Standardised virtual fracture clinic management of Achilles tendon ruptures is safe and reproducible.

BACKGROUND: Traditional fracture clinics are some of the busiest clinics in a hospital, often with significant patient waiting times and delays. The use of virtual fracture clinic (VFC) for the management of certain injuries to reduce the workload on the traditional fracture clinic, in addition to reducing costs is growing in popularity. The tendoachilles is the most frequently ruptured tendon in the body but despite this, management remains a keenly debated topic. METHODS: All adult patients referred to the VFC with an actual or suspected Achilles tendon rupture were identified between January 2015 to October 2017. RESULTS: This study found that patient with and acute achilles tendon ruptures managed according to a standardised VFC protocol had a re-rupture rate of 3.82%. CONCLUSIONS: One of the advantages of a VFC model that is standardised, initiated in the ED, is that it has no variation in outcome seen in our patient group.

A wandering folded liver displaced by the distended bowel: a new case report with review of the literature.

INTRODUCTION: The wandering liver is an extremely rare condition in which the liver moves significantly or 'wander' with changes in patient's lie. This is believed to be an acquired condition perhaps precipitated by persistent congenital ventral mesogastrium which acts as an axis or a mesentery for the liver to rotate. The vast majority of reported cases were associated with other chronic abnormalities of the gastrointestinal tract, especially sigmoid volvulus. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We present a case report of an acquired isolated transposition of the liver with a review of the English-language literature of wandering liver in adults and paediatric age group. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The clinical presentation of wandering liver is variable. Most of the reported cases were asymptomatic and are usually diagnosed while having investigation or surgery for other reasons, especially the commonly associated bowel problems. However, some patients may present with intermittent jaundice and abdominal pain secondary to the abnormal liver configuration. Due to the scarcity of the condition, the diagnosis can be challenging and improper concerns of permanent liver failure is possible. Hepatopexy is usually required for symptomatic patients with good results.

Cement Calcaneoplasty: An Innovative Method for Treating Nonunion in Calcaneal Insufficiency Fracture.

Insufficiency type stress fractures are common in older patients with osteoporosis. Persistent pain after nonunion of these fractures can be disabling, with the management options often limited. We aimed to assess the suitability of fluoroscopic-guided injection of bone cement into a persistently symptomatic nonuniting calcaneal insufficiency fracture. To the best of our knowledge, this technique has not previously been described in the published data. After local subcutaneous anesthesia, the midpoint of the fracture site was accessed by trocar insertion under radiographic guidance, and bone cement was injected directly into the site. A preprocedure visual analog scale pain score of 90 of 100 was recorded. This had improved to 0 of 100 at the 12-month follow-up point after the procedure. The aim of the present case report was to raise awareness of percutaneous calcaneoplasty, which we believe to be a safe and well-tolerated technique for the management of osteoporotic insufficiency fracture of the calcaneus. We propose that this technique be considered when conservative methods aimed at promoting fracture healing have failed.

A silent compartment syndrome following elective minimally invasive mitral valve repair.

A 63-year-old male with severe mitral valve regurgitation underwent an elective minimally invasive mitral valve repair. Peripheral cannulation of the right femoral vein and artery was performed with a total cardiopulmonary bypass time of 268 min. There were no intraoperative complications. 12 hours postoperatively the patient reported mild pain in the right lower leg with a subjective decrease in sensation. Compartmental pressures were significantly raised. The patient underwent lower leg fasciotomies, which revealed bulging compartments confirming the diagnosis of an evolving compartment syndrome (CS). This rare case demonstrates the highly variable aetiology, pathophysiology and presenting symptoms of CS. Clinicians in any specialty should consider this diagnosis if there is a possibility of local vascular compromise secondary to an intervention/treatment. This diagnosis is not exclusive to patients with trauma and as such clinicians should have a high index of suspicion for this potentially devastating condition.

Understanding and interpreting funnel plots for the clinician.

Funnel plots are an increasingly common graphical tool which are widely used in the literature. They were first introduced by Light and Pillemer in 1984 . In scientific literature, funnel plots are used to identify the probability of bias in meta-analyses and compare institutional performance. The ability to identify variation is better with graphical than tabular display. In addition, the way data are presented can directly influence the interpretation of results. This was demonstrated by Marshall et al (2004) , who presented institutional mortality data in both a league table and control chart format. This study illustrated that when displayed as a league table, a greater number of units were identified for investigation than were actually required. The use of control charts or funnel plots may therefore show benefit in reducing the number of inappropriately labelled outliers. This article explains how clinicians should read and interpret funnel plots, and discusses their considerations and limitations.

Optimal Timing for Hemoglobin Concentration Determination after Total Knee Arthroplasty: Day 1 versus Day 2.

PURPOSE: Postoperative hemoglobin (Hb) determination remains an essential parameter for quantifying blood loss following total knee replacement (TKR) surgery and guiding transfusion practice. In this study we aimed to ascertain the optimal timing for Hb determination postoperatively and assess its relationship to serum hematocrit (Hct). MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a retrospective cohort analysis of 61 consecutive patients undergoing preoperative, day 1 and day 2 Hb and Hct concentration determination following TKR surgery. This was a single centre study in the United Kingdom. RESULTS: The mean fall in Hb concentration at day 1 was 2.9 g/dL in comparison to 3.3 g/dL at day 2. This indicated a significant difference of 0.39 g/dL (p=0.023). A total of 5 patients required blood transfusions following day 2 Hb determination. Postoperative Hct values varied in close relation with the Hb concentration with no significant differences demonstrated. Our study reveals a significant change between day 1 and day 2 Hb concentrations following TKR surgery, with no significant differing information provided through Hct determination. CONCLUSIONS: Our results support the use of delayed routine testing at day 2 following surgery as it is likely to more accurately reflect ongoing hidden blood loss into the joint cavity and within soft tissue planes.

What really causes necrotising enterocolitis?

Background. One of the most serious gastrointestinal disorders occurring in neonates is necrotising enterocolitis (NEC). It is recognised as the most common intra-abdominal emergency and is the leading cause of short bowel syndrome. With extremely high mortality and morbidity, this enigmatic disease remains a challenge for neonatologists around the world as its definite aetiology has yet to be determined. As current medical knowledge stands, there is no single well-defined cause of NEC. Instead, there are nearly 20 risk factors that are proposed to increase the likelihood of developing NEC. Aims and Objectives. The aim of this project was to conduct a comprehensive literature review around the 20 or so well-documented and less well-documented risk factors for necrotising enterocolitis. Materials and Methods. Searches of the Medline, Embase, and Science direct databases were conducted using the words "necrotising enterocolitis + the risk factor in question" for example, "necrotising enterocolitis + dehydration." Search results were ordered by relevance with bias given to more recent publications. Conclusion. This literature review has demonstrated the complexity of necrotising enterocolitis and emphasised the likely multifactorial aetiology. Further research is needed to investigate the extent to which each risk factor is implicated in necrotising enterocolitis.