In the unstable patellofemoral joint (PFJ), the patella will articulate in an abnormal manner, producing an uneven distribution of forces. It is hypothesised that incongruency of the PFJ, even without clinical instability, may lead to degenerative changes. The aim of this study was to record the change in joint contact area of the PFJ after stabilisation surgery using an established and validated MRI mapping technique.

A prospective MRI imaging study of patients with a history of PFJ instability was performed. The patellofemoral joints were imaged with the use of an MRI scan during active movement from 0° through to 40° of flexion. The congruency through measurement of the contact surface area was mapped in 5-mm intervals on axial slices. Post-stabilisation surgery contact area was compared to the pre-surgery contact area.

In all, 26 patients were studied. The cohort included 12 male and 14 female patients with a mean age of 26 (15–43). The greatest mean differences in congruency between pre- and post-stabilised PFJs were observed at 0–10 degrees of flexion (0.54 cm² versus 1.18 cm², p = 0.04) and between 11° and 20° flexion (1.80 cm² versus 3.45 cm²; p = 0.01).

PFJ stabilisation procedures increase joint congruency. If a single axial series is to be obtained on MRI scan to compare the pre- and post-surgery joint congruity, the authors recommend 11° to 20° of tibiofemoral flexion as this was shown to have the greatest difference in contact surface area between pre- and post-operative congruency.

This study aims to implement and assess the inter and intra-reliability of a modernised radiolucency assessment system; the Radiolucency In cemented Stemmed Knee (RISK) arthroplasty classification. Furthermore, we assessed the distribution of regions affected by radiolucency in patients undergoing stemmed cemented knee arthroplasty.

Stemmed knee arthroplasty cases over 7-year period at a single institution were retrospectively identified and reviewed. The RISK classification system identifies five zones in the femur and five zones in the tibia in both the anteroposterior (AP) and lateral planes. Post-operative and follow-up radiographs were scored for radiolucency by four blinded reviewers at two distinct time points four weeks apart. Reliability was assessed using the kappa statistic. A heat map was generated to demonstrate the reported regions of radiolucency.

29 cases (63 radiographs) of stemmed knee arthroplasty were examined radiographically using the RISK system. Intra-reliability (0.83) and Inter-reliability (0.80) scores were both consistent with a strong level of agreement using the kappa scoring system. Radiolucency was more commonly associated with the tibial component (76.6%) compared to the femoral component (23.3%), and the tibial anterior-posterior (AP) region 1 (medial plateau) was the most affected (14.9%).

The RISK classification system is a reliable assessment tool for evaluating radiolucency around stemmed knee arthroplasty using defined zones on both AP and lateral radiographs. Zones of radiolucency identified in this study may be relevant to implant survival and corresponded well with zones of fixation, which may help inform future research.

Use of anticoagulants for thromboembolic prophylaxis is strongly supported by evidence. However, the use of these medications beyond the prophylactic period is poorly understood.

We identified anticoagulant naïve patients that underwent hip or knee replacement between 2012 and 2019 from an arthroplasty registry and probabilistically linked 3,018 surgeries with nationwide pharmaceutical claims data. Rates of anticoagulation use were examined during the early (<= 60 days post-discharge), mid-term (61–180 days post-discharge) and long-term (181–360 days post-discharge) periods. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to identify patient- and surgery-related factors associated with long-term anticoagulant use.

Anticoagulants were supplied to 20% of arthroplasties within 60 days of discharge, 7% between 61–180 days, and 10% between 181–360 days. Older age, obesity, increased comorbidity burden, a longer length of stay, occurrence of a complication necessitating anticoagulation and dispensation of an anticoagulant within 60 days of discharge were all risk factors for long-term anticoagulant use.

Given the risks associated with unnecessary use of these medications, certain patients who are prescribed anticoagulants beyond prophylactic period may benefit from specialist medication review in the months following surgery.

This study aimed to evaluate the month-to-month prevalence of antibiotic dispensation in the 12 months before and after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and total hip arthroplasty (THA) and to identify factors associated with antibiotic dispensation in the month immediately following the surgical procedure.

