Hip Arthroscopy Improves Sexual Function in Receptive Partners with Femoroacetabular Impingement Syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Hip pain due to femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) is thought to adversely impact sexual satisfaction because of exacerbation of symptoms with hip ROM. However, the effect of FAI on sexual satisfaction and improvement after surgery to treat FAI is largely absent from published studies, despite patients' apparent interest in it as registered by the frequent appearance of these topics on online anonymous discussion platforms. In addition, details regarding its impact on the decision to pursue surgery and the success of hip arthroscopy in alleviating FAI-related sexual dysfunction based on the specific role assumed during intercourse (penetrative versus receptive) remains unknown. QUESTIONS/PURPOSES: Given that sexual intercourse involves different amounts of hip ROM depending on whether patients assume the penetrative or receptive role, this study evaluated the effect of FAI and hip arthroscopy on sexual activity based on role. Compared with patients who participate in the penetrative role during sexual intercourse, do patients who participate in the receptive role (1) experience greater difficulty with sexual function because of FAI symptoms, (2) take longer to return to sexual intercourse after hip arthroscopy, and (3) experience greater improvements in reported sexual function after hip arthroscopy for FAI? METHODS: This was a retrospective cohort study of patients undergoing hip arthroscopy for FAI. Between January 2017 and December 2021, 293 patients were treated with hip arthroscopy for FAI and enrolled in our longitudinally maintained database. Among all patients treated surgically, 184 patients were determined to be potentially eligible for study inclusion based on a minimum follow-up of 6 months postoperatively. The 6-month timepoint was chosen based on published data suggesting that at this timepoint, nearly 100% of patients resumed sexual intercourse with minimal pain after hip arthroscopy. Of the potentially eligible patients, 33% (61 patients) could not be contacted by telephone to obtain verbal consent for participation and 9% (17 patients) declined participation, leaving 106 eligible patients. Electronic questionnaires were sent to all eligible patients and were returned by 58% (61 patients). Forty-two percent of eligible patients (45) did not respond to the questionnaire and were therefore excluded from the analysis. Two percent (2) completed most survey questions but did not specify their role during intercourse and were therefore excluded. The mean age of included patients was 34 ± 9 years, and 56% were women The mean follow-up time was 2 ± 1 years. In total, 63% of included patients reported participating in the receptive role during sexual intercourse (49% receptive only and 14% both receptive and penetrative). Hip symptoms during sexual intercourse preoperatively and postoperatively were evaluated using a questionnaire created by our team to answer our study questions, drawing from one of the only published studies on the matter and combining the questionnaire with sexual position-specific questions garnered from arthroplasty research. Patients who reported participating in the receptive role during intercourse (either exclusively or in addition to the penetrative role) were compared with those who participated exclusively in the penetrative role. There were no specific postoperative recommendations in terms of the timing of return to sexual intercourse, other than to resume when comfortable. RESULTS: Overall, 61% of patients (36 of 59) reported that hip pain somewhat or greatly interfered with sexual intercourse preoperatively. Patients who participated in receptive intercourse were more likely to experience preoperative hip pain that interfered with intercourse than patients who participated exclusively in penetrative intercourse (odds ratio 5 [95% confidence interval 2 to 15]; p = <0.001). Postoperatively, there was no difference in time until return to sexual activity between those in the penetrative group (median 6 weeks [range 2 to 14 weeks]) and those in the receptive group (median 6 weeks [range 4 to 14 weeks]; p = 0.28). Postoperatively, a greater number of patients participating in the penetrative role reported no or very little pain, compared with patients participating in the receptive role (67% [14 of 21] versus 49% [17 of 35]). However, with regard to preoperative to postoperative improvement, patients who participated in the receptive role had greater pain with positions involving more hip flexion and abduction and experienced a greater improvement than their penetrative counterparts in these positions postoperatively. Despite this improvement, however, 33% of patients (7 of 21) participating in the penetrative role and 51% of patients (18 of 35) participating in the receptive role continued to report either some or a great amount of pain at final follow-up. CONCLUSION: Hip pain secondary to FAI interferes with sexual relations, particularly for partners who participate in the receptive role. Postoperatively, both patients participating in receptive and penetrative intercourse resumed sexual intercourse at a median of 6 weeks. After hip arthroscopy, the greatest improvement in pain was seen in receptive partners during sexual positions that involved more hip flexion and abduction. Despite this improvement, most patients, regardless of sexual role assumed, reported some degree of residual pain. Patients planning to undergo arthroscopic surgery for FAI, particularly those who participate in receptive intercourse, should be appropriately counseled about reasonable postoperative expectations based on our findings. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III, therapeutic study.

