Comparison between Ultrasound-Guided Pericapsular Nerve Group Block and Local Infiltration Analgesia for Postoperative Analgesia after Total Hip Arthroplasty: A Prospective Randomized Controlled Trial.

OBJECTIVES: Pericapsular nerve group (PENG) blocking is a novel nerve block modality for analgesia after total hip arthroplasty (THA); however, its analgesic efficacy is unclear. We aimed to compare the analgesic effect of ultrasound-guided PENG blocking and periarticular local infiltration analgesia after THA. METHODS: This study involved patients undergoing unilateral primary THA at our institution between October 2022 and December 2022. Based on a prospective double-blind, randomized approach, patients were randomly divided into two groups: the PENG and infiltration groups. The former received ultrasound-guided pericapsular nerve block before surgery while the latter received local anesthesia and local infiltration analgesia during surgery. The primary outcome was the amount of morphine used for rescue analgesia within 48 h after surgery and the visual analog scale (VAS) pain score at 3, 6, 12, 24, and 48 h after surgery. Secondary outcomes consisted of postoperative hip function on the first and second postoperative days, including hip extension angle and flexion, as well as distance traveled by the patient. Tertiary outcomes included length of hospital stay and postoperative adverse reactions. The data were analyzed using SPSS 26.0. Using the appropriate statistical methodology, continuous and categorical data were analyzed, and p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: There was no clear difference in morphine requirements during the first 24 hours postoperatively (5.8 ± 5.9 vs. 6.0 ± 6.3, p = 0.910), in the total postoperative morphine consumption (7.5 ± 6.3 vs. 7.8 ± 6.6, p = 0.889), and in the postoperative resting VAS pain scores (p > 0.05). However, the exercise VAS score in the PENG group was significantly higher than that in the infiltration group within 12 hours after surgery (6.1 + 1.2 vs. 5.4 + 1.0, p = 0.008). There was no significant difference in hip function, length of hospital stay, or incidence of complications between the two groups. CONCLUSION: The analgesic effect and functional recovery of ultrasound-guided pericapsular nerve block for THA was not superior to that of periarticular local infiltration analgesia.

Porous tantalum shell and augment for acetabular defect reconstruction in revision total hip arthroplasty: a mid-term follow-up study.

AIM: The use of porous tantalum trabecular metal (TM) shell and augment to reconstruct acetabular defects in revision total hip arthroplasty (THA) is a reliable technique. We evaluated the mid-term implant survival, clinical, and radiological outcomes of our first 48 revisions using this technique. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 45 patients (48 hips) who had acetabular revision of THA between 2011 and 2017 using TM shell and augment with possible mid-term follow-up were included. Twenty-two patients were men (49%) and 23 were women (51%), mean age was 62.5 years (34 to 85) and mean follow-up was 75 months (54 to 125). Twenty-four hips (50%) had a Paprosky IIIA defect, 14 (29.2%) had a type IIIB defect, six (12.5%) had a type IIC defect, and four hips (8.3%) had a type IIB defect. None of the patients had pelvic discontinuity (PD). RESULTS: At a mean 6.25 years follow-up, all hips remained well-fixed and implant survival of 100% with the need of re-revision as the end point. Screw fixation was used for all shells; augments and the shell-augment interface was cemented. Excellent pain relief (mean WOMAC score pain 90.5, (38.3 to 100)), and functional outcomes (mean WOMAC function 88.3 (31.9 to 100), mean OHS 89.2 (31.8 to 100)) were noted. Patient satisfaction scores were excellent. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated satisfactory mid-term clinical and radiological outcomes of using TM shell and augment for reconstructing major acetabular defects without PD in revision THA.

Additional nerve blocks are not superior to multiple-site infiltration analgesia in total knee arthroplasty under adductor canal block.

BACKGROUND: Adductor canal block (ACB) with additional nerve blocks (ANBs) is reported to provide adequate analgesia and enhanced functional rehabilitation in total knee arthroplasty (TKA). The present study aims to evaluate whether ANBs are superior to multiple-site infiltration analgesia (MIA) in patients undergoing TKA under ACB. METHODS: We enrolled 530 patients undergoing primary TKA from 2015 to 2019 at our institution in this retrospective cohort study. Patients were divided into two groups: Group A was treated with ANBs + ACB; Group B was treated with MIA + ACB. Primary outcomes were pain scores and morphine consumption. Functional recovery was the secondary outcome. Other outcomes included satisfaction score, cost-effectiveness, adverse events, and length of hospital stay (LOS). RESULTS: Pain scores at rest and morphine consumption were slightly lower in the ANBs + ACB group than in the MIA + ACB group. No significant difference was found in functional recovery, post-operative complications or LOS between the groups. Meanwhile, the cost of analgesic intervention in the MIA + ACB group was less than that in the ANBs + ACB group. CONCLUSION: The present study suggests that ANBs do not provide superior pain relief compared to MIA for patients undergoing TKA under ACB. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, ChiCTR2100043227. Registered 9 February 2021, https://www.chictr.org.cn/showproj.aspx?proj=121745 .