In total, 4,115 THAs and TKAs performed between April 2013 and June 2019 from a state-wide arthroplasty referral centre were analysed. A cross-sectional study used data from an institutional arthroplasty registry, which was linked probabilistically to administrative dispensing data from the Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. Multivariable logistic regression was carried out to identify patient and surgical risk factors for oral antibiotic dispensation.

Oral antibiotics were dispensed in 18.3% of patients following primary TKA and 12.0% of patients following THA in the 30 days following discharge. During the year after discharge, 66.7% of TKA patients and 58.2% of THA patients were dispensed an antibiotic at some point. Patients with poor preoperative health status were more likely to have antibiotics dispensed in the month following THA or TKA. Older age, undergoing TKA rather than THA, obesity, inflammatory arthritis, and experiencing an in-hospital wound-related or other infectious complications were associated with increased antibiotic dispensation in the 30 days following discharge.

A high rate of antibiotic dispensation in the 30 days following THA and TKA has been observed. Although resource constraints may limit routine wound review for all patients by a surgeon, a select cohort may benefit from timely specialist review postoperatively. Several risk factors identified in this study may aid in identifying appropriate candidates for such changes to follow-up care.

Aims

The aim of this study was to determine whether closed suction drain (CSD) use influences recovery of quadriceps strength and to examine the effects of drain use on secondary outcomes: quadriceps activation, intra-articular effusion, bioelectrical measure of swelling, range of movement (ROM), pain, and wound healing complications.

Introduction

Closed suction intraarticular drain (CSD) use after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) has been studied with regards to wound healing and range of motion, however, no data exist on how CSD use impacts knee joint effusion and quadriceps strength. The primary purpose of this study was to determine whether CSD use influences recovery of quadriceps strength. Secondary outcomes examined effects of CSD on intraarticular effusion, lower limb swelling, knee range of motion (ROM), pain and wound healing complications.

Purpose

Flat feet are an important cause of foot problems in children. The flexible flat foot is the most common form and is normally physiological and asymptomatic. Further assessment is necessary when a symptomatic flat foot persists. Surgical interventions are indicated when conservative therapies have failed. The Kalix arthroereisis is a surgical option and is placed in the subtalar joint of the foot, thereby preventing hyperpronation, and stabilizes the foot against excessive movements. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the functional and radiological outcomes of pediatric patients who had undergone a Kalix implantation for the treatment of a symptomatic flexible flat foot.

Dysplasia Epiphysealis Hemimelica (DEH) also known as Trevor's Disease is a rare developmental disorder resulting in cartilaginous overgrowth of the epiphysis of long bones. DEH is usually diagnosed in children between two and eight years old and it is three times more often diagnosed in boys. The most reported complaints are pain, limitation in range of motion, and deformity or swelling of the affected joint. Treatment of symptomatic lesions consists of surgical resection of the lesion, resulting in good long-term results.

Based on histological evaluation, DEH is often described as an osteochondroma or an osteochondroma-like lesion, although there are clinical, radiological and genetic differences between DEH and osteochondromas. To investigate the hypothesis that DEH and osteochondromas are histologically identical, two cases of DEH and two cases of osteochondromas in patients with Hereditary Multiple Osteochondroma (HMO) are compared at histological level.

Tissue samples from patients with a histopathologically confirmed diagnosis of DEH were compared with two age and gender matched patients diagnosed with HMO. After tissue sampling and processing, (immuno)histological stainings were performed for Collagen type II, Collagen type X, Sox-9 and Safranin-O.

Histologically, clumping of chondrocytes in a fibrillar matrix, a thick disorganized cartilage cap and ossification centres with small amounts of unresorbed cartilage were observed in DEH. In contrast, chondrocyte organisation in cartilage of osteochondromas displays characteristics of the normal growth plate. In addition, differences in expression of collagen type II, collagen type X and Sox9 were observed. Collagen type II was expressed in the extracellular matrix surrounding proliferative and hypertrophic chondrocytes in osteochondromas, while weak expression was observed in the entire cartilage cap in DEH. Collagen type X was not expressed in DEH, while expressed in the pericellular matrix surrounding hypertrophic chondrocytes in osteochondromas. Staining for Sox9 was positive in the hypertrophic chondrocytes in osteochondromas, while expressed in the nuclei of all chondrocyte clusters in DEH.

