Comparison of effectiveness of lower extremity axial distractor and traction table assisted closed reduction and intramedullary nail fixation in femoral subtrochanteric fracture / 中国修复重建外科杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To compare the effectiveness of lower extremity axial distractor (LEAD) and traction table assisted closed reduction and intramedullary nail fixation in treatment of femoral subtrochanteric fracture.@*METHODS@#The clinical data of 117 patients with subtrochanteric fracture of femur treated by closed reduction and intramedullary nail fixation between May 2012 and May 2022 who met the selection criteria were retrospectively analyzed. According to the auxiliary reduction tools used during operation, the patients were divided into LEAD group (62 cases with LEAD reduction) and traction table group (55 cases with traction table reduction). There was no significant difference in baseline data, such as gender, age, injured side, cause of injury, fracture Seinsheimer classification, time from injury to operation, and preoperative visual analogue scale (VAS) score, between the two groups ( P>0.05). Total incision length, operation time, intraoperative blood loss, fluoroscopy frequency, closed reduction rate, fracture reduction quality, fracture healing time, weight-bearing activity time, and incidence of complications, as well as hip flexion and extension range of motion (ROM), Harris score, and VAS score at 1 month and 6 months after operation and last follow-up were recorded and compared between the two groups.@*RESULTS@#There were 14 cases in the LEAD group from closed reduction to limited open reduction, and 43 cases in the traction table group. The incisions in the LEAD group healed by first intention, and no complication such as nerve and vascular injury occurred during operation. In the traction table group, 3 cases had perineal crush injury, which recovered spontaneously in 1 week. The total incision length, operation time, intraoperative blood loss, fluoroscopy frequency, and closed reduction rate in the LEAD group were significantly better than those in the traction table group ( P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the quality of fracture reduction between the two groups ( P>0.05). Patients in both groups were followed up 12-44 months, with an average of 15.8 months. In the LEAD group, 1 patient had delayed fracture union at 6 months after operation, 1 patient had nonunion at 3 years after operation, and 1 patient had incision sinus pus flow at 10 months after operation. In the traction table group, there was 1 patient with fracture nonunion at 15 months after operation. X-ray films of the other patients in the two groups showed that the internal fixator was fixed firmly without loosening and the fractures healed. There was no significant difference in fracture healing time, weight bearing activity time, incidence of complications, and postoperative hip flexion and extension ROM, Harris score, and VAS score at different time points between the two groups ( P>0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#For femoral subtrochanteric fracture treated by close reduction and intramedullary nail fixation, compared with traction table, LEAD assisted fracture reduction can significantly shorten the operation time, reduce intraoperative blood loss and fluoroscopy frequency, reduce incision length, effectively improve the success rate of closed reduction, and avoid complications related to traction table reduction. It provides a new method for good reduction of femoral subtrochanteric fracture.

Differential expression of microRNAs in the intervertebral disc of hypoxia-inducible factor-1alpha deficient mice / 中国组织工程研究

BACKGROUND:It is confirmed that the absence of hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) accelerates the degenerative process in the intervertebral discs, and microRNAs have an important role in degeneration of the intervertebral discs. OBJECTIVE:To evaluate the changes of microRNAs in the intervertebral discs of HIF-1α-deficient (HIF-1α-/-) mice which may mediate the signaling pathway of HIF-1α in the intervertebral discs. METHODS: As previously reported, HIF-1α-/- mice were established. HIF-1α-/- mice and HIF-1αflox/flox mice (control mice) aged 4 weeks were used. MRI and histological staining were used to evaluate the degeneration of the intervertebral discs. Total RNAs were extracted from the intervertebral discs tissues by Trizol, and the differential expression profile of microRNAs was harvested by significance analysis of microarrays and Cluster, based on microarray screening. Real-time quantitative reverse transcription-PCR was applied to verify the reliability of microRNA array results. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:The number of nucleus pulposus cels in the intervertebral discs of HIF-1α-/- mice was decreased, the cels presented with smal size and the color deepened in the cytoplasm. Finaly, differential expression profile of microRNAs (n=10) was obtained, seven of which were upregulated and three were downregulated. In conclusion, the loss of HIF-1α may cause the imbalance of some important miRNAs, which may result in a large amount of dead nuclear pulposus cels and mediate disc degeneration in HIF-1α-/- mice.

Comparison of simple discectomy and instrumented posterior lumbar interbody fusion for treatment of lumbar disc herniation combined with Modic endplate changes / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>The purpose of this retrospective study was to compare the surgical outcomes of simple discectomy and instrumented posterior lumbar interbody fusion (iPLIF) in patients with lumbar disc herniation and Modic endplate changes. Our hypothesis was that iPLIF could provide better outcome for patients with refractory lumbar disc herniation and Modic changes (LDH-MC).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Ninety-one patients with single-segment LDH-MC were recruited. All patients experienced low back pain as well as radicular leg pain, and low back pain was more severe than leg pain. Forty-seven patients were treated with discectomy and 44 were treated with iPLIF. The outcomes of both low back pain and radicular leg pain using visual analogue scale (VAS) as well as the clinical outcome related to low back pain using Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) score were assessed before and 18 months after surgery, respectively.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Both low back and leg pain were significantly improved 18 months after simple discectomy and iPLIF. Compared to patients undergoing simple discectomy, low back pain was significantly reduced in patients undergoing iPLIF, but there was no significant difference in leg pain between two groups. Solid fusion was achieved in all patients who underwent iPLIF.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>In patients with LDH-MC, iPLIF can yield significantly superior outcome on the relief of low back pain compared to simple discectomy. Simple discectomy can relieve radicular leg pain as efficient as iPLIF. Accordingly, iPLIF seems to be a reliable treatment for patients with LDH-MC and predominant low back pain.</p>

Serratus anterior muscle transplantation for the repair of soft tissue defects in foot and ankle / 中华骨科杂志

Objective To explore serratus anterior muscle transplantation for the repair of soft tissue defects in foot and ankle. Methods Seventeen patients consisted of 11 males and 6 females aging from 13 to 58 years with the mean age of 35.2 years. The anatomical parameters of serratus anterior of 17 cases were measured, the thickness of the muscle was (1.24?0.65) cm, and the diameter of origin point of the nutrient artery to the muscle was (1.4?0.6) mm. There were two veins arising from the muscle, the diameter of larger one was (2.5?0.8) mm. The length of vascular pedicle was (8.31?1.48) cm. 17 patients with soft tissue defect of foot and ankle were treated with free serratus anterior muscle transfer and split skin graft overlying the muscle. The primary lesions were soft tissue defect around the ankle and Pilon fracture in 5 cases, non-union of distal tibial fracture in 3, Achilles tendon and soft tissue defect in 3, metatarsal fracture and soft tissue defect in 4, and calcaneal fracture with soft tissue defect in 2. All of the patients suffered from infection or exposure of bone or applied plate, the area of soft tissue defect ranged from 4.5 cm?6 cm to 11 cm?13 cm. Results The average operative time was (6.5?1.2) hours. The complications included local hematoma in 2 cases, superficial infection in 2, winged scapula without function loss in 1,scar pain in 2, and numbness of lateral thoracic wall in 1. Furthermore, weakness and decreased shoulder mobility were noted in 3 patients comparing with the contralateral side, but the condition improved half year following the operation. The transferred muscle flap appeared thinner and less bulky , and healed intimately with the adjacent foot tissue, the patients resumed good function in walking. Conclusion The serratus anterior muscle flap is a good choice for treatment of soft tissue defects in foot and ankle.