases, clindamycin in 7% and cephalosporins in 2%. The risk of becoming revised due to infection was higher when using clindamycin than cloxacillin, RR 1.51 (95% CI: 1.18–1.95, p=0.001). There was no significant difference in revision rate due to other causes, (p=0.21). Conclusions. We advise that patients reporting allergic reaction to penicillin have their allergic history explored. In the absence of clear history of type 1 allergic reaction we suggest the use of a cephalosporin instead of clindamycin as a perioperative prophylaxis when undergoing a TKR. No recommendation can be given regarding patients with type 1 allergy

Despite the demonstrated success in revision total joint arthroplasties, the utilization of antibiotic-loaded bone cement in primary total joint arthroplasty remains controversial. Multiple studies have demonstrated several risks associated with the routine use of this technique including: allergic reactions, changing the mechanical properties of the cement, emergence of resistant bacterial strains, systemic toxicity, and the added cost. In addition, evidence shows a currently low rate of periprosthetic joint infections in primary total joint arthroplasty (around 1%) and the theoretical benefit of marginally reducing this rate by using antibiotic-cement may not necessarily justify the associated risks and the added cost. Moreover, most of the primary total hip and an increasing number of primary total knee arthroplasties are cementless, which further raises questions about the routine use of antibiotic-loaded bone cement in primary total joint arthroplasty

Introduction. Cardiac events have been found to occur with increased frequency in total joint arthroplasty (TJA) patients >65 y/o without known coronary artery disease (CAD). Avoidance of readmissions for cardiac events is paramount with bundled payment programs. It has been thought that many of these patients may have undiagnosed CAD because of sedentary life styles brought on by chronic osteoarthritis. The purpose of this study is to assess with Coronary Computed Tomographic Angiography (CCTA) the prevalence and severity of CAD in patients >65 y/o for elective TJA. Methods. 126 elective patients that were part of a total hip and knee bundled payment program were referred for cardiac evaluation with CCTA if they were >65 but <70 y/o with a history of heart disease or 2 risk factors or were >70 y/o. CCTA was acquired on all patients unless they had a history of a severe allergic reaction to contrast, GFR <50 ml/min., the presence of atrial fibrillation, or declined the test. All images were evaluated by an experienced reader. Arterial narrowing of 70% diameter or greater was classified as significant CAD. Intermediate lesions <70% were reclassified as significant if CT-FFR (Functional flow reserve) was < or = 0.80. Results. Excluding the 12 patients with known CAD who had stents or coronary artery bypass graft (CABG), the remaining 114 patients were classified into three groups. 34/114 (29.8%) had no CAD (Group A). 75/114 (65.8%) had (Group B). 5/114 (4.4%) had > or = 70% stenosis. Group C included one patient who had <70% stenosis but had CT-FFR <80%. Of 17 patients with known CAD with >70% or heart CT-FFR <80%, or prior stents/CABG, one patient was predicted to be high risk of a cardiac event because of a complex plaque with an ulcer, history of suppressed paroxysmal atrial fibrillation, and withdrawal from apixaban. He was nurse navigated throughout his hospital course and post discharge only to be recalled to the hospital to be rescued with cardiac stenting. Conclusion. Patients >65 y/o having TJA without a cardiac history were found to have a 4.4% prevalence of significant CAD. When added to the patients with known CAD, the overall prevalence was 13.5%. One patient had complex plaque predictive of a cardiac event. As the US population ages and TJA becomes more prevalent with greater pressure to reduce costs by bundling and shifting to outpatient surgery, further data needs to be collected to better understand CAD in TJA patients >65 y/o

Despite the prophylactic use of antibiotics and hygienic strategies, surgical site infection following total joint arthroplasty (TJA) is still a severe and unsolved complication. Since antibiotic-loaded bone cement (ALBC) was introduced by Buchholz in the 1970s, the use of ALBC has been increasingly used for the prevention and treatment of periprosthetic infection (PPI). However, the routine use of ALBC during primary TJA remains controversial. Recent clinical studies have found that ALBC is effective in reducing the risk of PJI following primary TJA. Although ALBC having the advantage of reducing the risk of PJI, the main disadvantages are the possible development of toxicity, antibiotic resistance, allergic reaction, and possible reduction of the mechanical properties of bone cement. Nevertheless, a recent published article demonstrated, that the use of high dose dual-antibiotic impregnated cement reduce significantly the rate of surgical site infections compared to standard low dose single ALBC in the setting of a hip fracture treating with hemiarthroplasty. Furthermore, Sanz-Ruiz et al. presented that the use of ALBC in TJA has favorable cost-efficiency profile. In this context, reasons why surgeons should use antibiotic-loaded bone cement during primary TJA are demonstrated

