Management of non-contiguous upper and lower cervical spine fractures.

PURPOSE: Upper cervical fracture combined with non-contiguous lower cervical fracture are not uncommon but complicated. In order to outline a management principle for the upper cervical fracture combined with non-contiguous lower cervical fracture and assess its clinical characteristics, we retrospectively analyzed 59 cases of patients who underwent surgical treatment for upper cervical fracture combined with non-contiguous lower cervical fracture. METHODS: 59 patients of upper cervical fracture combined with non-contiguous lower cervical fracture were treated by surgery in our hospital. According to the AO Spine classification for cervical fractures, there were 21 cases of type B atlas fractures, nine cases of type C atlas fractures; 15 cases of type B axis fractures, 14 cases of type C axis fractures; 19 cases of type B lower cervical fractures, 40 cases of type C lower cervical fractures. The operation time, intraoperative blood loss, complications, VAS scores, JOA scores, ASIA grades, and radiological evaluation of cervical lordosis and stability were collected and recorded. RESULTS: Our results showed the segments of upper cervical fracture combined with non-contiguous lower cervical fracture are mainly concentrated in the atlas-axis and C6, C7 levels. There were 43 cases (72.88%) of associated injuries, mainly involving head trauma and thoracic injuries. Four patients underwent anterior approach surgery only, 43 patients underwent posterior approach surgery only, and 12 patients underwent combined anterior and posterior approach surgery in one stage. All patients had regular follow up with an average duration of 67.83 ± 11.25 months (range, 39 to 103 months). The VAS scores and JOA scores at 12 months postoperatively and at final follow-up showed significant improvement compared to preoperative scores (P < 0.05). At the final follow-up, ASIA grades had improved by 0 to 2 levels. The cervical lordosis at the final follow-up (24.71°±7.39°) showed no statistically significant difference compared to preoperative measurements (26.89°±13.32°). Surgical complications occurred in 17 patients. No cases of vertebral artery injury, screw loosening, or other internal fixation failures were found at final follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: Upper cervical fracture combined with non-contiguous lower cervical fracture can result in varying extents of cervical spinal cord injury and combined trauma in other parts. Surgical treatment of these injuries can achieve favourable clinical and radiological outcomes in the medium to long term follow-up. More research is still needed to optimize clinical decision-making regarding surgical approach.

Application of Cortical Bone Plate Allografts Combined with Less Invasive Stabilization System (LISS) Plates in Fixation of Comminuted Distal Femur Fractures.

Background and Objectives: At present, the management of comminuted distal femur fractures remains challenging for orthopedic surgeons. The aim of this study is to report a surgical treatment for comminuted distal femur fractures using supplementary medial cortical bone plate allografts in conjunction with the lateral less invasive stabilization system (LISS) plates. Materials and Methods: From January 2009 to January 2014, the records of thirty-three patients who underwent supplementary medial cortical bone plate allografts combined with lateral LISS plates fixation were reviewed. Clinical and radiographic data were collected during regular postoperative follow-up visits. Functional outcomes were determined according to the special surgery knee rating scale (HSS) used at the hospital. Results: Thirty patients were followed for 13 to 73 months after surgery, with an average follow-up time of 31.3 months. The mean time to bone union was 5.4 months (range of 3-12 months) and the mean range of knee flexion was 105.6° (range of 80-130°). Of the remaining patients, 10 had a score of "Excellent", while 10 had a score of "Good". Three patients had superficial or deep infections, one patient had nonunion that required bone grafting, and one patient had post-traumatic knee arthritis. Conclusions: Based on these promising results, we propose that supplementary medial cortical bone plate allografts combined with lateral LISS plate fixation may be a good treatment option for comminuted distal femur fractures. This treatment choice not only resulted in markedly improved stability on the medial side of the femur, but also satisfactory outcomes for distal femoral fractures.

Combination of Heel-strike like Mechanical Loading with Deproteinized Cancellous Bone Scaffold Implantation to Repair Segmental Bone Defects in Rabbits.