Both morphological and immunohistological differences were observed in histological sections of DEH and osteochondromas. These findings reject our hypothesis, and supports the earlier observed clinical, radiological and genetic differences and implies a different aetiology between DEH and osteochondroma formation in HMO.

Osteoarthritis of the first metatarsophalangeal (MTP1) joint is a common disorder in elderly, resulting in pain and disability. Arthrodesis of this joint shows satisfactory results, with relieve of pain in approximately 85% of the patients. However, the compensation mechanism for loss of motion in the MTP1 joint after MTP1 arthrodesis is unknown. A reduced compensation mechanism of the foot may explain the disappointing result of MTP1 arthrodesis in the remaining 15% of the patients. This study was conducted to elucidate this compensation mechanism. We hypothesize that the ankle and forefoot are responsible for compensation after MTP1 arthrodesis.

Gait was evaluated in eight patients with arthrodesis of the MTP1 joint (10 feet) and twelve healthy controls (21 feet) by using a sixteen-camera Vicon-system. The four-segmental, validated Oxford-Foot-Model was used to investigate differences in range of motion of the hindfoot-tibia, forefoot-hindfoot and hallux-forefoot segment during stance. For statistical analysis, the unpaired t-test with Bonferroni correction (p<0.0125) was performed.

No differences in spatiotemporal parameters were observed between both groups. In the frontal plane, MTP1 arthrodesis decreased the range of motion in midstance, while an increased range of motion was observed in terminal stance for the hindfoot relative to the tibia in the transversal plane. Subsequently range of motion in the forefoot in preswing was increased. This resulted in less eversion in the hindfoot during midstance, increased internal rotation of the hindfoot during terminal stance and more supination in the forefoot during preswing in the MTP1 arthrodesis group. Motion of the hallux was restricted in the loading response (i.e. plantar flexion) and terminal stance (i.e. dorsiflexion).

As hypothesized, both the ankle and the forefoot are responsible for compensation after MTP1 arthrodesis, because arthrodesis causes less eversion and increased internal rotation of the hindfoot and increased supination of the forefoot. As expected, both dorsiflexion and plantar flexion of the hallux was restricted due to arthrodesis. These findings suggest a gait pattern in which the lateral arch of the foot is more loaded and the stiff hallux is avoided during the stance phase of gait.

Our results indicate that proper motion of the forefoot and ankle joint is important when considering arthrodesis of the MTP1 joint. Therefore, we emphasize careful assessment the range of motion in the forefoot and ankle joint in the pre-operative situation, since patients with a decreased range of motion in the forefoot and ankle joint have a less functioning compensation mechanism. We currently perform a study to evaluate the strength of the positive correlation between the pre-operative range of motion in the forefoot and ankle joint and the clinical outcome.

We used gadolinium-enhanced fat-suppressed MRI to investigate 67 patients with persistent pain after lumbar discectomy. Twenty-five patients had reoperations for lesions diagnosed in this way. Eleven were for recurrent disc prolapse at the same level and sciatica was relieved by all but one. Five operations were for prolapse at an adjacent level and all were successful. The diagnosis of sepsis was less precise, but extension of tissue enhancement into the operated disc space was found to be significant. Only three patients had evidence of arachnoiditis which suggests that this condition has been too often diagnosed as a cause of persisting low back pain.

We report a prospective study of the influence of various factors on the six-month mortality of 531 patients with subcapital hip fractures. We performed univariate and multivariate analyses on the 403 patients treated surgically. The most significant predictors of the six-month mortality were dementia, postoperative chest infection, malignant neoplasia, old age and deep-wound infection, in that order. A simple test of mental ability was the most significant prognostic indicator and this test should be included in future studies of the management of hip fractures in the elderly.