Patients With Moderate to Severe Liver Cirrhosis Have Significantly Higher Short-Term Complication Rates Following Total Knee Arthroplasty: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: Liver cirrhosis is associated with increased perioperative morbidity. Our study used the Model for End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) score to assess the impact of cirrhosis severity on postoperative outcomes following total knee arthroplasty (TKA). METHODS: A retrospective review identified 59 patients with liver cirrhosis who underwent primary TKA at a large, urban, academic center from January 2013 to August 2022. Cirrhosis was categorized as mild (MELD < 10; n = 47) or moderate-severe (MELD ≥ 10; n = 12). Modified Clavien-Dindo classification was used to grade complications, where grade 2+ denoted significant intervention. Hospital length of stay, nonhome discharge, and mortality were collected. A 1:1 propensity matching was used to control for demographics and selected comorbidities. RESULTS: Moderate-severe cirrhosis was associated with significantly higher rates of intrahospital overall (58.33 versus 16.67%, P = .036) complications, 30-day overall complications (75 versus 33.33%, P = .042), and 90-day overall complications (75 versus 33.33%, P = .042) when compared to matched mild cirrhosis patients. Compared to matched noncirrhotic controls, mild cirrhosis patients had no significant increase in complication rate or other outcomes (P > .05). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with moderate-severe liver cirrhosis are at risk of short-term complications following primary TKA. Patients with mild cirrhosis have comparable outcomes to matched noncirrhotic patients. Surgeons can use MELD score prior to scheduling TKA to determine which patients require optimization or higher levels of perioperative care.

Class I Obesity Delays Achievement of Patient-Acceptable Symptom State but Not Minimum Clinically Important Difference or Substantial Clinical Benefit After Primary Hip Arthroscopy for Femoroacetabular Impingement Syndrome.

PURPOSE: To identify differences in the time taken to achieve the minimum clinically important difference (MCID), substantial clinical benefit (SCB), and patient-acceptable symptom state (PASS) following primary hip arthroscopy for the treatment of femoroacetabular impingement syndrome (FAIS) among patients of different body mass index (BMI) categories. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective comparative study of hip arthroscopy patients with minimum 2-year follow-up. BMI categories were defined as normal (18.5 ≤ BMI < 25.0), overweight (25.0 ≤ BMI <30.0), or class I obese (30.0≤BMI<35.0). All subjects completed the modified Harris Hip Score (mHHS) prior to surgery and at 6 months, 1 year, and 2 years postoperative. MCID and SCB cutoffs were defined as pre-to-postoperative increases in mHHS by ≥8.2 and ≥19.8, respectively. PASS cutoff was set at postoperative mHHS ≥74. Time to achievement of each milestone was compared using the interval-censored EMICM algorithm. The effect of BMI was adjusted for age and sex using an interval-censored proportional hazards model. RESULTS: 285 patients were included in the analysis: 150 (52.6%) normal BMI, 99 (34.7%) overweight, and 36 (12.6%) obese. Obese patients had lower mHHS at baseline (P = .006) and at 2-year follow-up (P = .008). There were no significant intergroup differences in time to achievement for MCID (P = .92) or SCB (P = .69), but obese patients had longer time to PASS than normal BMI patients (P = .047). Multivariable analysis found obesity to be predictive of longer time to PASS (HR = .55; P = .007) but not MCID (HR = 0.91; P = .68) or SCB (HR = 1.06; P = .30). CONCLUSIONS: Class I obesity is associated with delays in achieving a literature-defined PASS threshold after primary hip arthroscopy for FAIS. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III, retrospective comparative study.

