Examining the causal relationship between circulating immune cells and the susceptibility to osteomyelitis: A Mendelian randomization study.

BACKGROUND: Osteomyelitis is considered as a deleterious inflammatory condition affecting the bone, primarily attributed to pathogenic infection. However, the underlying factors predisposing individuals to osteomyelitis remain incompletely elucidated. The immune system plays a multifaceted role in the progression of this condition, yet previous observational studies and randomized controlled trials investigating the association between circulating immune cell counts and osteomyelitis have been constrained. In order to address this knowledge gap, we conducted a Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis to evaluate the impact of diverse immune cell counts on the risk of developing osteomyelitis. METHODS: In our study, we utilized single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that have been strongly linked to circulating immune cells or specific lymphocyte subtypes, as identified in large-scale genome-wide association studies (GWAS). These SNPs served as instrumental variables (IVs) for our MR analysis. We employed a more relaxed clumping threshold to conduct MR analysis on several related lymphocyte subtypes. To estimate causal effects, we utilized the Wald ratio, as well as the random-effects inverse variance weighted (IVW) and weighted median (WM) methods. To enhance the credibility of our results, we performed F-statistic calculations and a series of sensitivity analyses. RESULTS: Our findings revealed a significant correlation between the absolute count of circulating lymphocytes and the risk of osteomyelitis [odds ratio(OR) 1.20；95 % confidence interval (CI), 1.08-1.32；P = 0.0005]. Furthermore, we identified a causal relationship between the absolute count of CD8+ T cells and susceptibility to osteomyelitis (OR 1.16; 95 % CI, 1.04-1.30; P = 0.0098). Importantly, these findings remained robust across a wide range of sensitivity analyses. CONCLUSION: Through our MR analysis, we have provided evidence supporting a causal relationship between genetic predisposition to higher circulating immune cell counts and an increased risk of osteomyelitis. Specifically, our findings highlight the association between elevated CD8+ T cell counts and a heightened susceptibility to osteomyelitis. These results offer valuable insights for the future exploration of immunotherapy approaches in the management of osteomyelitis.

Whether Assisted Intramedullary Nail Implantation Without Traction Table is as Safe and Effective as Using Traction Table of Older Intertrochanteric Fracture Patients?

Purpose: Despite promising clinical outcome proposals, there has been relatively little published regarding the use of traction table-assisted intramedullary nail implantation for intertrochanteric fractures. The purpose of this study is to further summarize and evaluate published clinical studies comparing the clinical outcomes of using traction table and without traction table in the management of intertrochanteric fracture. Methods: A comprehensive literature search using PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Embase was systematically performed to evaluate all studies included in the literature up to May 2022. The search terms included "intertrochanteric fractures", "hip fractures", and "traction table" with Boolean operators "AND" and "OR". The following information was extracted and summarized: demographic information, setup time, surgical time, amount of bleeding, fluoroscopy exposure time, reduction quality, and Harris Hip Score (HHS). Results: A total of eight clinical controlled studies involving 620 patients were eligible for the review. The mean age at the time of injury was 75.3 years (traction table group 75.7 years, non-traction table group 74.9 years). The most common assisted intramedullary nail implantation method of non-traction table group included lateral decubitus position (4 studies), traction repositor, (3 studies) and manual traction (1 studies). Included studies results all support that there was no difference between the two groups in terms of reduction quality and Harris Hip Score, and the non-traction table group had an advantage in terms of setup time. However, there were still disputes in terms of surgical time, amount of bleeding and fluoroscopy exposure time. Conclusion: For patients with intertrochanteric fractures, assisting intramedullary nail implantation without traction table is as safe and effective as using traction table and doing so without a traction table may be more advantageous in terms of setup time.