High definition computed cervical myelograms have been made in flexion and extension in 13 patients with Morquio-Brailsford's disease. We observed that: 1) odontoid dysplasia was present in every case, with a hypoplastic dens and a detached distal portion which was not always ossified; 2) atlanto-axial instability was mild, and anterior atlanto-axial subluxation was absent in most cases; 3) severe spinal cord compression, when present, was due to anterior extradural soft-tissue thickening; 4) this compression was not relieved by flexing or extending the neck and was manifested early in life; 5) posterior occipitocervical fusion resulted in disappearance of the soft-tissue thickening and normalisation of subsequent development of the dens. We conclude that the severity of neurological involvement at the craniovertebral junction was determined by soft-tissue changes, not by the type of odontoid dysplasia nor by subluxation. Posterior occipitocervical fusion proved to be an effective treatment.

A prospective study of factors which might help to predict mortality in patients with intracapsular fractures of the femoral neck has been undertaken. A multivariate analysis technique was used to analyse the collected data, and it was found that mental ability was the most significant variable; this factor had the greatest effect on outcome.

Cervical myelopathy is an uncommon but potentially fatal complication of rheumatoid atlanto-axial subluxation. Computerised myelotomography with three-dimensional reconstruction shows that rheumatoid pannus, together with the odontoid peg, contributes significantly to anterior cervico-medullary compression. These findings were the basis for treatment by transoral anterior decompression and posterior occipitocervical fusion, which removes both bony and soft-tissue causes of compression and allows early mobilisation without major external fixation. We report encouraging results from this combined approach in 14 patients who had progressive neurological deterioration.

1. The distribution of isotope following a single injection of either Ca⁴⁵ or C¹⁴-proline has been studied in young rats in which one tibia had previously been removed, killed and reimplanted.

2. The dead tibia took up about 25 per cent as much Ca⁴⁵ or C¹⁴ as did the living tibia and the possible processes by which this occurred are discussed.

3. Determination of the "accretion rate " by kinetic analysis of the Ca⁴⁵ data showed that this was much too high unless the physico-chemical process of uptake of isotope by bone was taken into account.

4. Under the conditions of the experiment it was not possible to estimate the rate of bone matrix formation using C¹⁴-proline as a tracer.

1. The radiographs of paired living and dead rat tibiae, obtained in an experiment previously reported, have been examined by densitometry.

2. The dead bone became progressively less dense than the living bone as the duration of the implantation increased.

3. The change in density was related to the quantity, but not to the quality, of the bone tissue examined.

1 . A preliminary report is presented of a clinical trial to compare the results of early and late weight bearing in randomly selected patients of comparable age groups whose displaced femoral neck fractures were treated by internal fixation with a sliding nail-plate.

2. When 124 patients were assessed at three months and 107 at six months after operation there was no significant difference between those who started unguarded weight bearing two weeks after operation and those who avoided weight bearing for three months.

3. Early weight bearing appears to have no harmful effect on the early post-operative stability of this fracture when a sliding nail-plate is used for fixation.

4. Further information is necessary before any conclusion can be reached about the effect of early weight bearing on the ultimate fate of the fracture and of the femoral head. For this reason, and also to increase the numbers of patients in the series, the trial is continuing and the patients are being followed up for a three-year period.

1. It is now more than three years since a group of ninety-one patients with transcervical fracture of the neck of the femur were examined for osteoporosis at the time of injury using a histological or a radiographic technique, or a combination of both methods.

2. After patients with basal fractures were excluded, ninety fractures in eighty-eight patients were available for review and sixty-six (74 per cent) were adequately followed up.

3. In this series the fate of the fracture did not appear to be influenced by the presence or absence of osteoporosis, or by the degree of osteoporosis.

4. The incidence of osteoporosis increased with advancing age, but this increased incidence did not appear to be responsible for the greater proportion of failures after the age of sixty-five.

5. In this series of patients examination for osteoporosis was made by methods which were believed to be the best available at the time. The possibility that these are not absolutely reliable cannot be ruled out.