Patient Positioning for Proximal Femur Fracture Fixation: a Review of Best Practices.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Proximal femur fractures are common traumatic injuries treated by orthopedic surgeons. Preparation and positioning for surgical intervention are critical in the proper management of proximal femur fractures. The purpose of this study was to review the current evidence on the various positioning options for patients and to highlight the principles and emerging techniques to help orthopedic surgeons treat this common injury. RECENT FINDINGS: Strategic patient positioning is key to the reduction and fixation of proximal femur fractures without complications. The use of intramedullary devices for the fixation of proximal femur fractures has led to an increased use of the modern fracture table. The fracture table should be used when surgeons are facile with its use to avoid significant complications. Recent best available evidence has suggested increased risk of malrotation associated with the use of the fracture table. The use of the radiolucent table offers the most flexibility, but limits surgeons as multiple assistants are needed to maintain reduction during fixation. Positioning for proximal femur fractures is an important technique for general and trauma orthopedic surgeons. Surgeons need to be aware of the various techniques for positioning of proximal femur fractures due to the diversity of injury patterns and patient characteristics. Each positioning technique has it benefits and potential complications that every orthopaedic surgeon should be familiar with while treating these injuries.

Team Approach: Evaluation and Management of Pelvic Ring Injuries.

A multidisciplinary approach to the management of pelvic ring injuries has been shown to decrease mortality rates. The primary goals within the emergency room are to assess, resuscitate, and stabilize the patient. The Advanced Trauma Life Support protocol guides the initial assessment of the patient. A pelvic binder or sheet should be applied to help to provide reduction of the fracture and temporary stabilization. The trauma team becomes the primary service for the patient as he or she transitions away from the emergency department. The trauma team must effectively communicate with and serve as the liaison between other specialists as injuries are identified. emodynamic stability should be closely monitored in patients with pelvic ring injuries, involving the assessment of vital signs, imaging findings, and clinical judgment. Angioembolization and peritoneal packing may play a role in helping to control hemorrhage. Urologists should be consulted if a Foley catheter cannot be passed or there is concern for urethral or bladder injury. Further imaging or urologic intervention may be necessary. Orthopaedic surgeons can help to assess the patient, classify the injury, and assist in temporary stabilization while planning definitive fixation.

Combined Acetabulum Fracture and Hip Dislocation in an 18-Year-Old Female at 35-Week Gestation: A Case Report and Review of the Literature.

Caring for an injured, pregnant patient can be a management challenge. We report the case of an 18-year-old female who sustained a left acetabulum fracture with a concurrent hip dislocation at 35 weeks' gestation following a motor vehicle accident. Through an interdisciplinary, team-based approach, the patient was guided through obstetric delivery and orthopedic surgical fracture fixation without complication. By being familiar with the unique challenges in management posed by pregnant patients, orthopedic surgeons can be better equipped to minimize morbidity and mortality in this patient population while maximizing clinical outcomes.

Perioperative Management of Orthopaedic Patients with Hematologic Disorders: A Critical Analysis Review.

Perioperative management of orthopaedic patients with a hematologic disorder is a complex endeavor that requires a multidisciplinary team-based approach. A team composed of an experienced orthopaedic surgeon, an anesthesiologist, and a hematologist is necessary to achieve optimal outcomes. Patients with hemophilia and other complex hematologic disorders should be managed at, or in consultation with a hematologist at, a comprehensive hemophilia center. Bleeding disorders and inherited thrombophilia present unique challenges for the perioperative management of orthopaedic surgery. Comprehensive preoperative planning and familiarity with treatment guidelines can help to minimize these risks. Knowledge of the disease processes outlined in this article will provide orthopaedic surgeons with the requisite background knowledge that is needed to initiate safe and effective treatment strategies involving this high-risk patient population.

Precise Measurement of the Outer Diameters of Antibiotic-Laden Cement Nails Produced by Various Sized Thoracostomy Catheter Molds.

