Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a common, costly, and morbid complication following TJA. Consequently, the current standard of care recommends that all TJA candidates receive some form of thromboprophylaxis postoperatively. Chemoprophylaxis, however, is not without its own risks and has been associated with greater risk of perioperative complications such as major bleeding, infection, stroke, and increased wound drainage. Mechanical compression devices serve as an alternative to chemoprophylaxis. Compression devices are thought to function by decreasing venous stasis and activating fibrinolysis. Intermittent pneumatic compression devices (IPCD) function by providing pressure at a constant cycle; whereas continuous enhanced circulation therapy (CECT) devices such as ActiveCare portable system (Medical Compression Systems, Or Akiva, Israel) function in a synchronized manner with the patient's own respiratory cycles. While both of these systems are widely utilized, there is scarce data comparing their effectiveness as thromboprophylatic agents following TJA. The purpose of this meta-analysis is to comparatively evaluate the efficacy of ActiveCare to IPCDs in the prevention of thromboembolic events following TJA. A literature search using PubMed, Cochrane, and EMBASE databases were used to identify all articles published between January 2000 and August 2016. Key words used to conduct the search were venous foot pump, intermittent pneumatic compression, total hip arthroplasty/replacement, total knee arthroplasty/replacement, deep vein thrombosis, thromboembolic disease and pulmonary emboli. Two independent investigators carried out the literature review using the PRISMA guidelines (Figure 1). Analysis of risk ratio was performed by evaluation of studies which compared IPCD with any control chemoprophylaxis regiment or ActiveCare with any control chemoprophlaxis regiment. Assessment of heterogeneity and analysis of data were operated by Review Manager 5.3.Background
Methods
Osteonecrosis of the femoral head (ONFH) is a debilitating, painful, progressive, and refractory disease that has multiple etiologic risk factors. It is caused by bone cell death, which itself has various causes, leading to femoral head collapse and subsequent osteoarthritis. ONFH primarily influences patients aged from 20 to 50 years; in addition, bilateral hip joints are involved in 75% of patients. Causes include use of corticosteroids, alcohol abuse, previous trauma, hemoglobinopathy, Gaucher disease, coagulopathies, and other diseases. No pharmacologic treatment has been shown to be effective for early ONFH. Outcomes of total hip arthroplasty (THA) for these young and active patients have some drawbacks, primarily due to the young age of these patients, limited lifetime and durability of the implants and their fixation, and the skeletal manifestations of osteonecrosis. As a result of these concerns, there has been an increased focus on early interventions for ONFH aimed at preservation of the native articulation. Core decompression is currently the most widely accepted surgical treatment at the early stage of avascular osteonecrosis (AVN); however, due to limited efficacy, its use has been debated. There is currently no standardised protocol for evaluating and treating osteonecrosis of the femoral head in adults in the United States. Although total hip replacement is the most frequent intervention for treatment of post-collapse (Steinberg stage-IIIB, IVB, V, and VI) osteonecrosis; core decompression is the most commonly offered intervention for symptomatic, pre-collapse (Steinberg stage-IB and IIB) osteonecrosis. Less frequently offered treatments include non-operative, pharmacologic or modality management, osteotomy, vascularised and non-vascularised bone-grafting, hemiarthroplasty, resurfacing and arthrodesis. A promising, minimally invasive, core decompression procedure combined with a mesenchymal stem cell grafting technique which restores vascularity and heals osteonecrotic lesions has become popularised. This procedure is called a bone marrow aspirate concentrate (BMAC) procedure. During a BMAC, mesenchymal stem cells (in the form of concentrated iliac crest bone marrow) are injected through a core decompression tract into the area of necrosis in the femoral head. Most patients with early (pre-collapse) disease have excellent results at 2 to 5 years of clinical follow-up. Patients are weight bearing as tolerated on crutches after the procedure for 6 weeks, and are able to go home on the same day or next day after surgery with minimal pain. We can report on the early, promising results of 300 patients with ONFH treated with BMAC in the United States by two expert hip surgeons with at least 75%-80% survivorship. The care of adults with osteonecrosis of the femoral head is highly variable. This paper will discuss the various non-operative and operative treatment algorithms for ONFH available today. We will also report on a promising, new technique (BMAC), which improves the efficacy of traditional core decompression for early ONFH. The goal of treatment of early ONFH is to avoid THA in young, active patients and this talk will discuss those interventions and treatments which help accomplish that goal.
