Asymptomatic Gluteal Tendinosis Does Not Adversely Affect Outcomes of Primary Total Hip Arthroplasty.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to compare outcomes after total hip arthroplasty (THA) in patients who have preoperative asymptomatic gluteal tendinosis (aGT) to a control group with no gluteal tendinosis (GT). METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed using data from patients who underwent THA between March 2016 and October 2020. An aGT was diagnosed using hip magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) without clinical symptoms. Patients who had aGT were matched (1:1) to patients without GT on MRI. A total of 56 aGT hips and 56 hips without GT were found using propensity-score matching. Patient-reported outcomes, intraoperative macroscopic evaluation, outcome measurements, postoperative physical examinations, complications, and revisions were compared for both groups. RESULTS: When compared to preoperative outcomes, both groups demonstrated significant improvements in patients-reported outcomes at the final follow-up. There were no significant differences between both groups for preoperative scores, 2-year postoperative outcome scores, or the magnitude of improvement. Patients in the aGT group were significantly less likely to obtain the MCID for the SF-36 MCS score (50.2 versus 69.3%, P = .034). However, there were no other differences in the rates of meeting the MCID between both groups. The aGT group demonstrated significantly higher rates of partial tendon degeneration of the gluteus medius muscle. CONCLUSION: Asymptomatic gluteal tendinosis patients who have osteoarthritis and undergo THA may expect favorable patients-reported outcomes at minimum 2-year follow-up. These results were comparable with those of a control group of patients without gluteal tendinosis. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III.

Effectiveness of Arthroscopically Assisted Surgery for Ankle Arthrodesis.

Regarding the treatment of ankle arthritis, the choice of arthroscopic ankle arthrodesis (AAA) or open ankle arthrodesis (OAA) remains controversial. To guide clinical decision-making, we conducted a meta-analysis on the optimal treatment of ankle arthrodesis. We identified eligible studies published from June 1, 1969 to June 1, 2020 using the Cochrane Library, PubMed, OVID, Embase, and Medline searched the references of relevant studies. Randomized and non-randomized studies that compared outcomes of AAA and OAA were included. After the methodologic assessment, available data were extracted and statistically reviewed. The primary outcomes were overall complications rate, tourniquet time, length of the hospital stay, non-union rate, and rate to fusion. The secondary outcomes were delayed union and postoperative infection rate. We included 9 studies comparing arthroscopic and open in patients with ankle arthrodesis, comprising 467 participants. AAA had the advantage of demonstrating a lower overall complication rate (odds ratio [OR], 0.44 [95% confidence interval [CI], 0.26-0.73]; p = .002), shorter intraoperative tourniquet time (mean difference [MD], -16.49 [95% CI, -23.51 to -9.46]; p < .001), shorter length of the hospital stay (MD -1.75, 95% CI -1.94 to -1.2, p < .001),lower non-union rate (OR, -0.07 [95% CI, -0.13 to -0.02]; p <.01) and higher rate to fusion (OR, 4.2 [95% CI, 1.96-8.99]; p < .001) in comparison with OAA. Yet, no significant differences were found in delayed union (OR, 0.46 [95% CI, 0.10-2.04]; p = .30) and postoperative infection rate (OR, 0.45 [95% CI, 0.17-1.15]; p = .09) between the groups. Our results suggest that arthroscopic ankle arthrodesis is superior to open ankle arthrodesis alone in the treatment of ankle arthritis based on the overall complication rate, intraoperative tourniquet time, length of the hospital stay, non-union rate and rate to fusion. However, further high-quality randomized controlled trials with appropriate blinding methods are needed to confirm the findings.

Design and fabrication of polydopamine based superhydrophobic fabrics for efficient oil-water separation.

In this work, we prepare a PDMS-SiO2-PDA@fabric with high water contact angle (WCA = 155°). Combining dopamine self-polymerization and a sol-gel method, SiO2 is in situ grown on a PDA-modified fabric surface to synergistically construct micro-nano rough structures. Finally, a superhydrophobic fabric is successfully obtained after coating the fabric with a layer of PDMS. The prepared fabric can maintain superhydrophobicity after immersion in various solvents (pH = 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, DMF, ethanol, THF, n-hexane) for 24 h and strong ultraviolet irradiation for 60 min. Thanks to the highly reactive PDA clusters, the stronger interfacial bond between the fabric and SiO2 enables it to withstand 180 min of washing and 159.22 N tensile stress, showing strong adhesion strength. In addition, the modified fabric has excellent self-cleaning properties and is resistant to contamination such as milk, coffee and tea. More importantly, the prepared fabric can selectively repel water and adsorb oil, achieving above 90% oil-water separation efficiency even after 8 cycles.

Large-Scale Spraying Fabrication of Robust Fluorine-Free Superhydrophobic Coatings Based on Dual-Sized Silica Particles for Effective Antipollution and Strong Buoyancy.

With the rapid development of bionic science and manufacturing technology, superhydrophobic surfaces have received extensive attention and research. However, the cumbersome steps, high cost, fluorine pollution, and poor durability greatly restrict its commercial promotion and application. Here, a simple spraying method is used to construct wear-resistant superhydrophobic coatings on various substrates such as glass, filter paper, copper sheets, and polyethylene terephthalate films, using an integrated fluorine-free suspension consisting of silica micropowder, nanofumed silica, epoxy resin, and polydimethylsiloxane. The prepared superhydrophobic coating can withstand 75 sandpaper abrasion cycles and can still maintain good superhydrophobic performance after other physical tests (e.g., hand kneading and tape peeling after knife scraping). In addition, the coating is extremely water-repellent under harsh conditions such as strong UV irradiation and extreme chemical corrosive media. In the buoyancy test, the coated filter paper can bear 39 times its own gravity. This water-repellent interface also has the ability to self-clean in air and oil environments due to its ultralow adhesion to water droplets. Thanks to its simplicity, cheapness, and environmental friendliness, this superhydrophobic coating has promising applications in the fields of construction, chemicals, transportation, and electronics.