Background. Revision hip arthroplasty for excessive bone loss because of osteolysis or infection is difficult theme. Bone grafting is essential technique for bone loss and need of allograft is increasing. Recently, many hospital bone banks are established in Japan. The aim of this study is investigate efficacy and safety of allograft in our hospital bone bank. Material and method. We evaluated management, result and complication of allografts retrieved from living donors in our institute. Result. All donors meet the criteria of Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) guideline and gave fully informed written consent. We obtained 75 femoral head grafts that were retrieved during primary total hip arthroplasty under sterile operating theatre conditions. No donor had hepatitis B and C, human immunodeficiency (HIV), Human T-cell leukemia (HTLV-1) and Syphilis. After heat treatment, allograft was swabbed for cultures and stored in freezer at −80□. All cultures ware negative and proved before implantation. We used allograft in 27 revision hip arthroplasty. Six cases were femoral side and 21cases were acetabular side. At the minimum of 3 months follow-up, 1 fracture of acetablar and 1 superficial infection occurred. No allergic reaction happened. Conclusion. Our bone bank thoroughly managed based on JOA guideline was effective and safe. Careful follow-up is needed for long-term implant fixation and osteoinduction

Surgery for pelvic or acetabular fractures carries a high risk of deep-vein thrombosis (DVT). Reports indicate that fondaparinux is a more effective thromboprophylactic agent than low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) after major orthopaedic surgery. We prospectively evaluated a new protocol for DVT prophylaxis using fondaparinux. Patients and methods. One hundred and eight patients with pelvic or acetabular fractures were randomised to receive either fondaparinux or enoxaparin. Specific review points included the primary end-point of clinical deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or pulmonary embolism (PE) and any evidence of adverse effects such as bleeding or allergic reactions. Results. Two patients that received enoxaparin were found to have a DVT (3%) and one patient died from a PE (1%). There was no documented DVT or PE in patients that received fondaparinux. The mean number of units of blood transfused was significantly higher in the enoxaparin group and this was significant post-operatively (p<0.05). The current study supports that post-operative fondaparinux, in patients with pelvic and acetabular fractures, is more effective and equally safe to enoxaparin

Introduction. The correction of paediatric scoliosis is a surgical procedure in which substantial bleeding occurs, and which historically has been associated with high levels of blood transfusion. Transfusions are associated with risks of infection, allergic reactions, volume overload and immunosuppression. The purpose of our study was to evaluate the efficacy of a care pathway implemented at St Thomas' hospital over ten years with a focus on minimising the need for blood transfusions. A Spinal Surgery Care Pathway was developed including: nurse-led clinics facilitating pre-operative haemoglobin optimisation; intra operative cell-salvage, the use of tranexamic acid, and a transfusion criteria awareness programme. Methods. We reviewed the records of all patients 18 years of age or younger undergoing spinal corrective surgery between 2000 and 2010. Collating data from the surgical records and haematology laboratory, we identified the proportion of patients requiring transfusion and the respective volume of blood or blood products transfused. Results. 534 spinal procedures were undertaken on patients over the decade of interest. Over this time, the proportion of patients requiring transfusion reduced from 83.3% in 2000, to 6.4% in 2010 (p < 0.001); a consistent year on year reduction was witnessed between 2005 and 2010. In those requiring transfusion, the volume of packed red cells transfused fell from a mean of 7.7 units in 2000, to 1.5 units in 2010 (p < 0.001). These results were despite an increase in posterior fusions, associated with higher bleeding, from 50.0% to 79.4% over the same time period. Conclusion. Over ten years, we have demonstrated that the implementation of a multifaceted, multidisciplinary pathway together with challenging cultural attitudes to blood transfusion, can dramatically and sustainably reduce the need for blood transfusion and the risks associated therewith. These data lends weight to the adoption of such a care pathway in paediatric scoliosis surgery

As allergic reactions to implant wear are gaining more attention [4], the incorporation of ceramic materials to device design appears to be a promising development. In particular, ceramic femoral components of total knee replacements have been designed to produce less wear under standard [1] and adverse [5] implant conditions. Whereas the wear reduction effect of ceramics is generally accepted for hip implants, the corresponding effect for knee implants is not proven. Ezzet et al. reported a wear reduction of 42% for standard wear conditions [2] and of 55% for adverse wear conditions [3] when compared to a geometrically identical CoCr femoral component. In contrast to these findings, an analysis of the EndoLab® database has indicated wear rates of ceramic knee implants that are comparable to traditional low wear material couplings (Figure 1), and are within the range of clinically established devices. The purpose of this study was to directly compare two TKR designs, one fixed bearing and one mobile bearing, each made of traditional CoCr to one made of alumina matrix composite (BIOLOX®delta, CeramTec, Germany) ceramic material. The BPK-S Rotating Platform System (Peter-Brehm, Germany; Figure 2) and the MULTIGEN PLUS fixed bearing (Lima, Italy) were knee simulator wear tested according to ISO 14243-1 (2002). A total of three specimens plus one loaded soak control for each group (four groups in total) was subjected to 5 million standard gait cycles. The anterior-posterior (AP) and internal-external rotational (IE) motion of the implants resulting from the external load application of this force controlled test was recorded continuously. Wear was determined gravimetrically. The surface appearance of contact areas was analyzed by light microscopy and particle analysis was performed according to ISO 18129. For the mobile bearing groups, a mean wear rate of 2.47 mg per million cycles (StdDev. 0.38) was determined for the CoCr implant and of 1.10 mg per million cycles (StdDev. 0.46) for the BIOLOX®deltaimplant (Figure 3). The total AP and IE motion of the two groups did not differ. However, motion during stance phase was considerably higher for the ceramic group, indicating reduced frictional resistance (data not shown). For the fixed bearing groups, a mean wear rate of 12.01 mg per million cycles (StdDev. 3.28) was determined for the CoCr implant and of 1.78 mg per million cycles (StdDev. 0.40) for the BIOLOX®delta implant. Based upon the EndoLab® experience the ceramic total knee replacements tested perform as good as the best performing metallic total knee replacements. However it can be concluded that for the two implant systems tested the wear rate is reduced by more than 50% by using ceramic on polyethylene articulation when compared to an identical cobald crome design