Under physiological conditions bone defects often occur at mechanical load bearing sites and bone substitutes used for regeneration should be similarly subjected to mechanical loading stress. In this study, we investigated whether a novel heel-strike like mechanical loading method can be used as a complementary therapy to promote bone regeneration following bone substitute grafting. To test this, three groups of rabbits with segmental bone defects in the tibia were implanted with bovine deproteinized cancellous bone scaffold (DCBS), with one group also receiving heel-strike like mechanical loading generated by a rap stress stimulator. From weeks 4-12 post-operation X-ray and micro-CT scanning showed that rabbits receiving combination therapy had significantly more callus at the bone defect. Moreover, bone defects in the combination group were completely replaced with new bone at week 12, while the DCBS implantation alone group healed only partially and rabbits receiving neither DCBS nor mechanical loading developed only small calluses throughout the observation period. Analysis of micro-CT scanning results demonstrated that new bone density in the combination group was significantly higher than the DCBS only group at weeks 4 and 12 (p<0.05). H&E staining results also indicated a significantly higher percentage of new bone in the bone defect area and a lower percentage of residual scaffold in the combination group compared to the DCBS only group (p<0.05). Thus, this heel-strike like mechanical loading method appears to accelerate bone regeneration following substitute implantation by restoring a local mechanical loading environment in segmental bone defects.

Analysis of sagittal balance using spinopelvic parameters in ankylosing spondylitis patients treated with vertebral column decancellation surgery.

This study was designed to explore the change of spinopelvic parameters after vertebral column decancellation (VCD) for the management of thoracolumbar kyphosis secondary to ankylosing spondylitis (AS). Forty-two AS patients including thirty-six males and six females with thoracolumbar kyphosis, who underwent VCD from April 2005 to June 2012 in our hospital, were retrospectively reviewed. A series of spinopelvic parameters including thoracic kyphosis (TK), lumbar lordosis (LL), sacral slope (SS), pelvic incidence (PI), pelvic tilt (PT) and sagittal vertical axis (SVA) measured on preoperative and postoperative free-standing radiographs were obtained and analyzed. Also clinical assessments were performed with the Oswestry disability index (ODI) and the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Activity and Function Index (BASDAI and BASFI) so as to seek correlations between radiological parameters and symptoms. Except for pelvic incidence (PI), significant difference was found in all radiological spinopelvic parameters between the preoperative and follow-up values. Furthermore, there was significant improvement in the clinical assessment parameters ODI, BASDAI and BASFI, which all correlated significantly with the postoperative pelvic tilt (PT). The results of this study show that posterior VCD is an effective option to manage sagittal imbalance in AS. In the current series, patients improving LL and PT were found to achieve good clinical outcomes. Overall, our findings show that it is important to quantify sagittal spinopelvic parameters and promote sagittal balance in the surgery for AS.

Clinical efficacy of Femoral Neck System for treatment of unstable femoral neck fractures in young adults.

OBJECTIVE: This study was performed to evaluate the mid-term clinical efficacy of the Femoral Neck System (FNS) (DePuy Synthes, Zuchwil, Switzerland) in treating young patients with unstable Pauwels type III femoral neck fractures. METHODS: We performed a retrospective observational analysis of 21 young adults treated with the FNS. Clinical outcomes were assessed based on fracture reduction quality, Harris hip scores, and postoperative complication rates. RESULTS: The study comprised 21 patients with a mean age of 35 years (range, 20-50 years) who were followed for a mean duration of 22.8 months (range, 16-30 months). Closed reduction was unfeasible in three (14.3%) patients, each of whom required open reduction. Notable postoperative complications were avascular necrosis in two (9.5%) patients, nonunion in one (4.7%), and implant failure in one (4.7%). Each of these complications led to the requirement for total hip arthroplasty. CONCLUSION: The favorable mid-term clinical outcomes of this study indicate that the FNS is a potentially effective treatment modality for young individuals with unstable Pauwels type III femoral neck fractures.