OBJECTIVES: At our institution, custom-made antibiotic-laden cement nails (ACNs) fabricated during surgery using a thoracostomy catheter as a mold are commonly used to treat long-bone infection. As the outer diameter of the nails produced has not previously been described, we designed a study to measure the outer diameter of ACNs fashioned using commercially available and commonly utilized thoracostomy catheters of various sizes. METHODS: Six thoracostomy catheters from 2 different manufactures (Argyle PVC Thoracic Catheters; Covidien Ltd and Atrium PVC Thoracic Catheters; Atrium Medical Corporation), ranging from 20 French to 40 French, were utilized in this study. Each catheter was filled with antibiotic-laden cement, and the most proximal segment (largest outer diameter) and most distal segment (smallest outer diameter) were detached for study. Once the cement was cured, the thoracostomy catheters were cut away and the segments were measured using a calibrated digital caliper (Mitutoyo Corp, Aurora, IL). Because the ACNs produced using the technique taper from proximal to distal according to the shape of the thoracostomy catheter design, data were recorded as a maximum and minimum outer diameter for each ACN produced by each of the 6 thoracostomy catheter sizes studied. All measurements were in millimeters and were rounded to the nearest one-tenth of a millimeter. RESULTS: The ACNs produced using the various sized thoracostomy catheters had segments with outer diameters ranging from 4.2 mm to 11.2 mm. Both brands of catheters produced nails with similar distal diameters. Specifically, the mean distal diameter measurements were 4.2 mm for a 20 French catheter, 5.5 mm for a 24 French catheter, 6.6 mm for a 28 French catheter, 7.7 mm for a 32 French catheter, 8.4 mm for a 36 French catheter, and 9.9 mm for a 40 French catheter. The Argyle brand catheters produced nails with proximal diameters that increased with the catheter's size, from 7.1 mm for a 20 French catheter to 11.2 mm for a 40 French catheter. The Atrium brand catheters produced nails with a much tighter range of proximal diameters ranging from 9.4 mm to 11.1 mm. CONCLUSIONS: Thoracostomy catheters are commonly utilized to produce ACNs. The results of our study confirm that the fabricated nails taper in diameter from proximal to distal. Knowledge of the specific dimensions of the ACN produced by each size thoracostomy catheter will aid the orthopaedic surgeon in selecting the right size based on the diameter of the medullary canal being treated.

Symptomatic Implant Removal Following Dual Mini-Fragment Plating for Clavicular Shaft Fractures.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the proportion of patients requiring secondary surgery for symptomatic implant removal after open reduction, internal fixation using dual mini-fragment plating technique for clavicular shaft fractures. DESIGN: Retrospective observational study. SETTING: Single university Level 1 trauma center. PATIENTS: Eighty-one patients treated with open reduction, internal fixation using dual mini-fragment plating technique for clavicular shaft fractures (OTA/AO 15-B1, B2, and B3) with minimum 12-month follow-up (median 477 days; range 371-1549 days). INTERVENTION: Open reduction, internal fixation using dual mini-fragment plating technique for clavicular shaft fractures. MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS: Incidence of secondary surgery, QuickDASH (Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand) scores. RESULTS: Six of 81 patients (7.4%) underwent secondary surgery for implant removal for any reason. Of these, 3 (3.7%) underwent symptomatic implant (soft-tissue irritation) removal, 2 (2.5%) required implant removal in the setting of infection, and 1 patient (1.2%) required revision open reduction internal fixation for early implant failure. The mean QuickDASH score in this series was 8.44 (±6.94, range 0-77.27). The associated implant cost of the typical construct utilized in this series was $1511.38. The mean surgical time was 97 minutes (range 71-143 minutes). CONCLUSIONS: The utilization of a dual mini-fragment plating technique in the treatment of clavicular shaft fractures results in a low rates of secondary surgery for symptomatic implant removal (3.7%) and similar QuickDASH scores when compared with historical controls treated with 3.5-mm plates placed on the superior clavicle. Potential disadvantages in using this technique include a higher surgical implant cost and length of surgery. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic Level IV. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

What is the Proportion of Patients With Multiple Hereditary Exostoses Who Undergo Malignant Degeneration?

