Necrotizing fasciitis of the extremities in high and low Charlson Comorbidity Index: A multi-center retrospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Necrotizing fasciitis (NF) is a life-threatening and acute progressive soft tissue infection and needs early surgical intervention, that is, debridement or amputation. Surgical strategy or prognosis is influenced by the speed of progression and patients' general condition, which can be calculated by the Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI). The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between the CCI scores and prognosis of patients with NF of the upper/lower extremities. METHODS: In the retrospective cohort study, we analyzed patients with NF of the upper/lower extremities who were determined to undergo surgery by orthopedic surgeons at four tertiary hospitals between August 2003 and April 2016. We divided the patients into two groups, Group L (low CCI scores of 0-2) and Group H (high CCI scores of ≥3). The primary event of this study was defined as death or amputation. Mortality cases were included when amputation was informed with documented certification but patients died while waiting for surgery. We compared the patients' background, laboratory data on admission, the laboratory risk indicator for necrotizing fasciitis (LRINEC) score, and primary outcome between the two groups. RESULTS: Of the 56 patients, 28 patients were classified into Group L and the other 28 patients into Group H. The data in this study showed that patients in Group H had lower white blood cell counts and hemoglobin and higher creatinine than Group L, but there was no difference in LRINEC scores between the two groups. Streptococcus pyogenes was the most common infectious agent in Group L (54%) but not in Group H (11%). Poorer outcome was observed in Group H compared with Group L (4 mortality and 16 amputation vs. no mortality and 9 amputation, P = 0.007). CONCLUSIONS: Laboratory data and causative microorganisms were different between high CCI and low CCI patients with NF. High CCI scores were associated with limb amputation or death caused by NF of the upper/lower extremities; whereas, low CCI scores were more likely associated with S. pyogenes monoinfection.

Association Between Normothermia at the End of Surgery and Postoperative Complications Following Orthopedic Surgery.

BACKGROUND: Maintaining perioperative normothermia is recommended by recent guidelines for the prevention of surgical site infections (SSIs). However, the majority of supporting data originates outside the field of orthopaedic surgery. METHODS: The effect of normothermia was explored using the prospectively collected data of consecutive patients who underwent single-site surgery in 7 tertiary referral hospitals between November 2013 and July 2016. SSIs, urinary tract infections (UTIs), respiratory tract infections (RTIs), cardiac and cerebral events (CCE), and all-cause mortality rates within 30 days after surgery were compared between patients with normothermia (body temperature ≥36°C) and those with hypothermia (<36°C) at the end of surgery, after closure. Multivariable adjusted and inverse-probability weighted regression analyses were performed. RESULTS: The final cohort included 8841 patients. Of these, 11.4% (n = 1008) were hypothermic. More than 96% were evaluated in person by the physicians. After adjusting for multiple covariates, normothermia was not significantly associated with SSIs (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.18, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.59-2.33), UTIs (aOR 1.14, 95% CI 0.66-1.95), RTIs (aOR 0.60, 95% CI 0.31-1.19), or CCE (aOR 0.53, 95% CI 0.26-1.09). In contrast, normothermia was associated with a lower risk of 30-day mortality (aOR 0.26, 95% CI 0.11-0.64; P < .01; weighted hazard ratio 0.21, 95% CI 0.07-0.68; P = .002). In a subgroup analysis, normothermia was associated with reduced mortality in all types of surgical procedures. CONCLUSIONS: Whereas our findings suggest no clear association with SSI risks following orthopedic surgery, our study supports maintaining perioperative normothermia, as it is associated with reduced 30-day mortality.

A sliding scale to predict postoperative complications undergoing posterior spine surgery.