Effects of Teriparatide versus Salmon Calcitonin Therapy for the Treatment of Osteoporosis in Asia: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this meta-analysis was to compare the efficacy and safety of teriparatide versus salmon calcitonin for the treatment of osteoporosis in Asian patients and to investigate whether the results of global studies could be applicable to Asian patients. METHODS: PubMed, OVID, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) and EMBASE up to December 2018 were searched. Eligible randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that compared teriparatide versus salmon calcitonin in Asian osteoporosis population were included. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines were used for data synthesis, and Cochrane Collaboration software Review Manager 5.3 was used to analyze the pooled data. RESULTS: Three RCTs involving 529 patients were included (mean age 68.7 yr; 93.4% females; mean follow-up 6 months); outcome measures included bone mineral density (BMD) of the femoral neck, total hip and lumbar spine; bone markers and adverse events. We found that the period of 6-months of teriparatide treatment was helpful for the improvement of the BMD of lumbar vertebra, however, the improvement of BMD was not significant in the femoral neck and total hip joint. There was a positive correlation between bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (BSAP) and osteocalcin (OCN) and the response of Asian patients to subcutaneous injection of 20 micrograms per day of teriparatide. The proportion of the occurrence of adverse effects was more obvious in the teriparatide group compared with salmon calcitonin, but there was no significant difference. CONCLUSION: Results suggested that the use of teriparatide could improve the lumbar BMD by shortterm (six months) application in Asian osteoporosis patients, which is beneficial to the patients who cannot tolerate adverse events of long-term treatment. The BSAP and OCN bone markers could be useful to monitor the responses of Asian osteoporosis patients to teriparatide treatment. Finally, both of teriparatide and salmon calcitonin were well tolerated by Asian patients.

Glucocorticoids decreased Cx43 expression in osteonecrosis of femoral head: The effect on proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of rat BMSCs.

Glucocorticoid (GC)-induced osteonecrosis of the femoral head (GC-ONFH) is considered as one of the most serious side effects of long-term or over-dose steroid therapy. However, the underlying cause mechanisms are still not fully investigated. We firstly established a rat model of GC-ONFH and injected lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and methylprednisolone (MPS). We found that the expressions of Cx43, Runx2, ALP and COLⅠ were more decreased than the normal group. Secondly, the isolated rat bone marrow stem cells (BMSCs) were treated with dexamethasone (Dex) in vitro, and the expressions of Cx43, Runx2, ALP and COLⅠ were decreased significantly. Moreover, the results of immunofluorescence staining, alizarin red staining, EdU assay and CCK8 showed that the osteogenic differentiation and the proliferation capacity of BMSCs were decreased after induced by Dex. A plasmid of lentivirus-mediated Cx43 (Lv-Cx43) gene overexpression was established to investigate the function of Cx43 in BMSCs under the Dex treatment. Findings demonstrated that the proliferation and osteogenic differentiation abilities were enhanced after Lv-Cx43 transfected to BMSCs, and these beneficial effects of Lv-Cx43 were significantly blocked when PD988059 (an inhibitor of ERK1/2) was used. In conclusion, the overexpression of Cx43 could promote the proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs via activating the ERK1/2 signalling pathway, which provide a basic evidence for further study on the detailed function of Cx43 in GC-ONFH.

Ultrasound-guided adductor canal block combined with lateral femoral cutaneous nerve block for post-operative analgesia following total knee arthroplasty: a prospective, double-blind, randomized controlled study.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether adductor canal block (ACB) combined with lateral femoral cutaneous nerve block (LFCNB) could improve the efficacy of post-operative analgesia in a comparison with a standard peri-articular infiltration analgesia (PIA) after a total knee arthroplasty (TKA). METHODS: One hundred and sixty patients of scheduled unilateral primary TKA were randomly allocated into two groups for post-operative analgesia. Eighty cases were treated with ACB combined with LFCNB and the other eighty treated with PIA. The primary outcomes were pain visual analogue scale (VAS) and rescue pain killer consumption, and the secondary outcomes were knee active range of motion (ROM), quadriceps strength, patients' ambulation ability, Knee Society Score (KSS), length of hospital stay, and adverse events. RESULTS: We found that ACB combined with LFCNB was better on decreasing the post-operative pain score within 12 hours at rest and 8 h with activity (p < 0.05) and provided longer duration of analgesia (19.91 ± 5.09 VS 12.06 ± 3.67 h, p < 0.01) and less rescue morphine consumption (13.63 ± 9.84 vs 18.00 ± 11.52 mg, p = 0.011) than the PIA. There was no significant difference between the two groups (p > 0.05) in terms of knee ROM, quadriceps strength, daily mobilization distance, KSS, and complication occurrence. CONCLUSIONS: ACB combined with LFCNB provides a significantly better pain control, less opioid consumption, and longer duration of analgesia than peri-articular infiltration while preserving muscle function without affecting knee functional recovery nor the length of stay or side effects occurrence.

Efficacy of Adductor Canal Block Combined With Additional Analgesic Methods for Postoperative Analgesia in Total Knee Arthroplasty: A Prospective, Double-Blind, Randomized Controlled Study.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of adductor canal block (ACB) combined with additional analgesic methods in total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and investigate whether blocking the sensory nerves that are distributed in the posterior and lateral aspect of knee could improve postoperative pain control. METHODS: Two hundred scheduled patients for TKA were randomly allocated into 4 groups: Group A received ACB combined with iPACK (interspace between the popliteal artery and capsule of the knee) block and lateral femoral cutaneous nerve block (LFCNB); Group B received ACB combined with iPACK block; Group C received ACB combined with LFCNB; and Group D received ACB only. Postoperative pain score was the main primary outcome. Secondary outcomes included the morphine consumption and analgesic duration. Other outcomes included knee range of motion, quadriceps strength, ambulation, Knee Society Score, Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index physical function, timed up and go (TUG) test, and complications. RESULTS: Groups A, B, and C had lower postoperative pain scores within 12 hours at rest and 8 hours with activity than Group D (P < .05). In addition, Group A had lower morphine consumption than both Group C (P < .05) and Group D (P < .01). Group A had the longest analgesic duration (19.21 ± 3.22 hours) among all groups. There were no significant differences among the groups in terms of mobility and complication after surgery. CONCLUSION: Combining ACB with both iPACK and LFCNB is an effective method for decreasing early postoperative pain in TKA without increasing the complications or affecting the early rehabilitation.