Application of femoral nail, reconstruction locked plate and bone morphogenic protein - 7 in an osteopetrosis patient with a recurrent femoral shaft fracture: A case report.

INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE: Femoral fractures are common in the patients with osteopetrosis and multiple treatment strategies have been described with varying results. However, there is a paucity of literature describing the treatment of recurrent fractures and subsequent deformity. CASE PRESENTATION: We present detailed revision strategies and long-term follow-up results of a patient with osteopetrosis who suffered unsuccessful operative treatment using the plate-screw system (recurrent femoral shaft fracture and implant failure). CLINICAL DISCUSSION: The success of revision surgery of osteopetrosis is based on good preoperative planning, appropriate selection of fixation methods, and a meticulous approach during surgery. The combined application of the expert adolescent lateral femoral nail, the reconstruction locked plate, and bone morphogenic protein (BMP)-7 in this patient achieved good clinical results. CONCLUSION: In the treatment of failed plated and recurrent osteopetrotic femoral shaft fractures, the combination of nails and plating presents an alternative, potentially more successful, revision strategy.

Resistant distal femoral nonunion treated with combined nail/plate construct and reamer-irrigator-aspirator technique.

OBJECTIVE: This study was performed to evaluate the effectiveness of intramedullary nailing and a lateral locking plate combined with the reamer-irrigator-aspirator (RIA) bone grafting technique for resistant distal femoral nonunion. METHODS: This retrospective observational study was performed from January 2018 to December 2021 and involved five patients who presented with resistant distal femoral nonunion despite undergoing several surgeries. They were treated with intramedullary nailing and a lateral locking plate combined with the RIA bone grafting technique. Postoperative follow-up was performed to observe the healing time, and functional outcomes were evaluated using the Lower Extremity Functional Scale (LEFS). RESULTS: After the patients had been monitored for a mean of 17.9 months, complete bone healing was observed in every patient (mean healing time of 4.8 months). Postoperative wound failure in an older patient was successfully treated with resuturing and nutritional assistance. At the last follow-up, the mean LEFS score was 71.2/80 and the mean knee flexion was 109 degrees. CONCLUSIONS: Our study demonstrates that combining intramedullary nailing and a lateral locking plate with the RIA bone grafting technique enhances biological properties, provides good structural support, and achieves good union and functional results in the management of resistant nonunion of the distal femur.

[Short-term clinical results of interspinous dynamic fixation of Coflex for the prevention of adjacent segment degeneration after lumbar fusion].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the short-term clinical results of the adjacent segment degeneration after the implantation of Coflex system at the interspinous space of adjacent segment to lumbar fusion. METHODS: Fifty patients with grade III disc (Thompson MRI classification) of adjacent segment to lumbar fusion were included and divided alternately into two groups according to the order of hospitalization from January to November 2009. Coflex system was implanted at the interspinous space of adjacent segment to lumbar fusion in 25 patients as Coflex group, the other 25 patients did not have any surgical treatment were as control group. The followed up time was 2 years. Visual analogue scale (VAS) score of low back pain, changes of disc height and motion range of adjacent segment to lumbar fusion on X-ray imaging were evaluated by independent sample t-test or paired samples t-test. RESULTS: There were 22 patients in Coflex group and 21 patients in control group were followed up 2 years post-operation. The difference of VAS score between two groups was no significance (P > 0.05). In Coflex group, the change of postoperative disc height was no significance (P > 0.05), but the motion range was significantly reduced to 47% of the preoperative value (t = 7.99, P < 0.05). In control group, the postoperative disc height decreased slightly, without significant difference to the preoperative value (P > 0.05). Between the two groups, no differences of the disc height and motion range were found before operation, but the differences of the disc height changes (t = 6.7, P < 0.05) and motion rang (t = -14.5, P < 0.05) were significant in 2 years post-operation. No complications such as Coflex system loosen, immigration and spinal process fracture were occurred. CONCLUSIONS: Coflex system can obviously limit the motion range and maintain the disc space height of adjacent segment to lumbar fusion, and prevent its degeneration in some degree.

