We describe two boys with bilateral deformity of the upper end of the radius. The condition appears to predispose to non-traumatic posterior dislocation of the radial head and is associated with posterior bowing of the upper end of the ulna. This problem has not been previously described.

A clinical, radiological and histopathological study of femoral heads from 125 patients with fracture of the neck of the femur and from 30 cadavers was carried out to identify various risk factors. The findings showed that the Singh index was unreliable as a radiological indicator of the bone content of the femoral heads; that the bone content of the femoral head in patients sustaining a fracture of the femoral neck did not differ from that of the controls; that osteomalacia was not found in any of the heads examined; and that the distribution of trabecular microfractures did not support the hypothesis that fracture of the neck was the result of progressive fatigue. It was concluded that the single most important factor leading to fracture in this Australian population was injury caused by falls and that such injury was frequently associated with other disease processes.

Effective concentrations of antibiotic in the fluid bathing implanted hip prostheses are essential to prevent infection by micro-organisms. Twenty patients undergoing total hip replacement were given one gram of Cephradine intramuscularly one hour before operation and one other received a single bolus of Cephradine intravenously before operation and one other received a single bolus of Cephradine intravenously before operation. The concentrations of antibiotic were greater and persisted longer in the tissue fluid than in the blood. The antibiotic was sufficient to inhibit most micro-organisms causing contamination. We recommend that Cephradine is given intramuscularly one hour before operation and at six-hourly intervals after operation until the drainage tubes and intravenous lines have been removed.

A method is described of measuring the lumbar spinal canal by pulsed echo ultrasound. It is simple, safe and has a high degree of accuracy. The lumbar canal has been measured in over 800 subjects including 100 mining recruits and fifty nurses between the ages of fifteen and eighteen years. Ultrasound can demonstrate the degree and extent of bony stenosis. It may have value in preventive medicine, identifying the subject at risk.

The oblique sagittal diameter of the lumbar spinal canal was measured by diagnostic ultrasound in seventy-three patients with symptomatic disc lesions, and compared with measurements from 200 asymptomatic subjects. Results suggest that the available space in the spinal canal is highly significant in the symptomatology of disc lesions, and in the patient's response to treatment.