Reprint of: Class I Obesity Delays Achievement of Patient-Acceptable Symptom State but Not Minimum Clinically Important Difference or Substantial Clinical Benefit After Primary Hip Arthroscopy for Femoroacetabular Impingement Syndrome.

PURPOSE: To identify differences in the time taken to achieve the minimum clinically important difference (MCID), substantial clinical benefit (SCB), and patient-acceptable symptom state (PASS) following primary hip arthroscopy for the treatment of femoroacetabular impingement syndrome (FAIS) among patients of different body mass index (BMI) categories. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective comparative study of hip arthroscopy patients with minimum 2-year follow-up. BMI categories were defined as normal (18.5 ≤ BMI < 25.0), overweight (25.0 ≤ BMI <30.0), or class I obese (30.0≤BMI<35.0). All subjects completed the modified Harris Hip Score (mHHS) prior to surgery and at 6 months, 1 year, and 2 years postoperative. MCID and SCB cutoffs were defined as pre-to-postoperative increases in mHHS by ≥8.2 and ≥19.8, respectively. PASS cutoff was set at postoperative mHHS ≥74. Time to achievement of each milestone was compared using the interval-censored EMICM algorithm. The effect of BMI was adjusted for age and sex using an interval-censored proportional hazards model. RESULTS: 285 patients were included in the analysis: 150 (52.6%) normal BMI, 99 (34.7%) overweight, and 36 (12.6%) obese. Obese patients had lower mHHS at baseline (P = .006) and at 2-year follow-up (P = .008). There were no significant intergroup differences in time to achievement for MCID (P = .92) or SCB (P = .69), but obese patients had longer time to PASS than normal BMI patients (P = .047). Multivariable analysis found obesity to be predictive of longer time to PASS (HR = .55; P = .007) but not MCID (HR = 0.91; P = .68) or SCB (HR = 1.06; P = .30). CONCLUSIONS: Class I obesity is associated with delays in achieving a literature-defined PASS threshold after primary hip arthroscopy for FAIS. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III, retrospective comparative study.

Patients aged 50-75 years take longer to achieve the patient acceptable symptom state than patients aged 20-34 years following primary hip arthroscopy for femoroacetabular impingement syndrome.

PURPOSE: Though an increasing number of adults older than 50 years are undergoing hip arthroscopy for treatment of Femoroacetabular Impingement Syndrome (FAIS), it is unclear how their timeline for functional outcome improvement compares to that of younger patients. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of age on time to achieving the Minimum Clinically Important Difference (MCID), Substantial Clinical Benefit (SCB), and Patient Acceptable Symptom State (PASS) following primary hip arthroscopy for FAIS. METHODS: A retrospective comparative single-surgeon cohort study of primary hip arthroscopy patients with minimum 2-year follow-up was conducted. Age categories were 20-34 years, 35-49 years, and 50-75 years. All subjects completed the modified Harris Hip Score (mHHS) prior to surgery and at 6-month, 1-year, and 2-year follow-up. MCID and SCB cutoffs were defined as pre-to-postoperative increases in mHHS by ≥ 8.2 and ≥ 19.8, respectively. PASS cutoff was set at postoperative mHHS ≥ 74. Time to achievement of each milestone was compared using interval-censored survival analysis. The effect of age was adjusted for Body Mass Index (BMI), sex, and labral repair technique using an interval-censored proportional hazards model. RESULTS: Two hundred eighty-five patients were included in the analysis with 115 (40.4%) aged 20-34 years, 92 (32.3%) aged 35-49 years, and 78 (27.4%) aged 50-75 years. There were no significant differences between groups in time to achievement for the MCID (n.s.) or SCB (n.s.). However, patients in the oldest group had significantly longer time to PASS than those in the youngest group, both in the unadjusted analysis (p = 0.02) and after adjusting for BMI, sex, and labral repair technique (HR 0.68, 95% CI 0.48-0.96, p = 0.03). CONCLUSION: Achievement of the PASS, but not the MCID or SCB, is delayed among FAIS patients aged 50-75 years who undergo primary hip arthroscopy compared to those aged 20-34 years. Older FAIS patients should be counseled appropriately about their longer timeline to achieving hip function comparable to their younger counterparts. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III.

