In 2000 our emergency department implemented a new management for the treatment of isolated, apex volar distal radial fractures involving immobilisation with a wrist splint, written information for carers and no planned follow up. Next day x-ray review acted as a safety net for misdiagnosed or less stable fractures.

This has now been validated with a retrospective review of treatment for distal radial # within the ED.

Patients were identified through the Emergency department’s electronic discharge record. Over a 9 month period 260 patients were identified with metaphyseal distal radial and/or ulna injuries to which a non orthopaedic junior doctor might be expected to apply the Buckle Fracture Algorithm. Of these 161 had isolated distal radial fractures suitable for treatment with a wrist splint. 118 were correctly identified and treated in the ED. 43 patients were sent to # clinic, of these 11 patients were discharged at the 1st visit, however 3 had 3 or more visits and 2 children had additional x-rays. Over this period 9 children were given splints inappropriately according to the protocol, most of these had stable injuries on reviewing the x-rays, 3 were identified and recalled for a cast. None of the children with injuries outside the protocol who were not recalled had an unplanned return with complications.

Taking into account only those children who were correctly managed from the ED the estimated annual cost savings to the NHS for this hospital for this period is £40,784, compared to standard treatment before introduction of this protocol. If all children had been treated according to protocol the estimated cost savings would be £56096/yr.

Background: Abductor failure after total hip arthroplasty is a rare but debilitating problem. The diagnosis is difficult, and when recognized, there are few successful treatment options. The purpose of this study is to review our experience with a new surgical technique using fresh-frozen Achilles tendon allograft with an attached calcaneal bone graft to reconstruct a deficient abductor mechanism after total hip arthroplasty.

Methods: From 2003 to 2006, we performed seven abductor reconstructions with Achilles tendon allograft for patients with abductor deficiency after total hip arthroplasty. Four patients had a prior posterior approach and three had a prior anterolateral approach. At a mean of 29 months from index procedure, all seven patients suffered from symptoms of lateral hip pain and abductor weakness as documented by positive Trendelenburg sign, limp, and limited motor strength with side-lying abduction. Hip arthrograms were obtained in five of seven patients.

Results: The average pre-reconstruction Harris Hip Score was 34.7 and average pain score was 11.4. All five hip arthrograms showed extravasation of dye over the greater trochanter, confirming the diagnosis of a bald greater trochanter and massive abductor loss found at time of surgery. At a minimum 24 month follow-up and an average follow-up of 31 months, the post-reconstruction Harris Hip Score was 85.9 and the average pain score was 38.9.

Conclusions: Abductor reconstruction with Achilles tendon allograft using calcaneal bone block fastened to the greater trochanter has offered significant relief of pain and improvement in function at early follow-up in this series of patients.

Highly cross-linked polyethylene (HXLPE) is one of the most widely utilized bearing surfaces for total hip arthroplasty (THA). The first patients to receive XLPE will be 10 years post-op as of December 31, 2008. The purpose of this study is to report the long-term clinical and radiographic outcomes of patients implanted with HXLPE.

A group of 247 primary total hip replacements (224 patients) using HXLPE liners (Longevity or Durasul, Zimmer Inc.) with 22, 26, 28, or 32mm femoral heads were implanted between 1999 and 2001. Clinical evaluation measures included the Harris hip, EQ-5D, SF-36 functional scores, and UCLA activity scores. In addition to plain radiograph assessment, the computerized Martell method was used to measure head penetration over time. A matched group of 241 primary total hip replacements (201 patients) with the same head sizes using conventional polyethylene (PE) with a minimum of 7 years follow-up was used as a Martell method control group. The steady state penetration rate was defined as the slope of the linear regression line of the plot of head penetration from the 1 year film to each subsequent film to discount the early bedding-in process. A student’s t-test was used to compare wear rates between head sizes in each group, and a repeated-measures mixed model ANOVA was used to compare the groups for the 28mm head size.

There were no osteolytic lesions around the cup or stem, and no revisions were performed for polyethylene wear or liner fracture. Clinical outcome scores were averaged: Harris Hip 88.1±11.97, EQ-5D 74.0±27.0, SF-36 physical activity scores 53.3±8.4, SF-36 mental score 46.9±11.1, and UCLA activity 6.4±2.1. The steady state wear of the conventional polyethylene patients increased with time for both 26 and 28mm head sizes (0.144 and 0.127mm/year, respectively). No significant difference was found between the head sizes coupled with conventional polyethylene (p=0.14). Femoral head penetration in the highly cross-linked polyethylene did not increase over time after the first year. The steady state wear rates of HXLPE liners with 28mm or 32mm femoral heads were not significantly different than a slope of zero (p=0.54 for both head sizes).