BACKGROUND: There is a lack of consensus of operative time (OT) and estimated blood loss (EBL) for elderly patients based on the predicted risk of complications after posterior spine surgery. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of age, OT, and EBL on the postoperative complication risk and to develop a simple sliding scale. METHODS: We explored prospectively collected data of consecutive patients who underwent posterior spine surgery in seven tertiary referral hospitals from November 2013 to May 2016. Age (<70, 70-74, 75-79, 80-84, ≥85 years), OT (<2, 2-<3, 3-<4, 4-<5, ≥5 h), and EBL (<500, 500-<1000, 1000-<1500, 1500-<2000, ≥2000 ml) were categorized ranging from 1 (lowest) to 5 (highest). The association between the crude cumulative categories' number and the incidence of complications was analyzed. We further evaluated the association by re-categorizing the cumulative number into three groups (3-4, 5-10, ≥11). RESULTS: Total of 2416 patients (median age: 70 years old) were enrolled and major complications were observed in 75 (3.1%) patients. Age, OT, and EBL showed similar odds ratio (1.18-1.19) as each category increased. The cumulative categories' number fitted the estimate complication risk (Hosmer-Lemeshow P = 0.87), and statistically significant trend was observed between predicted and actual complication rates (Cochran-Armitage test, P < 0.001). When cumulative categories' numbers were stratified into three groups, significant increasing trend of risk were observed (Mantel-Haenszel P < 0.001). Based on the categorical numbers, we proposed a simple sliding scale. CONCLUSION: Our data indicated that the risk of postoperative complication was associated with cumulative score based on increased age, OT, and EBL. A simple sliding scale was developed based on these factors, which may be useful to predict complication risk after posterior spine surgery.

Acute complete paraplegia of 8-year-old girl caused by spinal cord infarction following minor trauma complicated with longitudinal signal change of spinal cord.

INTRODUCTION: Spinal cord infarction followed by minor trauma in pediatric patients is rare and causes serious paralysis. Fibrocartilaginous embolism (FCE) is a possible diagnosis and there have been no consecutive magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) reports. Here, we report a case of an acute complete paraplegia with spinal cord infarction and longitudinal spinal cord signal change following minor trauma in an 8-year-old girl. CASE DESCRIPTION: An 8-year-old girl presented to our hospital emergency services with total paraplegia 2 h after she hit her back and neck after doing a handstand and falling down. She completely lost pain, temperature sensation, and a sense of vibration below her bilateral anterior thighs. Four hours later on MRI, the T2-weighted sequence showed no spinal cord compression or signal change in vertebral bodies. The patient was treated with rehabilitation after complete bed rest. A week after the trauma, the T2-weighted sequence indicated longitudinal extension of the lesion between T11 and C6 vertebral level with ring-shaped signal change. In addition, the diffusion-weighted MRI showed increased signal below C6 vertebral level. Two weeks after the trauma, we performed the T2 star sequence images, which showed minor bleeding at T11 vertebral area and spinal cord edema below C6. Four weeks after the trauma, MRI showed minor lesion at C6 vertebral level, but spinal cord atrophy was observed at T11 vertebral level without disc signal change. Thirteen weeks after the trauma, her cervical spinal cord became almost intact and severe atrophy of the spinal cord at T11 vertebral level. At 1 year following her injury, complete paraplegia remained with sensory loss below T11 level. CONCLUSION: Her clinical presentation, lack of evidence for other plausible diagnosis, and consecutive MRI findings made FCE at T11 vertebral level with pencil-shaped softening the most likely diagnosis. In addition, consecutive cervical MRI indicated minor cervical spinal cord injury. This Grand Round case highlights the consecutive MRI in a case with double spinal cord lesion with longitudinal spinal cord signal change.

Early versus delayed reduction of cervical spine dislocation with complete motor paralysis: a multicenter study.

PURPOSE: Reduction of cervical facet dislocation should be performed as soon as possible to depressurize neuron cells although some randomized control studies defined early reduction as over 24 h after trauma. The purpose of this study was to define the actual time limit for early reduction in patients with complete motor paralysis. METHODS: Cervical spine dislocation patients with complete motor paralysis admitted between April 2007 and December 2014 were analyzed as retrospective cohort study. We separated the patients into three groups according to the number of hours lapsed between the trauma and reduction, within 4 h (very early group), >4-6 h (early group), and >6 h (delayed group). We compared the neurological outcomes, patient injury patterns, the arrival time at the hospital, and the injury severity score (ISS). RESULTS: Of 30 patients who enrolled, 8 (27%) were recovered to American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale Grades C-E. The delayed group had poorer neurological outcomes than the very early group and early group, although no significant differences were noted in the recovery rate between the very early group and early groups. The injury pattern, arrival time, and ISS were not found to be associated with the neurological outcome. CONCLUSION: Our data suggest that early (<6 h) reduction of cervical spine dislocation is associated with favorable neurological outcome as compared with those performed after 6 h.