MSN@IL-4 Sustainingly Mediates Macrophagocyte M2 Polarization and Relieves Osteoblast Damage via NF-κB Pathway-Associated Apoptosis.

Background: The microenvironment of bone defects displayed that M2 polarization of macrophagocyte could promote the osteoblast growth and benefit the wound healing. Bone scaffold transplantation is considered to be one of the most promising methods for repairing bone defects. The present research was aimed at constructing a kind of novel bone scaffold nanomaterial of MSN@IL-4 for treating bone defects responding to the wound microenvironment of bone defects and elucidating the mechanics of MSN@IL-4 treating bone defect via controlling release of IL-4, inducing M2 polarization and active factor release of macrophagocyte, and eventually relieving osteoblast injury. Methods: MSN@IL-4 was firstly fabricated and its release of IL-4 was assessed in vitro. Following, the effects of MSN@IL-4 nanocomplex on the release of active factors of macrophage were examined using Elisa assay and promoting M2 polarization of the macrophage by immunofluorescence staining. And then, the effects of active factors from macrophage supernatant induced by MSN@IL-4 on osteoblast growth were examined by CCK-8, flow cytometry, and western blot assay. Results: The release curve of IL-4 in vitro displayed that there was more than 80% release ratio for 30th day with a sustained manner in pH 5.5. Elisa assay data showed that MSN@IL-4 nanocomplex could constantly promote the release of proproliferative cytokine IL-10, SDF-1α, and BMP-2 in macrophagocyte compared to only IL-4 treatment, and immunofluorescent image showed that MSN@IL-4 could promote M2 polarization of macrophagocytes via inducing CD206 expression and suppressing CD86 expression. Osteoblast injury data showed that the supernatant from macrophagocyte treated by MSN@IL-4 could promote the osteoblast proliferation by MTT assay. Flow cytometry data showed that the supernatant from macrophagocyte treated by MSN@IL-4 could suppress the osteoblast apoptosis from 22.1% to 14.6%, and apoptosis-related protein expression data showed that the supernatant from macrophagocyte treated by MSN@IL-4 could suppress the expression of Bax, cleaved caspase 3, and cleaved caspase 8. Furthermore, the immunofluorescent image showed that the supernatant from macrophagocyte treated by MSN@IL-4 could inhibit nucleus location of p65, and western blot data showed that the supernatant from macrophagocyte treated by MSN@IL-4 could suppress the phosphorylation of IKK and induce the expression of IκB. Conclusion: MSN@IL-4 could control the sustaining release of IL-4, and it exerts the protective effect on osteoblast injury via inducing M2 polarization and proproliferative cytokine of macrophagocyte and following inhibiting the apoptosis and NF-κB pathway-associated inflammation of osteoblast.

[A new type of adjustable weight bearing rehabilitation brace for lower limbs in postoperative rehabilitation of proximal femoral nail anti-rotation].

