Comparison of true blood loss between short and long cephalomedullary nail fixation of geriatric hip fractures, a retrospective cohort study.

PURPOSE: Existing literature is discrepant on the differences in blood loss and need for transfusion between short and long cephalomedullary nails used for extracapsular geriatric hip fractures. However, prior studies used the inaccurate estimated rather than the more accurate 'calculated' blood loss based on hematocrit dilution (Gibon in IO 37:735-739, 2013, Mercuriali in CMRO 13:465-478, 1996). This study sought to clarify whether use of short nails is associated with clinically meaningful reductions in calculated blood loss and resultant need for transfusion. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study using bivariate and propensity score-weighted linear regression analyses was conducted examining 1442 geriatric (ages 60-105) patients undergoing cephalomedullary fixation of extracapsular hip fractures over 10 years at two trauma centers. Implant dimensions, pre and postoperative laboratory values, preoperative medications, and comorbidities were recorded. Two groups were compared based on nail length (greater or less than 235 mm). RESULTS: Short nails were associated with a 26% reduction in calculated blood loss (95% confidence interval: 17-35%; p < 10-14) and a 24-min (36%) reduction in mean operative time (95% confidence interval: 21-26 min; p < 10-71). The absolute reduction in transfusion risk was 21% (95% confidence interval: 16-26%; p < 10-13) yielding a number needed to treat of 4.8 (95% confidence interval: 3.9-6.4) with short nails to prevent one transfusion. No difference in reoperation, periprosthetic fracture, or mortality was noted between groups. CONCLUSION: Use of short compared to long cephalomedullary nails for geriatric extracapsular hip fractures confers reduced blood loss, need for transfusion, and operative time without a difference in complications.

Big Data and Total Hip Arthroplasty: How Do Large Databases Compare?

BACKGROUND: Use of large databases for orthopedic research has become extremely popular in recent years. Each database varies in the methods used to capture data and the population it represents. The purpose of this study was to evaluate how these databases differed in reported demographics, comorbidities, and postoperative complications for primary total hip arthroplasty (THA) patients. METHODS: Primary THA patients were identified within National Surgical Quality Improvement Programs (NSQIP), Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS), Medicare Standard Analytic Files (MED), and Humana administrative claims database (HAC). NSQIP definitions for comorbidities and complications were matched to corresponding International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision/Current Procedural Terminology codes to query the other databases. Demographics, comorbidities, and postoperative complications were compared. RESULTS: The number of patients from each database was 22,644 in HAC, 371,715 in MED, 188,779 in NIS, and 27,818 in NSQIP. Age and gender distribution were clinically similar. Overall, there was variation in prevalence of comorbidities and rates of postoperative complications between databases. As an example, NSQIP had more than twice the obesity than NIS. HAC and MED had more than 2 times the diabetics than NSQIP. Rates of deep infection and stroke 30 days after THA had more than 2-fold difference between all databases. CONCLUSION: Among databases commonly used in orthopedic research, there is considerable variation in complication rates following THA depending upon the database used for analysis. It is important to consider these differences when critically evaluating database research. Additionally, with the advent of bundled payments, these differences must be considered in risk adjustment models.

Are We Still Prescribing Opioids for Osteoarthritis?

BACKGROUND: The United States is in the midst of an opioid epidemic. These medications continue to be used to manage pain associated with osteoarthritis, despite mounting evidence questioning the benefits. The rate at which opioids are prescribed for osteoarthritis is largely unknown. We sought to identify rates of opioid prescriptions for osteoarthritis and identify factors associated with higher rates of prescribing. METHODS: We queried the Humana, Inc. administrative claims database from 2007 to 2014. Patients with osteoarthritis were identified using International Classification of Diseases 9th Revision codes and classified as having hip, knee, or any joint osteoarthritis. Claims data were reviewed to identify opioid prescriptions associated with a diagnosis of osteoarthritis. Rates of prescribing were trended over time and stratified by sex, age, and geographic region. RESULTS: From 2007 to 2014, 17.0% of patients with any joint osteoarthritis, 13.4% of patients with hip osteoarthritis, and 15.9% with knee osteoarthritis were prescribed an opioid for their condition. Yearly rates of prescription were fairly stable over this period. Patients in the South had the highest odds of opioid prescription, while those in the Northeast had the lowest. Patients ≤49 years old were more likely to receive a prescription than those ≥50 years old. CONCLUSION: This study provides important epidemiologic data about the use of opioids for osteoarthritis. Despite increasing evidence calling proposed benefits into question and increasing awareness of risks of opioids, prescribing rates remained stable between 2007 and 2014. This provides important baseline data as we work to combat excessive and inappropriate opioid use within the United States.