Pain control is critical in the management of TKA patients and is crucial to allow for early ambulation and accelerated physical therapy. Currently data suggests that 19% of patients are not satisfied with their results following TKA, and failure to control pain may result in prolonged hospitalization, worse outcomes, and increased patient dissatisfaction. Studies suggest that local analgesics coupled with both pre- and post-operative multimodal pain management may result in improved pain control and increased patient satisfaction. Minimization of opioid use is helpful in decreasing complications, accelerating physical therapy milestones, minimizing length of stay and increasing discharge to home. Femoral nerve blocks (FNB) can reduce pain scores for up to 48 hours post-operatively, but may delay ambulation and result in an increased rate of falls. Periarticular injection (PAI) with local analgesics can provide significant short term relief comparable to FNB and can also facilitate decreased opioid consumption. One commonly used local anesthetic is bupivacaine, but the average half-life of this drug is only 2.7 hours. An alternative to this for PAI during TKA is liposomal bupivacaine (LB). LB is a multivesicular drug designed for rapid absorption, prolonged release of bupivacaine, and analgesia that is maintained for up to 72 hours with a single injection. LB exhibits a bimodal peak of distribution, one immediate associated with extra-liposomal bupivacaine, and a second 10–36 hours later associated with the release of liposomal encapsulated bupivacaine. The safety profile of LB has been investigated and adverse events are similar to standard bupivacaine and demonstrate acceptable tolerability. Multiple studies have demonstrated efficacy of this drug compared to other pain control modalities. LB is highly technique dependent and only one piece of a multimodal pain management protocol. Our study consisted of 1808 consecutive primary TKA patients from Sept 2013 to Sept 2015. Three patient cohorts were compiled by date, from Sept 2013 to May 2014 was cohort 1, consisting of FNB and PCA. Department wide adoption of LB began in May 2014 and became routinely used in all patients undergoing total joint arthroplasty at our institution. Cohort 2 entailed a PCA along with LB injection from May 2014 through Feb 2015. Cohort 3 consisted of LB injection only and was from Feb 2015 through Sept 2015. All patients undergoing TKA were eligible and there were no exclusion criteria as long as the protocols were followed. The standard multi-modal analgesia protocol was provided to all patients in all three cohorts. Prior to entering the operating room, patients received preemptive oral analgesics, consisting of: 200 mg celecoxib, 1000 mg acetaminophen, and 50 mg pregabalin. Intra-operative analgesia was chosen at the discretion of the anesthesiologist and preferentially consisted of spinal anesthesia with general anesthesia as an alternate. For all three cohorts, a peri-incisional analgesic cocktail was injected prior to closure consisting of: 40 cc 0.25% Marcaine, 5 cc of (1 mg/cc) morphine, and 1 cc of (30 mg/cc) ketorolac. Cohorts 1 and 2 received PCA post-operatively for pain control post-operatively with prn oral narcotic administration as well. Cohort 3 did not receive a PCA. The cohort treated without FNB and without a PCA using a multimodal pain management protocol including a short acting periarticular injection and a longer acting periarticular injection with LB, had equivalent pain control, less narcotic use, faster achievement of physical therapy milestones, earlier and more frequent discharge home, less complications and a lower cost of the episode of care.
