Relationship Between Age and Pathology With Treatment of Pediatric and Adolescent Discoid Lateral Meniscus: A Report From the SCORE Multicenter Database.

BACKGROUND: Surgical treatment options of discoid lateral meniscus in pediatric patients consist of saucerization with or without meniscal repair, meniscocapular stabilization, and, less often, subtotal meniscectomy. PURPOSE: To describe a large, prospectively collected multicenter cohort of discoid menisci undergoing surgical intervention, and further investigate corresponding treatment of discoid menisci. STUDY DESIGN: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. METHODS: A multicenter quality improvement registry (16 institutions, 26 surgeons), Sports Cohort Outcomes Registry, was queried. Patient characteristics, discoid type, presence and type of intrasubstance meniscal tear, peripheral rim instability, repair technique, and partial meniscectomy/debridement beyond saucerization were reviewed. Discoid meniscus characteristics were compared between age groups (<14 and >14 years old), based on receiver operating characteristic curve, and discoid morphology (complete and incomplete). RESULTS: In total, 274 patients were identified (mean age, 12.4 years; range, 3-18 years), of whom 55.6% had complete discoid. Meniscal repairs were performed in 55.1% of patients. Overall, 48.5% of patients had rim instability and 36.8% had >1 location of peripheral rim instability. Of the patients, 21.5% underwent meniscal debridement beyond saucerization, with 8.4% undergoing a subtotal meniscectomy. Patients <14 years of age were more likely to have a complete discoid meniscus (P < .001), peripheral rim instability (P = .005), and longitudinal tears (P = .015) and require a meniscal repair (P < .001). Patients ≥14 years of age were more likely to have a radial/oblique tear (P = .015) and require additional debridement beyond the physiologic rim (P = .003). Overall, 70% of patients <14 years of age were found to have a complete discoid meniscus necessitating saucerization, and >50% in this young age group required peripheral stabilization/repair. CONCLUSION: To preserve physiological "normal" meniscus, a repair may be indicated in >50% of patients <14 years of age but occurred in <50% of those >14 years. Additional resection beyond the physiological rim may be needed in 15% of younger patients and 30% of those aged >14 years.

Age, Sex, and BMI Differences Related to Repairable Meniscal Tears in Pediatric and Adolescent Patients.

BACKGROUND: The incidence of meniscus tears and ACL tears in pediatric patients continues to rise, bringing to question the risk factors associated with these injuries. As meniscus tears are commonly repaired in pediatric populations, the epidemiology of repairable meniscus tears is an important for consideration for surgeons evaluating treatment options. PURPOSE: To describe meniscal tear patterns in pediatric and adolescent patients who underwent meniscal repair across multiple institutions and surgeons, as well as to evaluate the relationship between age, sex, and body mass index (BMI) and their effect on the prevalence, type, and displacement of repaired pediatric meniscal tears. STUDY DESIGN: Case series; Level of evidence, 4. METHODS: Data within a prospective multicenter cohort registry for quality improvement, Sport Cohort Outcome Registry (SCORE), were reviewed to describe repaired meniscal tear patterns. All consecutive arthroscopic meniscal repairs from participating surgeons in patients aged <19 years were analyzed. Tear pattern, location, and displacement were evaluated by patient age, sex, and BMI. A subanalysis was also performed to investigate whether meniscal tear patterns differed between those occurring in isolation or those occurring with a concomitant anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury. Analysis of variance was used to generate a multivariate analysis of specified variables. Sex, age, and BMI results were compared across the cohort. RESULTS: There were 1185 total meniscal repairs evaluated in as many patients, which included 656 (55.4%) male and 529 (44.6%) female patients. Patients underwent surgery at a mean age of 15.3 years (range, 5-19 years), with a mean BMI of 24.9 (range, 12.3-46.42). Of the 1185 patients, 816 (68.9%) had ACL + meniscal repair and 369 (31.1%) had isolated meniscal repair. The male patients underwent more lateral tear repairs than the female patients (54.3% to 40.9%; P < .001) and had a lower incidence of medial tear repair (32.1% vs 41.4%; P < .001). Patients with repaired lateral tears had a mean age of 15.0 years, compared with a mean age of 15.4 years for patients with repaired medial or bilateral tears (P = .001). Higher BMI was associated with "complex" and "radial" tear repairs of the lateral meniscus (P < .001) but was variable with regard to medial tear repairs. CONCLUSION: In pediatric and adolescent populations, the data suggest that the surgical team treating knees with potential meniscal injury should be prepared to encounter more complex meniscal tears, commonly indicated in those with higher BMI, while higher rates of lateral meniscal tears were seen in male and younger patients. Future studies should analyze correlates for meniscal repair survival and outcomes in this pediatric cohort undergoing knee surgery.

Checklists in Femur Fractures: High Adherence After Implementation of Computer-based Pediatric Femur Guidelines.