Direct Damage to a Vertebral Artery Better Predicts a Vertebral Artery Injury than Elongation in Cervical Spine Dislocation.

Cervical spine dislocation and fracture of a transverse process are isolated risk factors for vertebral artery injuries (VAIs), which can cause a life-threatening ischemic stroke. Since in vivo experiments are not possible, it has not been unclear whether damage to or extension of vertebral arteries is more predictive of a VAI. To identify the imaging characteristics associated with VAI, we analyzed 36 vertebral arteries from 22 cervical spine dislocation patients who underwent computed tomography angiography (Aug. 2008-Dec. 2014). We evaluated (1) the posttraumatic elongation of the vertebral artery and (2) the presence of fracture involving the transverse foramen. VAI was found in 20 (56%) of the 36 vertebral arteries. The rate of residual shift (vertebral artery elongation) was not markedly different between the VAI and no-VAI groups. However, the rate of >1 mm displacement into the foramen and that of fracture with gross displacement (≥2 mm) differed significantly between the groups. We found that greater displacement of fractured transverse processes with cervical spine dislocation was a risk factor for VAI. These results suggest that direct damage to the vertebral arteries by transverse process fragments is more likely to predict a VAI compared to elongation, even in cervical spine dislocation.

High visibility colored fabrics for normal trichromats and individuals with color vision defects in a sunset-simulated environment.

This study aimed to investigate the visibility of colors in congenitally color vision defect people using general and fluorescent colors in an environment simulating sunset to examine the standards for high-visibility safety clothing for general users. Twenty participants with normal trichromats, seven protanopes, and five deuteranopes were included, with mean ages (± standard deviation) of 21.0±1.0, 46,7±16.1, and 56.6±6.9 years, respectively. Dyed fabrics were used to evaluate visibility. We evaluated brightness and conspicuousness sensitivity by combining red, yellow-red, yellow, green, red-purple, blue, white, black, fluorescent yellow, and fluorescent orange. For brightness sensitivity, the combination of fluorescent yellow and white/yellow stripes was highly visible and significantly different from all other samples (p < 0.05). For conspicuousness sensitivity, the combinations of black/fluorescent yellow, black/yellow, black/white, black/yellow-red, and white/red-purple stripes were highly visible and significantly different from all the other samples (p < 0.05). Yellow light is most visible and even better when fluorescent. They are based on specific spectral sensitivity, and yellow is the most visible, even for congenitally colorblind individuals. Furthermore, with regard to color combinations, it was found that the contrast between two distinct light or dark colors, such as black, yellow, black, and white, is perceived to be equally noticeable by congenital color vision defect individuals. This suggests the possible further applications of safety clothing.

Vertebral body fracture of the lumbar spine in elderly women: more severe in osteoarthritis of the knee than in femoral neck fracture.

This study investigated bone fragility by comparing fractures of the vertebral body of the spine in elderly women receiving total knee replacement (TKR) (group 1) due to severe osteoarthritis of the knee and those with femoral neck fractures (group 2) attributable to osteoporosis. Forty-two women each were selected retrospectively for group 1 and prospectively for group 2. Patient age ranged from 64-83 years. Vertebral body fractures of the lumbar spine were significantly more severe in group 1 than in group 2 (P<.001). Patients undergoing TKR due to osteoarthritis of the knee had systemic bone fragility, which included the spine.

Ultrasound velocity in the tibia in Japanese patients with hip fracture.

The speed of sound in the tibia (tibial SOS) was measured in elderly women to determine whether the tibial SOS declined with age, similarly to bone mineral density (BMD), as determined by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), and whether the tibial SOS in elderly hip fracture patients was lower than that in a control group. The subjects in this study included 38 female patients with hip fracture aged 65 years or more and 38 age-matched women living in a nursing home as the control group. There was a significant decline in the tibial SOS with age in women in the control group, but not in those with hip fracture. In all subjects aged under 80 years, the tibial SOS in women with hip fracture was significantly lower than that in women in the control group. In all subjects who were 80 years or older, the tibial SOS was not significantly different between women with hip fracture and the control group; thus, the tibial SOS in both groups was low, and they were considered to have progressive osteoporosis. The tibial ultrasound velocity can be expected to be useful as an indicator of the risk of limb fracture in the elderly.