A pragmatic multicentre randomized controlled trial, UK FROzen Shoulder Trial (UK FROST), was conducted in the UK NHS comparing the cost-effectiveness of commonly used treatments for adults with primary frozen shoulder in secondary care. A cost utility analysis from the NHS perspective was performed. Differences between manipulation under anaesthesia (MUA), arthroscopic capsular release (ACR), and early structured physiotherapy plus steroid injection (ESP) in costs (2018 GBP price base) and quality adjusted life years (QALYs) at one year were used to estimate the cost-effectiveness of the treatments using regression methods.Aims
Methods
To describe the clinical, radiological, and functional outcomes in patients with isolated congenital thoracolumbar kyphosis who were treated with three-column osteotomy by posterior-only approach. Hospital records of 27 patients with isolated congenital thoracolumbar kyphosis undergoing surgery at a single centre were retrospectively analyzed. All patients underwent deformity correction which involved a three-column osteotomy by single-stage posterior-only approach. Radiological parameters (local kyphosis angle (KA), thoracic kyphosis (TK), lumbar lordosis (LL), pelvic tilt (PT), sacral slope (SS), C7 sagittal vertical axis (C7 SVA), T1 slope, and pelvic incidence minus lumbar lordosis (PI-LL)), functional scores, and clinical details of complications were recorded.Aims
Methods
Although lumbosacral transitional vertebrae (LSTV) are well-documented, few large-scale studies have investigated thoracolumbar transitional vertebrae (TLTV) and spinal numerical variants. This study sought to establish the prevalence of numerical variants and to evaluate their relationship with clinical problems. A total of 1,179 patients who had undergone thoracic, abdominal, and pelvic CT scanning were divided into groups according to the number of thoracic and lumbar vertebrae, and the presence or absence of TLTV or LSTV. The prevalence of spinal anomalies was noted. The relationship of spinal anomalies to clinical symptoms (low back pain, Japanese Orthopaedic Association score, Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire) and degenerative spondylolisthesis (DS) was also investigated.Aims
Methods
This study investigates the effects of intra-articular injection of adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (AdMSCs) and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) on lameness, pain, and quality of life in osteoarthritic canine patients. With informed owner consent, adipose tissue collected from adult dogs diagnosed with degenerative joint disease was enzymatically digested and cultured to passage 1. A small portion of cells (n = 4) surplus to clinical need were characterized using flow cytometry and tri-lineage differentiation. The impact and degree of osteoarthritis (OA) was assessed using the Liverpool Osteoarthritis in Dogs (LOAD) score, Modified Canine Osteoarthritis Staging Tool (mCOAST), kinetic gait analysis, and diagnostic imaging. Overall, 28 joints (25 dogs) were injected with autologous AdMSCs and PRP. The patients were followed up at two, four, eight, 12, and 24 weeks. Data were analyzed using two related-samples Wilcoxon signed-rank or Mann-Whitney U tests with statistical significance set at p < 0.05.Aims
Methods
The aim of this study was to explore parents and young people’s experience of having a medial epicondyle fracture, and their thoughts about the uncertainty regarding the optimal treatment. Families were identified after being invited to participate in a randomized controlled trial of surgery or no surgery for displaced medial epicondyle fractures of the humerus in children. A purposeful sample of 25 parents (22 females) and five young people (three females, mean age 11 years (7 to 14)) from 15 UK hospitals were interviewed a mean of 39 days (14 to 78) from injury. Qualitative interviews were informed by phenomenology and themes identified to convey participants’ experience.Aims
Methods
The aim of this study was to compare the clinical outcomes of robotic arm-assisted bi-unicompartmental knee arthroplasty (bi-UKA) with conventional mechanically aligned total knee arthroplasty (TKA) during the first six weeks and at one year postoperatively. A per protocol analysis of 76 patients, 43 of whom underwent TKA and 34 of whom underwent bi-UKA, was performed from a prospective, single-centre, randomized controlled trial. Diaries kept by the patients recorded pain, function, and the use of analgesics daily throughout the first week and weekly between the second and sixth weeks. Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) were compared preoperatively, and at three months and one year postoperatively. Data were also compared longitudinally and a subgroup analysis was conducted, stratified by preoperative PROM status.Aims
Methods
There are concerns regarding initial stability and early periprosthetic fractures in cementless hip arthroplasty using short stems. This study aimed to investigate stress on the cortical bone around the stem and micromotions between the stem and cortical bone according to femoral stem length and positioning. In total, 12 femoral finite element models (FEMs) were constructed and tested in walking and stair-climbing. Femoral stems of three different lengths and two different positions were simulated, assuming press-fit fixation within each FEM. Stress on the cortical bone and micromotions between the stem and bone were measured in each condition.Aims
Methods
We reviewed nine patients at a mean period of 11 years (6 to 16) after curettage and cementing of a giant-cell tumour around the knee to determine if there were any long-term adverse effects on the cartilage. Plain radiography, MRI, delayed gadolinium-enhanced MRI of the cartilage and measurement of the serum level of cartilage oligomeric matrix protein were carried out. The functional outcome was evaluated using the Lysholm knee score. Each patient was physically active and had returned to their previous occupation. Most participated in recreational sports or