Purpose. There are some concerns about doing hip resurfacing arthroplasty in ONFH due to bone defect which can cause mechanical weakness of femoral component and highly active young age of patients which can cause high wear rate and failure rate. The purpose of this study is to verify the HRA is safe procedure in ONFH in the aspect of mechanical and biological issue. Materials and Methods. Between December 1998 and May 2005, 185 hips of 169 patients underwent MoM HRA using Birmingham Hip Resurfacing System® at single center. 166 hips (26 hips of female, 140 hips of male) of 144 patients have been reviewed for at least 7 years after MoM HRA. Mean follow-up period was 101.8 (84–178) months. Their mean age at the time of operation was 37.7(16–67) years old. Clinically, Harris hip scores (HHS), UCLA activity scores and range of motion were evaluated. Radiologically, the extent of necrotic area in preoperative MRI and radiolucency around implants, narrowing of retained neck, impingement, stress shielding, and heterotopic ossification were evaluated in the serial anteroposterior and groin lateral radiographs of hip. Complications were defined as joint dislocation, infection, implant loosening, femoral neck fracture and pseudotumor. Failure was defined as revision arthroplasty due to the complications. Results. The extent of necrotic area in preoperative MRI was average 37.6 (13.3–65)%. Clinically, average HHS was improved from 81.7 points to 98.5 points at last follow-up. Average UCLA activity score at last follow-up was 9.0 points. Range of motion at last follow-up was very satisfactory. There was no patient with severe pain around hip joint. Radiologically, radiolucency was shown around acetabular component in 2 cases (1.2%) and around stem of femoral components in 3 cases (1.8%). Fracture of femoral neck was seen in 1 case(0.6%). Moderate narrowing changes of retained femoral neck were noticed in 4 cases (2.4%). Impingement was seen in 12 cases (7.2%). We found only 1 case of osteolysis at Gruen zone III of acetabulum. Heterotopic ossification was found in 5 cases (3.0%). There was no case with hip dislocation, infection or pseudotumor. Revision surgeries after the primary resurfacing arthroplasty were performed in 4 cases (2.4%). Three hips were revised to the conventional total hip arthroplasty (THA) because of loosening of acetabular component and femur neck fracture. One case of femoral component loosening was revised to THA using big metal head with retained acetabular component. Conclusions. MoM HRA in ONFH demonstrates good survivorship in average 101.8 months follow-up study. Most of patients show excellent clinical results with high level of activity postoperatively. Prevalence of complications is extremely lower than concern including the allergic reaction to the metal ion. There was no mechanical failure related to bone defect due to ONFH. This results suggests that MoM HRA in ONFH less than 50% of extent of necrosis can be justified

Aims

Chronic osteomyelitis (COM) of the lower limb in adults can be surgically managed by either limb reconstruction or amputation. This scoping review aims to map the outcomes used in studies surgically managing COM in order to aid future development of a core outcome set.

Aims

Bone demonstrates good healing capacity, with a variety of strategies being utilized to enhance this healing. One potential strategy that has been suggested is the use of stem cells to accelerate healing.

Drug therapy forms an integral part of the management of many orthopaedic conditions. However, many medicines can produce serious adverse reactions if prescribed inappropriately, either alone or in combination with other drugs. Often these hazards are not appreciated. In response to this, the European Union recently issued legislation regarding safety measures which member states must adopt to minimise the risk of errors of medication.

In March 2014 the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and NHS England released a Patient Safety Alert initiative focussed on errors of medication. There have been similar initiatives in the United States under the auspices of The National Coordinating Council for Medication Error and The Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. These initiatives have highlighted the importance of informing and educating clinicians.

Here, we discuss common drug interactions and contra-indications in orthopaedic practice. This is germane to safe and effective clinical care.

Cite this article: Bone Joint J 2015;97-B:434–41.