Gait Analysis and Functional Knee Scores in Primary Knee Osteoarthritis and Their Correlation with Progression of the Disease in the Indian Population.

Introduction: Osteoarthritis of the knee is a leading cause of disability and is a multi-factorial disease. Moreover, it is partly considered a mechanically driven disease in which higher abnormally disbursed forces play a prime role. With the progression of the disease, the gait function declines, so a comprehensive and objective evaluation of gait function would help in prognostic evaluation and management. Materials and Methods: This study included two groups: patients with primary knee osteoarthritis and a control group of healthy volunteers. Gait analysis and functional knee scores were evaluated for all the subjects. The KOOS score, temporal parameters excluding the step length, and spatial parameters excluding the stance phase percentage were evaluated for an individual as a whole. The KSS score, kinetic parameters, kinematic parameters, step length, and stance phase percentage were calculated for each knee separately. Each knee of the patient and controls was taken as 1 sample and categorized as per Kellgren-Lawrence score. An asymptomatic control group of subjects were included in group A. Symptomatic patients with KL grades 1, 2 were included in group M, and those with KL grades 3, 4 were included in group S. The kinetic and kinematic parameters and KSS score were compared among the three groups. Results: A total of 60 subjects were included of which 40 were patients and 20 were controls. In the control group, the age ranged from 22 to 48 years with a mean age of 28.6 years. In the patient group, the mean age was 60.3 years. Patients with knee osteoarthritis were significantly obese with slower walking speed, short stride length, longer stride time, and decreased cadence compared to the asymptomatic group. There was a significant difference in spatiotemporal parameters, functional scores, and kinetic and kinematic parameters among the groups. Conclusion: Various spatiotemporal, kinetic, and kinematic parameters like peak knee flexion angle, abduction/adduction angle, peak knee adduction moment, range of knee flexion, peak knee flexion, and gait deviation index along with functional scores varied significantly with the progression of the disease. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s43465-024-01103-9.

Anterior Root Tear of the Meniscus: A Report of Two Cases.

Menisci are crescent-shaped fibrocartilagenous structures that increase the tibiofemoral congruity, act as shock absorbers, and provide secondary anteroposterior stability. The root tears affect the biomechanical integrity of the whole meniscus, simulating a total meniscectomy, which can lead to early degeneration of the joint. Most of the root tears affect the posterior part rather than the anterior root. Very few reports have been described in the literature regarding anterior root tears and repairs. We present two such patients with anterior meniscal root tears, one of the lateral meniscus and one of the medial meniscus.

The Role of Conservative Management in the Avascular Necrosis of the Femoral Head: A Review of Systematic Reviews.

Introduction/Background: Multiple medical and surgical treatments have been described in the early stages of Avascular Necrosis (AVN) of the femoral head which delay the disease progression. Similarly, multiple studies, trials, reviews, and systematic reviews exist for the various treatments described and their outcomes but with no consensus over which is superior. So in this study, we reviewed the systematic reviews of all the conservative therapies for AVN of the femoral head systematically to identify a single or a combination of non-surgical treatment choices in the initial stages of the disease. Methodology: A thorough literature search has been carried out in January 2022 through the use of Pubmed, EMBASE, and Cochrane electronic databases using PRISMA guidelines. The Mesh words and Keywords used were "femoral head AVN", "Conservative management", and "Systematic Reviews". The inclusion criteria used during the screening were, any systematic reviews which included patients with AVN either idiopathic or secondary, who are managed with conservative therapies like bisphosphonates, Hyper Baric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT), Shock wave therapies like Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy (ESWT), or electrical therapy like Pulsed Electro Magnetic Field (PEMF). The quality of the included systematic reviews was assessed using AMSTAR-2 criteria. Results: The initial search yielded 364 studies which on screening based on our inclusion criteria finally resulted in seven systematic reviews to be included in the present study. There were two systematic reviews for Hyper Baric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT), two for Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy (ESWT), one for electrical stimulation modalities like Pulsed Electro Magnetic Field (PEMF), and two for bisphosphonates. The follow-up of the patients in the included systematic reviews varied from 6 weeks to 10 years. The total number of patients varied from 77 to over 1000 across the systematic reviews. Almost all of the studies included a control group that either received the intended treatment with adjuncts or did not receive any treatment at all. Because of the heterogeneous nature of included articles in the systematic reviews, meta-analysis was performed in only three of the included systematic reviews. Conclusion: Of all the modalities of treatment described, bisphosphonates are easily available and cost-effective and do not require any hospital resources/machinery for delivering the treatment. So they can be used as an initial line of treatment for patients with early stages of AVN (Ficat and Arlet 1-3) and based on the hospital availability of resources could be supplemented with any of the biophysical modalities (ESWT/PEMF/HBOT) for maximum efficacy to delay the disease progression. Level of Clinical Evidence: Systematic review. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s43465-023-00818-5.

Is there evidence to recommend transcatheter arterial embolisation in adhesive capsulitis: A review of literature.

BACKGROUND: Hypervascularity of the rotator interval with increased expression of the vascular endothelial growth factor may be the causative factor of conventionally managed adhesive capsulitis. Hence, transcatheter arterial embolisation(TAE) has emerged as an alternative treatment option to occlude the target neovessels by infusing an embolic agent. The present study reviews the literature regarding the efficacy of the TAE for adhesive capsulitis. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The systematic review was performed following PRISMA guidelines. MEDLINE, Google Scholar, Scopus and Cochrane database of systemic reviews (CDSR) were searched for relevant publication (from 1960 to 2021). The search algorithm used was Transcatheter arterial embolisation and resistant adhesive capsulitis or refractory adhesive capsulitis or vascular adhesive capsulitis. The database search produced a total of 12026 publications. After exclusion of the non relevant titles, 113 abstracts were reviewed. From these abstracts, three full-text articles were obtained for final review. RESULTS: All the studies were analyzed in depth. Patients with no or minimal improvement with conservative treatment for at least 3 months underwent TAE. Pre and post embolisation visual analog score(VAS), shoulder range of motion(ROM) were noted. Any additional therapy was also taken into account. Significant improvement of the VAS score and shoulder ROM was noted immediately after surgery and maintained till final follow up at 24.5 months. CONCLUSION: Resistant cases of adhesive capsulitis can be managed successfully with TAE. But ample evidence is lacking regarding the appropriate patient selection and efficacy of TAE as a sole management option of resistant AC.