The majority of athletes fail to return to play following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction due to reasons other than the operated knee.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the reasons why athletes do not return to play (RTP) following anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction from a large single-centre database. METHODS: The institutional ACL registry was screened for patients that had undergone a primary ACLR and had RTP status reported at 24-month follow-up. The reasons that patients were unable to RTP at 24 months were evaluated. The ACL-Return to Sport Index (ACL-RSI) was evaluated at baseline and 24-month follow-up to evaluate psychological ability to RTP. RESULTS: At 2 years, 1140 patients returned to play, and 222 had not returned to play. The most common reasons athletes were unable to return was fear of reinjury (27.5%), lack of confidence in performance on return (19.4%) and external life factors (16.6%), i.e. work commitments and family reasons. Other reasons for athletes not returning to play were residual knee pain (10%) and subsequent injury (5%). The ACL-RSI score was significantly lower at diagnosis (40.3 vs. 49.3; p = 0.003) and 2 years (41.8 vs. 78.7; p < 0.0001) in athletes who did not return to play vs. those that did RTP. CONCLUSION: The majority of patients that report they have not returned to play do so due to external life and psychological factors associated with their injury, including fear of reinjury and lack of confidence in performance. A small minority of patients were unable to return due to residual knee symptoms or reinjury. Pre-operative psychological assessment and intervention may identify those less likely to RTP and provide an opportunity for targeted interventions to further improve RTP outcomes. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III.

Remplissage for anterior shoulder instability with Hill-Sachs lesions: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of the current evidence in the literature to determine how arthroscopic Bankart repair (ABR) and remplissage compare with ABR alone and the open Latarjet procedure for anterior shoulder instability in patients with concomitant Hill-Sachs lesions. METHODS: A literature search was performed based on the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses) guidelines. Studies comparing ABR and remplissage vs. ABR alone or the Latarjet procedure for anterior shoulder instability in patients with Hill-Sachs lesions were included. Clinical outcomes were compared, with all statistical analysis performed using Review Manager (version 5.3). P < .05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Twelve clinical trials were included. There was a significant difference between ABR plus remplissage and ABR alone in total recurrence rate (3.2% vs. 16.8%, P < .05) but not the rate of revision due to recurrence (1.7% vs. 8.5%, P = .06). There was no significant difference between the Latarjet procedure and ABR plus remplissage in total recurrence rate (7.0% vs. 9.8%, P = .39), total revision rate (3.7% vs. 5.7%, P = .41), and rate of revision due to recurrence (1.6% vs. 2.1%, P = .79). There was a significantly lower rate of complications with ABR and remplissage compared with the Latarjet procedure (0.5% vs. 8.6%, P = .003). CONCLUSION: In patients with Hill-Sachs lesions and subcritical glenoid bone loss, ABR with remplissage resulted in lower rates of recurrent instability compared with ABR alone while resulting in similar recurrence rates, as well as similar patient-reported outcomes, with lower morbidity and fewer complications, compared with the Latarjet procedure. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III; Systematic Review.

Simultaneous bilateral total hip arthroplasty-a survey of Irish orthopaedic surgeons' practice.

BACKGROUND: Bilateral total hip arthroplasty may be performed simultaneously (SIMTHA) or in two staged operations. AIM: To assess attitudes towards and utilization of SIMTHA in Irish orthopaedic practice, and to assess patient and surgeon factors which are associated with the management of bilateral hip arthritis. METHODS: A 16-question electronic survey (Google Forms) was distributed via email to consultant Irish orthopaedic surgeons who perform total hip arthroplasty, followed by a reminder 1 month later. A p value < 0.05 was considered significant. RESULTS: There were 53 responses from arthroplasty surgeons, with 28% reporting they never perform SIMTHA, 26% have performed ≤ 5 SIMTHA, and 46% do ≥ 1 SIMTHA per year. Amongst the 15 surgeons who do not do SIMTHA, 60% reported a preference for staged arthroplasty, 20% felt it was not feasible in their institution, and a third reported a lack of experience with SIMTHA. There was a significant association between not performing SIMTHA and years of consultant experience (p = 0.002). There were no institutional guidelines on eligibility criteria for SIMTHA. The most common time interval for staged bilateral arthroplasty was 6-12 weeks (60%). Overall, 56% of surgeons felt SIMTHA is underutilised in the Irish healthcare system; this was associated with greater SIMTHA volume (p = 0.023). CONCLUSION: Half of the Irish arthroplasty surgeons report SIMTHA is a regular aspect of their practice. Performing SIMTHA is associated with greater arthroplasty volume, more recent consultant appointments, and a perception that the operation is underutilised.

Complications of Single-Incision Versus Dual-Incision Distal Biceps Repair A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Comparative Studies.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to systematically review and analyze the current evidence in the literature to determine the relative complication rates of the singleincision versus dual-incision approach to distal biceps tendon repair. METHODS: The literature search was performed based on the PRISMA guidelines. Cohort studies comparing the single-incision or dual-incision approach to biceps tendon repair alone were included. Clinical outcomes were compared, with all statistical analysis performed using Review Manager Version 5.3. A p-value < 0.05 was considered to be statistically significant. RESULTS: Twelve clinical studies with varying levels of evidence (LOE I: 1, LOE II: 1, LOE III: 10) with 2,429 patients were included. Overall, there was a significantly lower rate of total complications with the dual-incision approach (16.1% vs. 23.1%, p < 0.01) and a lower rate of neurological injuries (9.1% vs. 24.1%, p < 0.01). There was a lower rate of lateral antebrachial cutaneous nerve injuries with the dual-incision approach (5.2% vs. 19.5%, p < 0.01), and superficial radial nerve injuries (2.5% vs. 4.8%, p < 0.01), but there was no significant difference in the rate of posterior interosseous nerve injuries (2.2% vs. 1.2%, p = 0.20). There was a significantly lower rate of heterotopic bone formation with the single-incision approach (1.3% vs. 2.7%, p = 0.01). CONCLUSION: The dual-incision approach decreases the risk of total, overall postoperative complications and sensory nerve injuries following distal biceps repair. However, it has a higher risk of heterotopic bone formation.

Return to Play after Arthroscopic Bankart Repair Combined with Open Subpectoral Biceps Tenodesis.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the clinical outcomes and rate of return to play (RTP) in patients who underwent arthroscopic Bankart repair and open subpectoral biceps tenodesis. METHODS: A retrospective review of patients who underwent combined arthroscopic Bankart repair and open subpectoral biceps tenodesis by a single surgeon between 2012 and 2016 was performed. RTP, the level of return, and the timing of return were assessed. Visual analog scale for pain, Rowe score, Shoulder Instability-Return to Sport after Injury score, and Subjective Shoulder Value were evaluated. RESULTS: The study included 14 patients, with a mean follow-up of 34.2 ± 12.1 months. Of the 14 patients, 13 (92.9%) returned to sport at a mean of 4.8 ± 1.2 months and 9 (64.3%) returned to the same or higher level of sport. At final follow-up, the mean Rowe was 80.0 ± 16.3, the mean Subjective Shoulder Value was 81.0 ± 15.1, the mean Shoulder Instability-Return to Sport after Injury was 57.3 ± 25.6, and the mean visual analog scale score was 2.6 ± 1.5. One patient had a recurrent dislocation, whereas no patients underwent a further operation on the ipsilateral shoulder. CONCLUSION: Patients undergoing arthroscopic Bankart repair combined with open subpectoral biceps tenodesis had a high rate of RTP with a low rate of recurrent instability. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: IV, Therapeutic Case Series.