Clinical follow-up results are typical of a primary THR patient population, and the radiographic results are excellent with no signs of peri-prosthetic osteolysis. Patients with PE show wear rates that are significantly different than zero indicating significant wear of the material. Conversely, patients with HXLPE display no measureable wear at 7–9 years as the wear rates were within the error detection of the Martell method. This long-term clinical and radiographic follow-up study for this new bearing material shows excellent clinical outcomes with very low in vivo wear.

To assess patient/parent satisfaction with treatment of radial Forearm Buckle Fractures without the necessity of fracture clinic visits.

A+E staff were provided with definitions and suitable example X-Rays of radial forearm buckle fractures. The A+E staff were asked to mark the films with a green dot for Radiological review if the patient was included in the study, and these films were seen within 24 hours by a consultant radiologist.

Over a three month period all patients with radial forearm buckle fractures seen in A+E were treated with an Alder Hey splint rather than plaster, they were then given a fracture clinic appointment for three weeks later. At this visit the medical staff completed a proforma with the following information, appropriateness of the diagnosis, side, bone/cortex involved, degree of angulation as well as the mode of injury.

The patients and their parents were asked whether they were happy with the level of support that the splint gave and whether they would have been happy to remove the splint without visiting the fracture clinic.

72 (86.7%) had suffered low energy injuries, 5 (6%) high energy injuries, 5 (6%) did not attend their clinic appointment.

65 of 78 (83%) of parents and 65 of 72 (90%) of patients felt that the level of provided support was adequate (6 patients too young to answer)

58 of 78 (74%) of parents and 53 of 72 (74%) of patients would have been happy to make the decision to remove the splint themselves (6 patients too young to answer)

5 (6%) of the diagnoses were deemed to be inappropriate, of these 2 were picked up in radiology review and sent to clinic and 3 were soft tissue injuries.

We feel that the results show that the majority of patients with radial forearm buckle fractures (appropriate guidelines available to A+E staff) do not need to be seen in the fracture clinic, as long as their X-Rays are reviewed and any inappropriately diagnosed fractures sent to clinic. This has significant implications both for fracture clinic workload and also financially for hospitals.

We report complications from the use of modular components in 20 hip replacements in 18 patients. Fifteen complications (in 13 patients) were related to failure of a modular interface after operation. Femoral head detachment from its trunnion was seen in 6 hips from trauma (3), reduction of a dislocation (2), and normal activity (1). In one case the base of the trunnion fractured below an extra-long modular head. In seven other hips the modular polyethylene liner dislodged from its shell, causing severe damage to the shell in four cases with extensive metallosis. In one other hip an asymmetrical polyethylene liner rotated, resulting in impingement of the femoral component and recurrent dislocation. Operative errors were seen in five cases: implantation of a trial acetabular component in one; and mismatching between the size of the femoral head and the acetabular component in the others. Surgeons who use hip replacements with modular components should be aware of the potential for operative error and of the importance of early treatment for postoperative mechanical failure.

We evaluated the initial stability of cemented and uncemented femoral components within the femoral canals of cadaver femurs during simulated single limb stance and stair climbing. Both types were very stable in simulated single limb stance (maximum micromotion of 42 microns for cemented and 30 microns for uncemented components). However, in simulated stair climbing, the cemented components were much more stable than the uncemented components (76 microns as against 280 microns). There was also greater variation in the stability of uncemented components in simulated stair climbing, with two of the seven components moving 200 microns or more. Future implant designs should aim to improve the initial stability of cementless femoral components under torsional loads; this should improve the chances of bony ingrowth.

We have tested the porosity and fatigue life of five commonly used bone cements: Simplex P, LVC, Zimmer regular, CMW and Palacos R. Tests were conducted with and without centrifugation and with the monomer at room temperature and, except for LVC, at 0 degrees C. We found that the fatigue life of different specimens varied by a factor of nearly 100. It did not depend on porosity alone, but was more influenced by the basic composition of the cement. Simplex P when mixed with monomer at 0 degrees C and centrifuged for 60 seconds had the highest fatigue life and was still sufficiently liquid to use easily.

The results of treatment of injuries of the thoracic and thoraco-lumbar spine with neurological involvement have been reviewed in a retrospective study of 115 patients, of whom eighty-nine received conservative and twenty-six surgical treatment. Operation was reserved, in general, for patients with irreducible dislocations and incomplete neurological lesions, open reduction and internal fixation being the commonest procedure. Only three patients required a delayed spinal fusion for suspected instability after a period of conservative treatment. On the other hand, ten patients, eight of whom had been treated surgically, were left with severe chronic spinal pain. Of the patients treated conservatively, 35% showed significant neurological improvement compared to 38% of those treated surgically, but the latter group contained a much higher proportion of incomplete lesions with a far better prognosis. It is concluded that the place for early operation might be still further restricted.