1. The amount of orthopaedic surgery which is possible in patients with leprosy is immense. It is likely to decline with improved medical care as deformity rarely begins after the start of medical treatment. In spite of prolonged chemotherapy, skin smears often remain positive for more than five years and lifelong treatment may be necessary. 2. In Hong Kong the disease affects mainly those in the best working years of their lives and at an age when they should be best able to understand the benefits that treatment confers. Education of the public must be one of the main points of disease control. This education should extend to enable patients with anaesthetic extremities to learn the limitations that the disease places upon their activities. Thus they will be less liable to injure themselves and better able to prevent minor injuries from becoming serious. Ulceration only occurs in areas lacking protective sensation but, although bilateral anaesthesia is common, bilateral ulceration is not often seen. 3. In patients with diminished sensation or with paralysed
To assess complications and failure mechanisms of osteoarticular
allograft reconstructions for primary bone tumours. We retrospectively evaluated 38 patients (28 men, 74%) who were
treated at our institution with osteoarticular allograft reconstruction
between 1989 and 2010. Median age was 19 years (interquartile range
14 to 32). Median follow-up was 19.5 years (95% confidence interval
(CI) 13.0 to 26.1) when 26 patients (68%) were alive. In addition, we
systematically searched the literature for clinical studies on osteoarticular
allografts, finding 31 studies suitable for analysis. Results of
papers that reported on one site exclusively were pooled for comparison.Aims
Patients and Methods
Non-traumatic osteonecrosis of the femoral head
is a potentially devastating condition, the prevalence of which
is increasing. Many joint-preserving forms of treatment, both medical
and surgical, have been developed in an attempt to slow or reverse
its progression, as it usually affects young patients. However, it is important to evaluate the best evidence that is
available for the many forms of treatment considering the variation
in the demographics of the patients, the methodology and the outcomes
in the studies that have been published, so that it can be used
effectively. The purpose of this review, therefore, was to provide an up-to-date,
evidence-based guide to the management, both non-operative and operative,
of non-traumatic osteonecrosis of the femoral head. Cite this article:
The aims of this study were to examine the rate at which the
positioning of the acetabular component, leg length discrepancy
and femoral offset are outside an acceptable range in total hip
arthroplasties (THAs) which either do or do not involve the use
of intra-operative digital imaging. A retrospective case-control study was undertaken with 50 patients
before and 50 patients after the integration of an intra-operative
digital imaging system in THA. The demographics of the two groups
were comparable for body mass index, age, laterality and the indication
for surgery. The digital imaging group had more men than the group without.
Surgical data and radiographic parameters, including the inclination
and anteversion of the acetabular component, leg length discrepancy,
and the difference in femoral offset compared with the contralateral
hip were collected and compared, as well as the incidence of altering
the position of a component based on the intra-operative image.Aims
Patients and Methods
This prospective cohort study aims to determine if the size of
the tendon gap following acute rupture of the Achilles tendon shows
an association with the functional outcome following non-operative
treatment. All patients presenting within two weeks of an acute unilateral
rupture of the Achilles tendon between July 2012 and July 2015 were
considered for the study. In total, 38 patients (nine female, 29
male, mean age 52 years; 29 to 78) completed the study. Dynamic
ultrasound examination was performed to confirm the diagnosis and
measure the gap between ruptured tendon ends. Outcome was assessed
using dynamometric testing of plantarflexion and the Achilles tendon
Total Rupture score (ATRS) six months after the completion of a
rehabilitation programme.Aims
Patients and Methods
In recent years, the plantaris tendon has been
implicated in the development of chronic painful mid-portion Achilles tendinopathy.
In some cases, a thickened plantaris tendon is closely associated
with the Achilles tendon, and surgical excision of the plantaris
tendon has been reported to be curative in patients who have not
derived benefit following conservative treatment and surgical interventions. The aim of this review is to outline the basic aspects of, and
the recent research findings, related to the plantaris tendon, covering
anatomical and clinical studies including those dealing with histology,
imaging and treatment. Cite this article
Secondary fracture healing is strongly influenced by the stiffness of the bone-fixator system. Biomechanical tests are extensively used to investigate stiffness and strength of fixation devices. The stiffness values reported in the literature for locked plating, however, vary by three orders of magnitude. The aim of this study was to examine the influence that the method of restraint and load application has on the stiffness produced, the strain distribution within the bone, and the stresses in the implant for locking plate constructs. Synthetic composite bones were used to evaluate experimentally the influence of four different methods of loading and restraining specimens, all used in recent previous studies. Two plate types and three screw arrangements were also evaluated for each loading scenario. Computational models were also developed and validated using the experimental tests.Objectives
Methods
The objective of this study was to investigate the therapeutic effect of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMNCs) treated with quality and quantity control culture (QQ-culture) to expand and fortify angiogenic cells on the acceleration of fracture healing. Human PBMNCs were cultured for seven days with the QQ-culture method using a serum-free medium containing five specific cytokines and growth factors. The QQ-cultured PBMNCs (QQMNCs) obtained were counted and characterised by flow cytometry and real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Angiogenic and osteo-inductive potentials were evaluated using tube formation assays and co-culture with mesenchymal stem cells with osteo-inductive medium Objectives
Methods
Multimodal infiltration of local anaesthetic provides effective
control of pain in patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty (TKA).
