Patient trends in orthopedic traumas and related disorders after tsunami caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake: An experience in the primary referral medical center.

BACKGROUND: In the Great East Japan Earthquake, the Japanese Red Cross Ishinomaki Hospital played an important role as a principal referral center within the Ishinomaki region, one of the most severely affected areas in eastern Japan. The present study describes the patient population, clinical characteristics, and time courses of the medical problems observed at this hospital. METHODS: A retrospective survey of medical logs and records was conducted on the first 2 weeks after the earthquake to characterize orthopedic traumas and related disorders treated during this catastrophe. Patient number, severity of injuries, number of patients secondarily transported to the referral medical centers in the inland area, and the number of surgeries performed during the study period were investigated. RESULTS: Totally, 7686 patients visited the hospital. Of which, 1807 patients suffered from exogenous diseases, such as trauma, burns, crush syndrome, deep venous thrombosis, and infectious diseases. Patients who suffered from hypothermia were the most frequently seen within the first 2 weeks after the earthquake. Interestingly, most patients' conditions were not severe and required only simple treatments. Four patients (0.2% of patients with exogenous diseases) were secondarily transported to the referral medical centers in the inland area and only four patients were surgically treated because of a lack of available implants, surgical devices, and electric power supply. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: The Great East Japan Earthquake and subsequent tsunami, which occurred during an early spring afternoon, resulted in a unique orthopedic patient population, which included few severely injured patients compared with numerous deaths. We believe that each coastal region hospital should develop its own emergency medical care system to address future tsunami events while considering their surrounding environment. The information described in the present study should be important for preparation toward future events involving massive earthquakes followed by tsunami disasters.

Shoulder surface temperature and bone scintigraphy findings in patients with rotator cuff tears.

BACKGROUND: Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is one of the serious complications after surgical treatment of a rotator cuff tear. Both a measurement of body surface temperature and bone scintigraphy have been used as diagnostic tools for the early phase of CRPS.Unfortunately, few studies have been carried out that applied these methods to the patients after rotator cuff repair. PURPOSES: To clarify both shoulder surface temperature and bone scintigraphy findings in patients with rotator cuff tears. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Subjects comprised patients with unilateral rotator cuff tears (five men and five women, mean age 61 years). For measurements of shoulder surface temperature, a Thermochron was attached to both shoulders. As for bone scintigraphy, intravenous injection of technetium-labelled hydroxymethylenebisphosphonic acid (99mTc-HMDP)was performed, and then images were taken with a gamma camera. RESULTS: During the measurements, the changes in body surface temperature for the affected and healthy shoulders remained within the standard deviation of the reference group. The intensity of radioisotope (RI) uptake for the affected shoulder joint was significantly increased compared to that for the healthy shoulder joint (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: RI uptake is increased in shoulders with rotator cuff tears, whereas shoulder surface temperature shows no differences on the affected and unaffected sides.

Changes with time in skin temperature of the shoulders in healthy controls and a patient with shoulder-hand syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Abnormal skin temperature in the shoulder is caused by various diseases. A thermography is unable to capture temperature changes over time. In contrast, a Thermocron is an effective measuring device to monitor temperature changes over time. PURPOSES: The purposes of this study employing a Thermocron were to measure shoulder skin temperature over time in healthy subjects and to detect shoulder skin temperature abnormalities in a patient with shoulder-hand syndrome. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Subjects comprised 10 healthy volunteers (20 shoulders; 4 men and 6 women, mean age 54 years). For measurements, a Thermocron was attached on both shoulders. Measurements were made from 21.00 to 07.00 the following morning at 15-minute intervals. RESULTS: Gradual difference in right and left shoulder skin temperature was observed with the timing of measurements but no significant difference was apparent, i.e. dominant side 34.9 ± 0.8°C, non-dominant side 34.9 ± 0.9°C (P = 0.28). Presentation of a case with shoulder-hand syndrome. A 54-year-old woman with the diagnosis of rotator cuff tear underwent surgical treatment of rotator cuff repair, but the pain of the operated shoulder persisted due to phase 1 shoulder-hand syndrome. In postoperative week 3, skin temperature measurement using Thermocrons demonstrated a significant decrease in temperature on the operated side (affected side 34.3 ± 0.4°C, healthy side 35.2 ± 0.3°C; P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The changing of the skin temperature during night-time was successfully recorded both in the healthy subjects and a case with shoulder-hand syndrome using a Thermocron.