Revision Total Knee Arthroplasty (TKA) is becoming increasingly prevalent as the number of TKA procedures grow in a younger, higher-demand population. Factors associated with patients requiring multiple revision TKAs are not yet well understood. The purpose of this study is to investigate the epidemiology of re-revision TKA, and identify risk factors that are associated with failure of re-revision TKA. A retrospective analysis was performed on 358 patients who underwent revision TKA at a single institution between 1/2012 and 12/2013. Patients who underwent revision knee arthroplasty two or more times were included. Patients were excluded if their indication for the first revision was periprosthetic joint infection (PJI). Patient demographics, surgical indications, revision details, and available follow-up information were collected. Re-revision failure was defined as the need for any additional operative intervention. A logistic regression analysis was performed to assess for significant predictors of re-revision failure.Introduction
Methods
The epidemiology of re-revision total hip arthroplasty (THA) is not well understood. The purpose of this study is to investigate the epidemiology of re-revision THA, and identify risk factors that are associated with failure of re-revision THA. A retrospective analysis was performed on 288 patients who underwent revision THA at a single institution between 1/2012 and 12/2013. Patients who underwent revision hip arthroplasty two or more times were included. Patients were excluded if their indication for their first revision was due to periprosthetic joint infection (PJI). Patient demographics, surgical indications, revision details, and available follow-up information were collected through the electronic medical record. Re-revision failure was defined as the need for any additional return to the operating room, regardless of indication. A logistic regression analysis was performed to assess for significant predictors of re-revision failure.Introduction
Methods
Alternative payment models, such as bundled payments, aim to control rising costs for total knee (TKA) and total hip arthroplasty (THA). Without risk adjustment for patients who may utilize more resources, concerns exist about patient selection and access to care. The purpose of this study was to determine whether lower socioeconomic status (SES) was associated with increased resource utilization following TKA and THA. Using the Michigan Arthroplasty Registry Collaborative Quality Initiative (MARCQI) database, we reviewed a consecutive series of 4,168 primary TKA and THA patients over a 3-year period. We defined lowest SES based upon the median household income of the patient's ZIP code. An Introduction
Methods
Reducing readmissions after total joint arthroplasty (TJA) is challenging. Pre-operative risk stratification and optimization pre surgical care may be helpful in reducing readmission rates after primary TJA. Assessment of the predictive value of individual modifiable risk factors without a tool to properly stratify patients may not be helpful to the surgical community to reduce the risk of readmission. We developed a scoring system: Readmission Risk Assessment Tool (RRAT) as part of a Perioperative Orthopaedic Surgical Home model that allows for risk stratification in patients undergoing elective primary TJA at our institution. We analyzed the relationship between the RRAT score and readmission following primary hip or knee arthroplasty. The RRAT, which is scored incrementally based on the number and severity of modifiable comorbidities was used to generate readmission scores for a cohort of 207 readmitted and 2 cohorts of 234 (random and age-matched) non-readmitted patients each. Regression analysis was performed to assess the strength of association between individual risk factors, RRAT score and readmissions. We also calculated the odds and odds ratio (OR) at each level of RRAT score to identify patients with relatively higher risk of readmission.Introduction
Methods
We retrospectively reviewed 161 revision THAs with diaphyseal fitting, mid- modular femoral components performed by ten surgeons at two academic medical centers. The average follow-up was 6.1 years. At final follow-up, 4 patients required re-revision for failure of the femoral component; 3 (2%) for aseptic loosening and 1 for mechanical failure of stem in setting of periprosthetic fracture. There were a total of 24 (14.9%) revisions for any reason, with the most common reason being septic failure (10 of 24). To our knowledge, this is the largest reported series of mid-term survivorship and complications of revision THA with mid-modular femoral components. Our results show that these stems have a low rate of aseptic loosening, subsidence, and mechanical failure.