The AAHKS Clinical Research Award: What Are the Costs of Knee Osteoarthritis in the Year Prior to Total Knee Arthroplasty?

BACKGROUND: Despite American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPGs) related to the non-arthroplasty management of osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee, non-recommended treatments remain in common use. We sought to determine the costs associated with non-arthroplasty management of knee OA in the year prior to total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and stratify them by CPG recommendation status. METHODS: The Humana database was reviewed from 2007 to 2015 for primary TKA patients. Costs for hyaluronic acid (HA) and corticosteroid injections, physical therapy, braces, wedge insoles, opioids, non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, and tramadol in the year prior to TKA were calculated. Cost was defined as reimbursement paid by the insurance provider. Costs were analyzed relative to the overall non-inpatient costs for knee OA and categorized based on CPG recommendations. RESULTS: In total 86,081 primary TKA patients were analyzed and 65.8% had at least one treatment in the year prior to TKA. Treatments analyzed made up 57.6% of the total non-inpatient cost of knee OA in the year prior to TKA. Only 3 of the 8 treatments studied have a strong recommendation for their use (physical therapy, non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, tramadol) and costs for these interventions represented 12.2% of non-inpatient knee OA cost. In contrast, 29.3% of the costs are due to HA injections alone, which are not supported by CPGs. CONCLUSION: In the year prior to TKA, over half of the non-inpatient costs associated with knee OA are from injections, therapy, prosthetics, and prescriptions. Approximately 30% of this is due to HA injections alone. If only interventions recommend by the CPG are utilized then costs associated with knee OA could be decreased by 45%.

Preoperative Comorbidities Associated With Early Mortality in Hip Fracture Patients: A Multicenter Study.

OBJECTIVE: Multiple comorbidities in hip fracture patients are associated with increased mortality and complications. The goal of this study was to characterize the relationship between specific patient factors including comorbidities and outcomes in geriatric hip fractures, including length of stay, unplanned ICU admission, discharge disposition, complications, and mortality. METHODS: This is a retrospective review of a trauma database from five Level 1 and Level 2 trauma centers of patients with hip fractures of the femoral neck and intertrochanteric region who underwent treatment using hip pinning, hemiarthroplasty, total hip arthroplasty, cephalomedullary nailing, or dynamic hip screw fixation. Mortality was the primary outcome variable (including in-hospital mortality, 30-day mortality, 60-day mortality, and 90-day mortality). Secondary outcome variables included in-hospital adverse events, unplanned transfer to the ICU, postoperative length of stay, and discharge disposition. Regression analyses were used for evaluation of relationships between comorbidities as independent variables and primary and secondary outcomes as dependent variables. RESULTS: Two thousand three hundred patients were included. The mortality was 1.8%, 7.0%, 10.9%, and 14.1% for in-hospital, 30-day, 60-day, and 90-day mortality, respectively. Diabetes and cognitive impairment present on admission were associated with mortality at all-time intervals. COPD was the only comorbidity that signaled in-hospital adverse event with an odds ratio of 1.67 (P = 0.012). No patient factors, time to surgery, or comorbidities signaled unplanned ICU transfer. Patients with renal failure and COPD had longer hospital stays after surgery. CONCLUSION: Geriatric hip fractures continue to have high short-term morbidity and mortality. Identifying patients with increased odds of early mortality and adverse events can help teams optimize care and outcomes. Patients with diabetes, cognitive impairment, renal failure, and COPD may benefit from continued and improved medical optimization during the perioperative period as well as being more closely managed by a medicine team without delaying time to the operating room.