Medial quadriceps tendon femoral ligament reconstruction and medial patellofemoral ligament reconstruction have no significant differences in clinical outcomes for treatment of lateral patellar instability: a matched-cohort study.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to compare clinical outcomes of medial quadriceps tendon-femoral ligament reconstruction (MQTFLR) and medial patellofemoral ligament reconstruction (MPFLR) among patients with recurrent lateral patellar instability. METHODS: A retrospective matched-cohort study was conducted involving patients who underwent MQTFLR or MPFLR with or without tibial tubercle osteotomy (TTO) from 2019 to 2021. Subjects were matched 1:1 on age, concomitant osteochondral allograft (OCA), concomitant TTO, and follow-up time. Measured outcomes included 90-day complications, Visual Analog Scale (VAS) knee pain, return to sport/work, Kujala score, Tegner score, and MPFL-Return to Sport after Injury (MPFL-RSI) score. Outcomes were compared between groups using Mann-Whitney U-test for continuous variables and Fisher's exact test for categorical variables. P-values <0.05 were considered significant. RESULTS: Ten MQTFLR patients (mean age 28.7 years, 80% female, mean follow-up 19.7 months) and ten MPFLR patients (mean age 29.1 years, 90% female, mean follow-up 28.3 months) were included in the study. One MQTFLR patient (10%) and three MPFLR patients (30%) underwent reoperation for postoperative arthrofibrosis. Postoperative VAS resting pain was not significantly different between the groups (MQTFLR mean 1.1, MPFLR mean 0.6, p â€‹= â€‹0.31). There were no significant differences in rates of recurrent subluxations (MQTFLR 20%, MPFLR 0%, p â€‹= â€‹0.47), return to sport (MQTFLR 50%, MPFLR 75%, p â€‹= â€‹0.61), return to work (MQTFLR 100%, MPFLR 88%, p â€‹= â€‹1.00), or MPFL-RSI pass rate (MQTFLR 75% vs. MPFLR 38%, p â€‹= â€‹0.31). CONCLUSION: There were no significant differences in knee pain and function, return to work, and rates of recurrent patellar instability between patients who underwent MQTFLR versus MPFLR, though these results should be interpreted with caution given the small sample size and potential selection bias. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III.

Driving performance and turning reaction time following hip arthroscopy for FAIS: does capsular repair matter?

PURPOSE: (1) To compare the pre- and postoperative driving performance in patients undergoing hip arthroscopy for femoroacetabular impingement syndrome (FAIS); (2) to examine the differences in driving performance between patients with versus without capsular repair. METHODS: Patients who underwent arthroscopic hip surgery for FAIS were included. Driving performance of participating patients was collected using a driving simulator preoperatively and at 2 weeks, 4-6 weeks and 8-12 weeks postoperatively. Data collected included demographics, surgery laterality, intraoperative procedures, left and right turn reaction time, total turn reaction time, gas off time (GOF), and break reaction time (BRT). Repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: 21 subjects (9 males, 12 females) with a mean age of 30 ± 9 years were included and 57.1% of the subjects had right-sided surgery. There was no difference between the mean preoperative and the 2-week postoperative left (0.72 seconds and 0.75 seconds, respectively) right (0.77 seconds and 0.75 seconds, respectively), and total (0.74 seconds and 0.75 seconds, respectively) turn reaction times as well as GOF (0.62 seconds and 0.60 seconds, respectively) and BRT (0.92 seconds and 0.93 seconds, respectively), indicating that the patients' driving performance returned to the preoperative level as early as 2 weeks following hip arthroscopy for FAIS. There was no significant difference amongst any of the driving variables between patients who underwent capsular repair (50%) and those who did not. There was no significant difference amongst any of the driving variable s between patients who underwent left versus right hip arthroscopy. CONCLUSIONS: Patients' driving performance returns to the preoperative level as early as 2 weeks after hip arthroscopy for FAIS. Surgery laterality nor capsular repair make any significant difference in the time for driving abilities to return to baseline. The impact of intraoperative procedures performed, and the analgesic medications used postoperatively on the driving ability of patients undergoing hip arthroscopy warrants further investigation in larger patient populations.