The aim of this study is to investigate the accuracy and reliability of a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) based Patient Match Technology (PMT) system (VISIONAIRE, Smith & Nephew, Inc, Memphis, Tenn) by intraoperative use of VectorVision knee navigation software from BrainLAB (Redwood City, California, USA). Between February 2011 and May 2011, 15 patients with primary gonarthrosis were selected for unilateral Total Knee Arthroplasty (TKA). The first three patients were excluded from this study, as they were considered as a warm up to set up the procedure. Therefore 12 patients entered the study. Preoperatively all patient underwent a full-length weight-bearing radiograph in antero-posterior (AP) and a MRI according to the protocol suggested and approved by the manufacturer. All patients were operated with cemented posterior stabilised prosthesis cruciate ligament sacrificing (Journey BCS, Smith & Nephew, Inc, Memphis, Tennessee, USA) by the same surgeon using the VISIONAIRE patient matched cutting jigs. During surgery, once the guides were placed and fixed, the orientation was checked by the navigator. The following parameters were evaluated: size of the implant, alignment in coronal and sagittal plane. An unsatisfactory result was considered an error ≥ 2° in both plane for each component as a possible error of 4° could result in aggregate.Introduction
Methods
In total knee arthroplasty extramedullary tibial guides could not to be as accurate as requested in obtaining proper alignment perpendicular to the mechanical axis. The aim of this study was to determine the accuracy of an accelerometer-based system (KneeAlign 2; OrthAlign Inc, Aliso Viejo, California) as evaluated by post-op X-rays analysis. Between March 2012 and May 2012 thirty consecutive patients with primary gonarthrosis were selected for unilateral total knee arthroplasty (TKA) using a handheld surgical navigation system to perform the tibial resection.
Postoperatively, standing anteroposterior hip-to-ankle radiographs and lateral knee-to-ankle radiographs were performed to determine the varus/valgus alignment and the posterior slope of the tibial components relative to the mechanical axis in both the coronal and sagittal planes. The difference between the intraoperative reading of the tibial varus/valgus alignment and posterior slope provided by the system was compared to the radiographic measurements obtained postoperatively for each respective case. Differences were analysed via standard t test. The critical level of significance was set at P <0.05.Introduction
Methods
Alpha Lipoic Acid (L.A.) is an effective natural antioxidant discovered in the human body in 1951 from L.J. Reed and I.C. Gunslaus from liver. It is inside broccoli, spinach and red meats, especially liver and spleen. Actually it is largely used as antioxidant in antiaging products according to the low toxicity level of the product. The present study take into consideration the possibility to reduce oxidation of medical irradiated UHMWPE GUR 1050, mixing together polyethylene powder and Alpha Lipoic Acid powder. The study is composed of two parts. Part 1 Thermostability of alpha lipoic acid during polyethylene fusion Part 2 detection of oxygen level in artificially aged irradiated polyethylene Solid pieces were made with Gur 1050 powder (Ticona Inc., Bayport, Tex, USA) and mixed with Alpha Lipoic Acid (Talamonti, Italy, Stock 1050919074) 0, 1% and gamma ray irradiated with 30 kGy (Isomedix, Northborough, MA). An oven (80° Celsius) was used to produce an aging effect for 35 days in the doped and control samples (Conventional not doped polyethylene). This process simulate an aging effect of 10 years into the human body. THERMAL STABILITY: a Fourier Transfer Infra Red (FTIR) test was made in pieces molded in a cell at 150° and 200°Celsius and pressure of 200 MPa comparing to the UHMWPE powder mixed with alpha lipoic acid. The presence of Alpha Lipoic Acid in the polyethylene was found at any depth in the manufacts. figure 1: A Pure Lipoic Acid. B Lipoic Acid + UHMWPE melted 150° C. Lipoic Acid + UHMWPE melted 200° C° (A And B spectra subtracted UHMWPE) OXIDATION: After 5 weeks at 80° Celsius in a oven (ASTM standard F-2003-02)A FOURIER TRANSFER INFRA RED TEST (FTIR) was made in the superficial layer and deeper on the undersurface of doped 0.1% and conventional UHMWPE. The antioxidation limit is defined as the ratio of the area under 1740 cm/−1 carbonyl and 1370 cm/−1 Methylene absorbance peaks. In conventional UHMWPE oxidation is detected on the surface and decreases in the deeper layers down to zero under 1500 Micron Fig 2. figure 2 Pure polyethylene: A Surface, B 1500 Micron, C 3000 Micron In the doped UHMWPE, FTIR demonstrate a very low oxidation limit on the surface and at any depth, comparing to conventional UHMWPE Fig 3. figure 3 Doped UHMWPE A surface, B 700 micron deept, C 1700 micron deept The examples show that Lipoic Acid is effective as antioxidant in irradiated UHMWPE and it is stable with respect to thermal treatment.