There is little information about the added benefits of posterior
capsular infiltration (PCI) using different combinations of local
anaesthetic agents. Our aim was to investigate the effectiveness
of the control of pain using multimodal infiltration with and without
infiltration of the posterior capsule of the knee. In a double-blind, randomised controlled trial of patients scheduled
for unilateral primary TKA, 86 were assigned to be treated with
multimodal infiltration with (Group I) or without (Group II) PCI.
Routine associated analgesia included the use of bupivacaine, morphine,
ketorolac and epinephrine. All patients had spinal anaesthesia and patient-controlled
analgesia (PCA) post-operatively. A visual analogue scale (VAS)
for pain and the use of morphine were recorded 24 hours post-operatively.
Side effects of the infiltration, blood loss, and length of stay
in hospital were recorded.Aims
Patients and Methods
Periacetabular osteotomy is an effective way of treating symptomatic
hip dysplasia. We describe a new minimally invasive technique using
a modification of the Smith-Peterson approach. We performed a prospective, longitudinal cohort study to assess
for any compromise in acetabular correction when using this approach,
and to see if the procedure would have a higher complication rate
than that quoted in the literature for other approaches. We also
assessed for any improvement in functional outcome. From 168 consecutive patients (189 hips) who underwent acetabular
correction between March 2010 and March 2013 we excluded those who
had undergone previous pelvic surgery for DDH and those being treated
for acetabular retroversion. The remaining 151 patients (15 men,
136 women) (166 hips) had a mean age of 32 years (15 to 56) and the
mean duration of follow-up was 2.8 years (1.2 to 4.5). In all 90%
of cases were Tönnis grade 0 or 1. Functional outcomes were assessed
using the Non Arthritic Hip Score (NAHS), University of California,
Los Angeles (UCLA) and Tegner activity scores.Aims
Patients and Methods
The aim of this paper was to present the clinical features of
patients with musculoskeletal sources of methicillin-sensitive A total of 137 patients presented with MSSA septicaemia between
2012 and 2015. The primary source of infection was musculoskeletal
in 48 patients (35%). Musculoskeletal infection was considered the
primary source of septicaemia when endocarditis and other obvious
sources were excluded. All patients with an arthroplasty at the time
were evaluated for any prosthetic involvement. Aims
Patients and Methods
In the present study, we aimed to assess whether gelatin/β-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP) composite porous scaffolds could be used as a local controlled release system for vancomycin. We also investigated the efficiency of the scaffolds in eliminating infections and repairing osteomyelitis defects in rabbits. The gelatin scaffolds containing differing amounts of of β-TCP (0%, 10%, 30% and 50%) were prepared for controlled release of vancomycin and were labelled G-TCP0, G-TCP1, G-TCP3 and G-TCP5, respectively. The Kirby-Bauer method was used to examine the release profile. Chronic osteomyelitis models of rabbits were established. After thorough debridement, the osteomyelitis defects were implanted with the scaffolds. Radiographs and histological examinations were carried out to investigate the efficiency of eliminating infections and repairing bone defects.Objective
Methods
Tibiofemoral alignment is important to determine the rate of
progression of osteoarthritis and implant survival after total knee
arthroplasty (TKA). Normally, surgeons aim for neutral tibiofemoral
alignment following TKA, but this has been questioned in recent
years. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether varus or valgus
alignment indeed leads to increased medial or lateral tibiofemoral
forces during static and dynamic weight-bearing activities. Tibiofemoral contact forces and moments were measured in nine
patients with instrumented knee implants. Medial force ratios were
analysed during nine daily activities, including activities with
single-limb support (e.g. walking) and double-limb support (e.g.
knee bend). Hip-knee-ankle angles in the frontal plane were analysed
using full-leg coronal radiographs. Aims
Patients and Methods