Reoperation Rates Due to Adjacent Segment Disease Following Primary 1 to 2-Level Minimally Invasive Versus Open Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion.

STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of the approach of the transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion [TLIF; open vs . minimally invasive (MIS)] on reoperation rates due to ASD at 2 to 4-year follow-up. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Adjacent segment degeneration is a complication of lumbar fusion surgery, which may progress to adjacent segment disease (ASD) and cause debilitating postoperative pain potentially requiring additional operative management for relief. MIS TLIF surgery has been introduced to minimize this complication but the impact on ASD incidence is unclear. MATERIALS AND METHODS: For a cohort of patients undergoing 1 or 2-level primary TLIF between 2013 and 2019, patient demographics and follow-up outcomes were collected and compared among patients who underwent open versus MIS TLIF using the Mann-Whitney U test, Fischer exact test, and binary logistic regression. RESULTS: Two hundred thirty-eight patients met the inclusion criteria. There was a significant difference in revision rates due to ASD between MIS and open TLIFs at 2 (5.8% vs . 15.4%, P =0.021) and 3 (8% vs . 23.2%, P =0.03) year follow-up, with open TLIFs demonstrating significantly higher revision rates. The surgical approach was the only independent predictor of reoperation rates at both 2 and 3-year follow-ups (2 yr, P =0.009; 3 yr, P =0.011). CONCLUSIONS: Open TLIF was found to have a significantly higher rate of reoperation due to ASD compared with the MIS approach. In addition, the surgical approach (MIS vs . open) seems to be an independent predictor of reoperation rates.

Knee Extensor Mechanism Complications After Autograft Harvest in ACL Reconstruction: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Background: Existing systematic reviews have sought to characterize the relative donor-site morbidity of bone-patellar tendon-bone (BTB) and quadriceps tendon (QT) grafts after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR). However, no studies have reported the pooled proportions of patellar fractures and donor tendon ruptures across the body of literature. Purpose: To estimate the proportion of patellar fractures, patellar tendon ruptures, and QT ruptures associated with BTB or QT autograft harvest during ACLR using published data. Study Design: Systematic review; Level of evidence, 4. Methods: A meta-analysis was conducted according to the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines using 3 online databases (PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science). A total of 800 manuscripts were included in the initial research of peer-reviewed articles in English that reported extensor mechanism complications associated with graft harvest in patients after ACLR. Pooled proportions of patellar fractures, patellar tendon ruptures, and QT ruptures were calculated for each graft type (BTB, QT) using a random-effects model for meta-analysis. Results: A total of 28 studies were analyzed. The pooled proportion of patellar fractures was 0.57% (95% CI, 0.34%-0.91%) for the BTB harvest and 2.03% (95% CI, 0.78%-3.89%) for the QT harvest. The proportion of patellar tendon ruptures was 0.22% (95% CI, 0.14%-0.33%) after the BTB harvest, and the proportion of QT ruptures was 0.52% (95% CI, 0.06%-1.91%) after the QT harvest. The majority of included studies (16/28 [57.1%]) had an evidence level of 4. Conclusion: Based on the current literature, the proportion of extensor mechanism complications after ACLR using either a BTB or a QT autograft is low, indicating that the extensor mechanism harvest remains a safe option. A higher proportion of patellar fractures was noted for QT grafts and a higher proportion of donor tendon ruptures was noted for QT grafts compared with BTB grafts.

Update on injury epidemiology in rowing: our experience with female NCAA Division I athletes and a systematic review of the literature.