To report early (two-year) postoperative findings from a randomized controlled trial (RCT) investigating disease-specific quality of life (QOL), clinical, patient-reported, and radiological outcomes in patients undergoing a total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA) with a second-generation uncemented trabecular metal (TM) glenoid versus a cemented polyethylene glenoid (POLY) component. Five fellowship-trained surgeons from three centres participated. Patients aged between 18 and 79 years with a primary diagnosis of glenohumeral osteoarthritis were screened for eligibility. Patients were randomized intraoperatively to either a TM or POLY glenoid component. Study intervals were: baseline, six weeks, six-, 12-, and 24 months postoperatively. The primary outcome was the Western Ontario Osteoarthritis Shoulder QOL score. Radiological images were reviewed for metal debris. Mixed effects repeated measures analysis of variance for within and between group comparisons were performed.Aims
Methods
The aims of this network meta-analysis (NMA) were to examine nonunion rates and functional outcomes following various operative and nonoperative treatments for displaced mid-shaft clavicle fractures. Initial search strategy incorporated MEDLINE, PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library for relevant randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Four treatment arms were created: nonoperative (NO); intramedullary nailing (IMN); reconstruction plating (RP); and compression/pre-contoured plating (CP). A Bayesian NMA was conducted to compare all treatment options for outcomes of nonunion, malunion, and function using the Disabilities of the Arm Shoulder and Hand (DASH) and Constant-Murley Shoulder Outcome scores.Aims
Methods
Ultrasound (US)-guided injections are widely used in patients with conditions of the shoulder in order to improve their accuracy. However, the clinical efficacy of US-guided injections compared with blind injections remains controversial. The aim of this study was to compare the accuracy and efficacy of US-guided compared with blind corticosteroid injections into the glenohumeral joint in patients with primary frozen shoulder (FS). Intra-articular corticosteroid injections were administered to 90 patients primary FS, who were randomly assigned to either an US-guided (n = 45) or a blind technique (n = 45), by a shoulder specialist. Immediately after injection, fluoroscopic images were obtained to assess the accuracy of the injection. The outcome was assessed using a visual analogue scale (VAS) for pain, the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons (ASES) score, the subjective shoulder value (SSV) and range of movement (ROM) for all patients at the time of presentation and at three, six, and 12 weeks after injection.Aims
Methods
We wanted to evaluate the effects of a bone anabolic agent (bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP-2)) on an anti-catabolic background (systemic or local zoledronate) on fixation of allografted revision implants. An established allografted revision protocol was implemented bilaterally into the stifle joints of 24 canines. At revision surgery, each animal received one BMP-2 (5 µg) functionalized implant, and one raw implant. One group (12 animals) received bone graft impregnated with zoledronate (0.005 mg/ml) before impaction. The other group (12 animals) received untreated bone graft and systemic zoledronate (0.1 mg/kg) ten and 20 days after revision surgery. Animals were observed for an additional four weeks before euthanasia.Aims
Methods
Osteoarthritis (OA) is characterized by persistent destruction of articular cartilage. It has been found that microRNAs (miRNAs) are closely related to the occurrence and development of OA. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the mechanism of miR-486 in the development and progression of OA. The expression levels of miR-486 in cartilage were determined by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). The expression of collagen, type II, alpha 1 (COL2A1), aggrecan (ACAN), matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-13, and a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs-4 (ADAMTS4) in SW1353 cells at both messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein levels was determined by qRT-PCR, western blot, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Double luciferase reporter gene assay, qRT-PCR, and western blot assay were used to determine whether silencing information regulator 6 (SIRT6) was involved in miR-486 induction of chondrocyte-like cells to a more catabolic phenotype.Aims
Methods
Osteoarthritis (OA) is prevalent among the elderly and incurable. Intra-articular parathyroid hormone (PTH) ameliorated OA in papain-induced and anterior cruciate ligament transection-induced OA models; therefore, we hypothesized that PTH improved OA in a preclinical age-related OA model. Guinea pigs aged between six and seven months of age were randomized into control or treatment groups. Three- or four-month-old guinea pigs served as the young control group. The knees were administered 40 μl intra-articular injections of 10 nM PTH or vehicle once a week for three months. Their endurance as determined from time on the treadmill was evaluated before kill. Their tibial plateaus were analyzed using microcalculated tomography (μCT) and histological studies.Aims
Methods
To study the associations of lumbar developmental spinal stenosis (DSS) with low back pain (LBP), radicular leg pain, and disability. This was a cross-sectional study of 2,206 subjects along with L1-S1 axial and sagittal MRI. Clinical and radiological information regarding their demographics, workload, smoking habits, anteroposterior (AP) vertebral canal diameter, spondylolisthesis, and MRI changes were evaluated. Mann-Whitney U tests and chi-squared tests were conducted to search for differences between subjects with and without DSS. Associations of LBP and radicular pain reported within one month (30 days) and one year (365 days) of the MRI, with clinical and radiological information, were also investigated by utilizing univariate and multivariate logistic regressions.Aims
Methods
We aimed to determine hip-related quality of life and clinical findings following treatment for neonatal hip instability (NHI) compared with age- and sex-matched controls. We hypothesized that NHI would predispose to hip discomfort in long-term follow-up. We invited those born between 1995 and 2001 who were treated for NHI at our hospital to participate in this population-based study. We included those that had Von Rosen-like splinting treatment started before one month of age. A total of 96 patients treated for NHI (75.6 %) were enrolled. A further 94 age- and sex-matched controls were also recruited. The Copenhagen Hip and Groin Outcome Score (HAGOS) questionnaire was completed separately for both hips, and a physical examination was performed.Aims
Methods