INTRODUCTION: The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) created an evidence-based clinical practice guideline for the care of pediatric diaphyseal femur fractures in 2010. Our institution implemented checklists based off these guidelines embedded in a standardized EMR order. The purpose of this study was to describe compliance with checklist completion and to assess safety improvement in a large urban pediatric hospital. METHODS: Retrospective and prospective data were collected from 2 years before and 5 years after checklist implementation. This included the patient safety checklists from August 2011 through August 2016. Patients aged 0 to 18 years with a diaphyseal femur fracture were queried from the EMR and included in this study. Patient charts were reviewed for complications, including nerve injury, pressure sore, leg length discrepancy, loss of reduction, failure of fixation, nonunion, delayed union, and infection. Compliance rates were reported based on the AAOS clinical practice guidelines. RESULTS: A total of 313 patients for the postchecklist period were reviewed in this study. Of 219 patients eligible for inclusion, 198 had checklists completed (group B). This group was compared with 100 patients with diaphyseal femur fractures from the period before implementation of the checklist (group A). We found no statistical difference in the number of patients with complications between groups (12% in both groups, P = 0.988). Postoperative checklists demonstrated that 89.9% of patients (178/198) received age-appropriate treatment consistent with the AAOS guideline recommendations after implementation of the checklist. Before the checklist implementation (group A), 94% (94/100) adhered to the guidelines. CONCLUSION: This study reveals high compliance rates with the AAOS evidence-based clinical practice guideline for the management of pediatric femur fractures. Implementing standardized checklists is possible by embedding them into the EMR. Implementation of checklists did not improve compliance or patient outcomes.

Sex-Based Differences in Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries Among United States High School Soccer Players: An Epidemiological Study.

BACKGROUND: Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears are common among high school athletes, with sex-based differences accounting for higher injury rates in girls. Previous epidemiological studies on ACL injuries focusing on adolescent athletes have looked at injuries across multiple sports, but few have analyzed ACL tears in solely high school soccer athletes. PURPOSE: To examine sex-based differences in the epidemiology of ACL injuries among high school soccer players in the United States (US). STUDY DESIGN: Descriptive epidemiological study. METHODS: ACL injury data for US high school soccer players were obtained from the internet-based National High School Sports-Related Injury Surveillance Study's High School RIO (Reporting Information Online) system. Athletic trainers from a random sample of 100 high schools from 8 strata based on US Census geographic region reported data for athlete-exposures (AEs) (practice or competition) and ACL injuries from 2007 through 2017. Injury rates were calculated as the number of ACL injuries per 100,000 AEs. Subgroup differences were evaluated with rate ratios (RRs) or injury proportion ratios (IPRs) and 95% CIs. Statistical differences in demographics between groups were examined using independent t tests. Comparisons of categorical data (ie, level of play) were performed using the Wald chi-square test. RESULTS: The reported number of ACL injuries corresponded to weighted national estimates of 41,025 (95% CI, 33,321-48,730) ACL injuries in boys' soccer and 110,028 (95% CI, 95,349-124,709) in girls' soccer during the study period. The rate of injuries was higher in girls' soccer (13.23/100,000 AEs) than boys' soccer (4.35/100,000 AEs) (RR, 3.04 [95% CI, 2.35-3.98]). The rate of ACL injuries was higher in competition compared with practice for girls (RR, 14.77 [95% CI, 9.85-22.15]) and boys (RR, 8.69 [95% CI, 5.01-15.08]). Overall, a smaller proportion of ACL injuries were caused by player-player contact for girls (30.1%) compared with boys (48.6%) (IPR, 0.62 [95% CI, 0.41-0.93]). CONCLUSION: ACL injury rates and patterns in high school soccer players differed between sex, type of exposure (practice vs competition), and mechanism of injury.

Surgical Treatment for FAI: Arthroscopic and Open Techniques for Osteoplasty.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: To review the relevant literature and techniques regarding arthroscopic and open treatment of femoroacetabular impingement (FAI). To discuss both the senior authors' preferred method of arthroscopic and open treatment of FAI. RECENT FINDINGS: Routine treatment of FAI has moved away from open techniques and is more focused arthroscopic methods. Arthroscopic treatment of FAI has more recently focused on differing techniques of hip access and capsular management. Open techniques still have a role in FAI, but indications for open management are focused on cases with more severe pathology. While arthroscopic techniques have shown better outcomes in the short term and higher return to play, it is not without risk and is a procedure with a steep learning curve. In cases of complex joint pathology, such as FAI coupled with dysplasia or Legg-Calve-Perthes, arthroscopy may be not indicated and an open approach preferred. We outline various techniques for both arthroscopic and open treatment of FAI and their outcomes when possible.

The Evaluation of Comorbidities Relative to Length of Stay for Total Joint Arthroplasty Patients.

BACKGROUND: The ability to identify those at risk for longer inpatient stay helps providers with postoperative planning and patient expectations. Decreasing length of stay (LOS) in the future will be determined by appropriate patient selection, risk stratification, and preoperative patient optimization. The purpose of this study was to identify factors that place patients at risk for extended postoperative LOSs. METHODS: The study cohort included 2009 primary total knee arthroplasty (TKA) patients and 905 total hip arthroplasty (THA) patients. Patient comorbidities were prospectively identified and the LOS for each patient was tracked after a primary arthroplasty. Statistical analysis was performed to correlate which comorbidities were associated with longer inpatient stays. RESULTS: In the TKA population, gender, smoking status, venous thromboembolism history, body mass index, and diabetes status were not found to be a significant predictor for the LOS. Age was found to be a factor in univariate regression testing (P < .001). In the THA population, univariate testing showed female gender (P < .001), smoking status (P = .002), and age (P < .001) to be factors, but like the TKA population, venous thromboembolism history or diabetes status was not significant. In THA multivariate analysis, age (P < .001) and female gender (P = .018) continued to be factors, but smoking was determined to be a confounding variable. CONCLUSION: Age and gender were associated with a longer LOS after THA, whereas only age was a significant factor after TKA. Development of age-adjusted LOS models may help aid patient expectations and risk management.