OBJECTIVES: (1) To report the distribution of injuries per body site and time lost from participation in female NCAA Division I rowers and (2) to present an updated summary of the existing evidence regarding the analysis of injuries per body site in rowers. METHODS: Case series: The distribution of injuries per body site in female NCAA Division I rowers and the time lost from participation were retrieved from an institutional registry. Injuries per body site were reported as number of athletes with site-specific injury per total number of injured athletes. Systematic review: Based on the PRISMA guidelines for systematic reviews, three electronic databases were searched for studies reporting the epidemiology of injuries per body site in rowers and analyzed. RESULTS: Case series: One-hundred and thirty-seven injuries were recorded in 92 female rowers over 5 years. The risk of injury (number of injured athletes over total number of athletes on roaster) was 52% (92/176). Among the 92 injured athletes, 38% sustained injury to the lower back, while 23% and 16% of these athletes sustained injury to the ribs and hip-groin area, respectively. Systematic review: Ten studies were included. The level of evidence was IV and the mean MINORS score was 13.2(9-15) (fair quality). Most studies reported injuries to the lower spine (8/10,80%) whereas injuries to the ribs or other anatomic sites were reported in ≤4 (40%) studies. Significant heterogeneity of the injury reporting methodologies (injury definition; measures of injury occurrence; description of the injury site) was detected and precluded meta-analysis. CONCLUSIONS: Most injuries recorded in a single team of female NCAA Division I athletes occurred in the lower back followed by injuries to the ribs and the hip. The existing injury epidemiology literature in mostly focuses on injuries to the lower back, while injuries to other anatomic sites were less frequently analyzed. No conclusions can be made regarding the most common injuries in rowers based on the current evidence due to substantial heterogeneity of injury reported methodologies which warrants further investigation.

Early-life low-calorie sweetener consumption disrupts glucose regulation, sugar-motivated behavior, and memory function in rats.

Low-calorie sweetener (LCS) consumption in children has increased dramatically due to its widespread presence in the food environment and efforts to mitigate obesity through sugar replacement. However, mechanistic studies on the long-term impact of early-life LCS consumption on cognitive function and physiological processes are lacking. Here, we developed a rodent model to evaluate the effects of daily LCS consumption (acesulfame potassium, saccharin, or stevia) during adolescence on adult metabolic, behavioral, gut microbiome, and brain transcriptomic outcomes. Results reveal that habitual early-life LCS consumption impacts normal postoral glucose handling and impairs hippocampal-dependent memory in the absence of weight gain. Furthermore, adolescent LCS consumption yielded long-term reductions in lingual sweet taste receptor expression and brought about alterations in sugar-motivated appetitive and consummatory responses. While early-life LCS consumption did not produce robust changes in the gut microbiome, brain region-specific RNA-Seq analyses reveal LCS-induced changes in collagen- and synaptic signaling-related gene pathways in the hippocampus and nucleus accumbens, respectively, in a sex-dependent manner. Collectively, these results reveal that habitual early-life LCS consumption has long-lasting implications for glucoregulation, sugar-motivated behavior, and hippocampal-dependent memory in rats, which may be based in part on changes in nutrient transporter, sweet taste receptor, and central gene pathway expression.

Management Options for Shoulder Impingement Syndrome in Athletes: Insights and Future Directions.

Athletes participating in overhead sports are at particularly high risk of shoulder impingement syndrome. Subcoracoid impingement is defined as impingement of the anterior soft tissues of the shoulder between the coracoid process and the lesser tuberosity. Subacromial impingement syndrome (SIS) occurs due to extrinsic compression of the rotator cuff between the humeral head and coracoacromial structures or intrinsic degeneration of the supraspinatus tendon and subsequent superior migration of the humerus. Internal impingement is a major cause of shoulder pain in overhead athletes, and it occurs due to repetitive impingement of the articular surface of the rotator cuff with the glenoid during maximum abduction and external rotation of the arm. When examining athletes with suspected impingement of the shoulder, it is important to discuss the sport-specific motion that regenerates the symptoms and perform a combination of physical examination tests to improve the diagnostic accuracy. Radiographic evaluation is recommended, and the extent of soft tissue abnormalities can be assessed on ultrasound or magnetic resonance imaging of the shoulder. Management of shoulder impingement syndrome can be conservative or operative, based on the severity and chronicity of symptoms and the associated structural abnormalities. This review provides an update on the management of SIS, subcoracoid impingement, and internal impingement in the athletic population.