BACKGROUND: Multiple hereditary exostoses is an autosomal-dominant skeletal disorder that has a wide-ranging reported risk of malignant degeneration to chondrosarcoma. QUESTIONS/PURPOSES: The aims of our study were to use a large, web-based survey approach to characterize (1) the demographic distribution of patients with multiple hereditary exostoses, (2) the number of surgeries performed related to one's diagnosis of multiple hereditary exostoses, and (3) the proportion of survey respondents who described experiencing malignant degeneration in a large international, heterogeneous cohort of patients with multiple hereditary exostoses. METHODS: An anonymous web-based survey was distributed to several online support groups and social media networks designed to support and educate patients with multiple hereditary exostoses and their families. The survey collected demographic and epidemiologic data on 779 respondents. Data were recorded to assess respondents' disease burden and the rate of malignant degeneration. RESULTS: Females represented a slightly greater proportion of those with multiple hereditary exostoses who responded (56% female; 419 of 742 patients). Median age for all respondents was 28 years (range, < 1-85 years). Median age for males was 25 years (range, < 1-85 years), while median age for females was 29 years (range, < 1-82 years). The mean age at diagnosis of male and female respondents was in the mid-first decade (5.4 years ± 7.2 years). The mean number of surgeries a patient had undergone was 7.3 (± 7.1 surgeries). The proportion of respondents who experienced malignant transformation was 2.7% (21 of 757 respondents), at a mean age of 28.6 years (± 9.3 years). The most common sites of malignant change from benign exostoses included the pelvis (eight of 21 respondents) and scapula (four of 21 respondents). CONCLUSIONS: In the largest and most geographically diverse study of patients with multiple hereditary exostoses of which we are aware, we found the proportion of patients with multiple hereditary exostoses who have undergone malignant degeneration to be consistent with those reported in prior studies. Our study perhaps more accurately assessed the proportion of patients who undergo malignant transformation of multiple hereditary exostoses. As with prior studies on this topic, the proportion of malignant change may be expected to represent a high-end estimate as recruitment and selection bias likely predisposes for patients with more severe disease, whereas patients with lesser disease may be unaware of their diagnosis. In discussing the sequelae of multiple hereditary exostoses, clinicians perhaps might use this study to offer an unspecific statement of risk of malignant degeneration of multiple hereditary exostoses among the population at large. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level IV, prognostic study.

Bilateral distal tibial transitional ankle fractures.

A 13-year-old boy presented to the emergency department with bilateral ankle pain and swelling following a 5-foot fall from a swing set.

Ankle sprains and instability.

Ankle injuries are among the most common injuries presenting to primary care providers and emergency departments and may cause considerable time lost to injury and long-term disability. Inversion injuries about the ankle involve about 25% of all injuries of the musculoskeletal system and 50% of all sports-related injuries. Medial-sided ankle sprains occur less frequently than those on the lateral side. High ankle sprains occur less frequently in the general population, but do occur commonly in collision sports. Providers should apply the Ottawa ankle rules when radiography is indicated and refer fractures and more severe injuries to orthopedic surgery as needed.

An atypical presentation of heterotopic ossification following pelvic ring injury.

Disruption of the pelvic ring is associated with great morbidity and mortality. The high-energy blunt trauma that often leads to these injuries is also responsible for the head, chest, spine, extremity, and genitourinary trauma seen concurrently. Urethral and bladder injuries have been reported in up to 25% of patients with pelvic fractures and can lead to a plethora of urogenital problems. Heterotopic ossification of the penis, presenting as erectile dysfunction, has never been described as a complication of pelvic ring injury. We present the first case of this type of heterotopic ossification, in a 46-year-old male who sustained an anteroposterior compression type II injury with no evidence of genitourinary tract damage.