Role of Moderate Hypothermia and Antegrade Cerebral Perfusion during Repair of Type A Aortic Dissection.

The goal of this study was to compare early postoperative outcomes and actuarial survival between patients who underwent repair of acute type A aortic dissection with deep or moderate hypothermia. A total of 132 consecutive patients from a single academic medical center underwent repair of acute type A aortic dissection between January 2000 and June 2014. Of those, 105 patients were repaired under deep hypothermia (< 24 C°), while 27 patients were repaired under moderate hypothermia (≥24 C°). Median ages were 62 years (range: 27-86) and 59 years (range: 35-83) for patients repaired under deep hypothermia compared with patients repaired under moderate hypothermia, respectively ( p = 0.451). Major morbidity, operative mortality, and 10-year actuarial survival were compared between groups. Operative mortality was 17.1 and 7.4% in the deep and moderate hypothermia groups, respectively ( p = 0.208). Incidence of permanent stroke was 12.4% in the deep hypothermic circulatory arrest group and 0% in the moderate hypothermia group ( p = 0.054). Actuarial 5- and 10-year survival demonstrated a trend for lower long-term mortality with moderate hypothermia compared with deep hypothermia (69% 5-year and 54% 10-year for deep hypothermia vs. 79% 5-year and 10-year for moderate hypothermia, log-rank p = 0.161). Moderate hypothermia is a safe and efficient alternative to deep hypothermia and may have protective benefits. Stroke rate was lower with moderate hypothermia.

Assessment of potential confounders when imaging pectus excavatum with chest radiography alone.

BACKGROUND: Chest radiography (CXR) has emerged as an attractive alternative imaging option for objective pre-operative assessment of pectus excavatum (PE) with comparable accuracy, reduced cost, and less radiation exposure when compared to computed tomography (CT). This study asked whether image quality, scoliosis, and asymmetry of the PE deformity would decrease the accuracy of CXR as compared to CT. METHODS: A database of PE patients receiving preoperative CXR and CT was created, and Haller-indices (HI) and correction-indices (CI) were calculated using each imaging modality. Each potential confounding variable were analyzed using Spearman correlations the Fisher r-to-z transformation test. RESULTS: The database was comprised of 77 patients. Image quality, scoliosis and the 'eccentric type' of asymmetry did not demonstrate any significant worsening of measurement accuracy. However, the correlation coefficients for CIs for those with and without the 'unbalanced type' of asymmetry were 0.593 and 0.890, respectively, with a Fisher r-to-z of 2.16 (p=.031). CONCLUSIONS: The accuracy of CXR-derived pectus indices remains quite favorable despite the heterogeneity from radiographic quality, scoliosis and chest wall asymmetry. Nonetheless, the unbalanced type of chest wall asymmetry did emerge as a significant confounder. As such, use of CXR alone in cases of gross chest wall asymmetry should be cautioned.

The case for using the correction index obtained from chest radiography for evaluation of pectus excavatum.

BACKGROUND: We previously reported the use of a computed tomography (CT)-based Correction Index (CI) as a more accurate assessment of pectus excavatum (PE) severity than the historically used Haller Index (HI). This study examines the diagnostic capabilities of the CI as assessed by lateral chest radiography (CXR). METHODS: A database of PE patients receiving preoperative CXR and CT was created. For each patient, a radiologist calculated a CT-based CI, while two pediatric surgeons independently calculated CXR CIs. RESULTS: The database was composed of 69 patients. Significant correlations were found between CXR CI estimates of the two observers and between the CXR and CT CI for each observer. Per our previous work, CT CIs were used in this study for identifying patients meeting surgical criteria (CT CI≥28%). Observed CXR CIs demonstrated good interrater reliability. The sensitivity (0.83) and specificity (0.77) of CXR in diagnosing severe PE (CT CI≥28%) was high. However, sensitivity (0.89) markedly improved when only considering measured CXR CIs≤26%, and combined specificity rose to 0.86 when only considering measured CXR CIs≥30%. CONCLUSIONS: We recommend the CI as measured by lateral CXR for the preoperative evaluation of PE, with CT used as a confirmatory test in patients measured to have a CXR CI between 26% and 30%.