OBJECTIVE: To study and analyze the clinical effect of the self-developed new adjustable weight-bearing rehabilitation brace in the rehabilitation of the femoral intertrochanteric fracture after the operation of PFNA. METHODS: From July 2015 to June 2017, 62 patients with typeⅡ (Evans-Jensen classification) intertrochanteric fracture of femur were treated with PFNA internal fixation. There were 11 males and 19 females in the routine rehabilitation group, with an average age of (70.73± 6.09) years;17 males and 15 females in the brace rehabilitation group, with an average age of (71.25±6.60) years. Among them, the patients in the routine rehabilitation group recovered according to the routine method, and the patients in the support rehabilitation group used the self-developed new adjustable weight-bearing rehabilitation support of lower limbs to assist the early rehabilitation. The pain intensity(VAS score), weight-bearing of affected limb, clinical healing time of fracture, Harris score and complications were recorded and analyzed. RESULTS: Nine patients lost their visit half a year later, the other 53 patients were followed up for 9 to 18 months. The VAS score at 1, 3, 6 months after operation of brace rehabilitation group was lower than that of routine rehabilitation group(P<0.05). The weight bearing of the limbs in the rehabilitation group was significantly higher than that in the conventional rehabilitation group(P<0.05), but the clinical healing time of fracture in the brace rehabilitation group was shorter than that in the routine rehabilitation group(P<0.05). In addition, the Harris score of the postoperativebrace rehabilitation group was better than that of the conventional rehabilitation group(P<0.05). The incidence of complications was lower than that of the conventional rehabilitation group(P=0.048). CONCLUSION: In the rehabilitation of Evans Jensen typeⅡintertrochanteric fracture after PFNA internal fixation, the new self-developed adjustable weight-bearing rehabilitation brace can significantly relieve postoperative pain, regulate and moderately increase the stress stimulation at the fracture end, so as to promote fracture healing, accelerate the recovery of hip joint function, reduce the incidence of complications, and its clinical effect is safe and reliable.

Comparison of Wiltse's paraspinal approach and open book laminectomy for thoracolumbar burst fractures with greenstick lamina fractures: a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Posterior short-segment pedicle screw fixation is used to treat thoracolumbar burst fractures. However, no randomized controlled studies have compared the efficacy of the two approaches--the Wiltse's paraspinal approach and open book laminectomy in the treatment of thoracolumbar burst fractures with greenstick lamina fractures. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients with burst fractures of the thoracolumbar spine without neurological deficit were randomized to receive either the Wiltse's paraspinal approach (group A, 24 patients) or open book laminectomy (group B, 23 patients). Patients were followed postoperatively for average of 27.4 months. Clinical and radiographic data of the two approaches were collected and compared. RESULTS: Our results showed the anterior segmental height, kyphotic angle, visual analog scale (VAS) score, and Smiley-Webster Scale (SWS) score significantly improved postoperatively in both groups, indicating that both the Wiltse's paraspinal approach and open book laminectomy can effectively treat thoracolumbar burst fractures with greenstick lamina fractures. The Wiltse's paraspinal approach was found to have significantly shorter operating time, less blood loss, and shorter length of hospital stay compared to open book laminectomy. However, there were two (2/24) patients in group A that had neurological deficits postoperatively and required a second exploratory operation. Dural tears and/or cauda equina entrapment were subsequently found in four patients in group B and all two patients of neurological deficits in group A during operation. No screw loosening, plate breakage, or other internal fixation failures were found at final follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: The results demonstrated that either of the two surgical approaches can achieve satisfactory results in treating thoracolumbar burst fractures in patients with greenstick lamina fractures. However, if there is any clinical or radiographic suspicion of a dural tear and/or cauda equina entrapment pre-operation, patients should receive an open book laminectomy to avoid a second exploratory operation. More research is still needed to optimize clinical decision-making regarding surgical approach.

Fibroblast growth factor 2 induces mesenchymal stem cells to differentiate into tenocytes through the MAPK pathway.

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) differentiate into numerous different cell types and thus have therapeutic potential for tissue engineering, anti­inflammatory and immunomodulatory purposes. FGF2 may affect the biological behavior of MSCs. MSCs were transduced with either adenovirus­null vector/green fluorescent protein (GFP) or a vector encoding for the overexpression of FGF2/GFP. The expression of FGF2 was demonstrated to be significantly higher in MSC (FGF2) compared with MSC (vector) by qPCR and western blot analysis. In order to investigate the function of FGF2 in MSCs over time, it was observed that FGF2 stimulates cell proliferation and induces cell differentiation by activating the mitogen­activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway. Following blockade of the FGF2­induced activation of the extracellular signal­regulated kinase pathway by overexpression of sprouty isoforms, the marker of differentiation markedly decreased. Altogether, the results demonstrated a novel cell biological mechanism that FGF2 differentiates into tenocytes and the MAPK pathway is key in differentiation.