Fatty degeneration of the rotator cuff: pathogenesis, clinical implications, and future treatment.

Chronic rotator cuff pathology is often complicated by fatty degeneration of the rotator cuff (FDRC) muscles, an insidious process associated with poor prognosis with or without surgical intervention. Currently there is no treatment for FDRC, and many studies have described a natural course for this disease almost always resulting in further degeneration and morbidity. Recapitulating FDRC using animal injury models, and using imaging-based studies of human FDRC, the pathophysiology of this disease continues to be further characterized. Researchers studying mesenchymal stem cell-derived progenitor cells and known fibrogenic and adipogenic signaling pathways implicated in FDRC seek to clarify the underlying processes driving these changes. While new cell- and molecular-based therapies are being developed, currently the strongest available avenue for improved management of FDRC is the use of novel imaging techniques which allow for more accurate and personalized staging of fatty degeneration. This narrative review summarizes the evidence on the molecular and pathophysiologic mechanisms of FDRC and provides a clinical update on the diagnosis and management of this condition based on the existing knowledge. We also sought to examine the role of newer biologic therapies in the management of RC fatty degeneration and to identify areas of future research.

Suture Tape Augmentation in Lateral Ankle Ligament Surgery: Current Concepts Review.

Chronic lateral ankle instability (CLAI) is a condition that is characterized by persistent disability and recurrent ankle sprains while encompassing both functional and mechanical (laxity) instability. Failure of conservative treatment for CLAI often necessitates operative intervention to restore the stability of the ankle joint. The traditional or modified Broström techniques have been the gold standard operative approaches to address CLAI with satisfactory results; however, patients with generalized ligament laxity (GLL), prior unsuccessful repair, high body mass index, or high-demand athletes may experience suboptimal outcomes. Synthetic ligament constructs have been tested as an adjunct to orthopedic procedures to reinforce repaired or reconstructed ligaments or tendons with the hope of early mobilization, faster rehabilitation, and long-term prevention of instability. Suture tape augmentation is useful to address CLAI. Multiple operative techniques have been described. Because of the heterogeneity among the reported techniques and variability in postoperative rehabilitation protocols, it is difficult to evaluate whether the use of suture tape augmentation provides true clinical benefit in patients with CLAI. This review aims to provide a comprehensive outline of all the current techniques using suture tape augmentation for treatment of CLAI as well as present recent research aimed at guiding evidence-based protocols.

Nucleus accumbens melanin-concentrating hormone signaling promotes feeding in a sex-specific manner.

Melanin-concentrating hormone (MCH) is an orexigenic neuropeptide produced in the lateral hypothalamus and zona incerta that increases food intake. The neuronal pathways and behavioral mechanisms mediating the orexigenic effects of MCH are poorly understood, as is the extent to which MCH-mediated feeding outcomes are sex-dependent. Here we investigate the hypothesis that MCH-producing neurons act in the nucleus accumbens shell (ACBsh) to promote feeding behavior and motivation for palatable food in a sex-dependent manner. We utilized ACBsh MCH receptor (MCH1R)-directed pharmacology as well as a dual virus chemogenetic approach to selectively activate MCH neurons that project to the ACBsh. Results reveal that both ACBsh MCH1R activation and activating ACBsh-projecting MCH neurons increase consumption of standard chow and palatable sucrose in male rats without affecting motivated operant responding for sucrose, general activity levels, or anxiety-like behavior. In contrast, food intake was not affected in female rats by either ACBsh MCH1R activation or ACBsh-projecting MCH neuron activation. To determine a mechanism for this sexual dimorphism, we investigated whether the orexigenic effect of ACBsh MCH1R activation is reduced by endogenous estradiol signaling. In ovariectomized female rats on a cyclic regimen of either estradiol (EB) or oil vehicle, ACBsh MCH1R activation increased feeding only in oil-treated rats, suggesting that EB attenuates the ability of ACBsh MCH signaling to promote food intake. Collective results show that MCH ACBsh signaling promotes feeding in an estrogen- and sex-dependent manner, thus identifying novel neurobiological mechanisms through which MCH and female sex hormones interact to influence food intake.