Identification of Knee Effusions With Ultrasound: A Comparison of Three Methods.

OBJECTIVES: To determine whether simple methods can improve identification of suprapatellar joint fluid during sonographic evaluation of the knee. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: Outpatient orthopaedic clinic. PATIENTS: Fifty-two patients were sequentially recruited from an orthopaedic clinic. INTERVENTIONS: Bilateral sonographic evaluation of the suprapatellar recess with static scanning, parapatellar pressure, or patient-initiated quadriceps contraction. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Identification of fluid in the suprapatellar recess. RESULTS: Fifty-two patients (104 knees), consisting of 57 (54.8%) painful knees, were examined. Static scanning identified 45 effusions, parapatellar pressure identified 58 effusions, and quadriceps contraction identified 77 effusions. Quadriceps contraction was superior to parapatellar pressure for identifying an effusion {P < 0.001, proportion ratio [PR] = 1.33 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.16, 1.52]}, painful knee effusions [P = 0.036, PR = 1.24 (95% CI = 1.06-1.44)], and painless knee effusions (P = 0.006, PR = 1.50 [95% CI = 1.16-1.93]). Both methods were superior to static scanning. Parapatellar pressure identified effusions in 16.9% of knees not seen on static scanning, whereas quadriceps contraction identified effusions in 54.2% of knees not seen on static scanning. Inter-rater reliability kappa values were 0.771 for static scanning (95% CI = 0.605-0.937), 0.686 for parapatellar pressure (95% CI = 0.531-0.840), and 0.846 for quadriceps contraction (95% CI = 0.703-0.990). CONCLUSIONS: Parapatellar pressure and patient-initiated quadriceps contraction both improve sonographic detection of suprapatellar joint fluid with high inter-rater reliability; however, quadriceps contraction was superior to parapatellar pressure when assessing for grade 1 or occult effusions.

Ocular Motor and Vestibular Characteristics of Antiglutamic Acid Decarboxylase-Associated Neurologic Disorders.

BACKGROUND: Antiglutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD)-associated neurologic disorders are rare, with varied presentations, including stiff-person syndrome (SPS) and cerebellar ataxia (CA). Vestibular and ocular motor (VOM) dysfunction can be the main presentation in a subset of patients. METHODS: Retrospective review of the Johns Hopkins Hospital medical records from 1997 to 2018 identified a total of 22 patients with a diagnosis of anti-GAD-associated SPS or CA who had detailed VOM assessments. Eight had prominent VOM dysfunction at the initial symptom onset and were referred to neurology from ophthalmology or otolaryngology ("early dominant"). Fourteen patients had VOM dysfunction that was not their dominant presentation and were referred later in their disease course from neurology to neuro-ophthalmology ("nondominant"). We reviewed clinical history, immunological profiles, and VOM findings, including available video-oculography. RESULTS: In the 8 patients with early dominant VOM dysfunction, the average age of symptom onset was 53 years, and 5 were men. The most common symptom was dizziness, followed by diplopia. Seven had features of CA, and 4 had additional features of SPS. None had a structural lesion on brain MRI accounting for their symptoms. The most common VOM abnormalities were downbeating and gaze-evoked nystagmus and saccadic pursuit. All received immune therapy and most received symptomatic therapy. Most experienced improvement in clinical outcome measures (modified Rankin scale and/or timed 25-foot walk test) or VOM function. By contrast, in the 14 patients in whom VOM dysfunction was nondominant, most had an SPS phenotype and were women. VOM abnormalities, when present, were more subtle, although mostly still consistent with cerebellar and/or brainstem dysfunction. CONCLUSIONS: Individuals with anti-GAD-associated neurologic disorders may present with prominent VOM abnormalities at the initial symptom onset that localize to the cerebellum and/or brainstem. In our cohort, immune and symptomatic therapies improved clinical outcomes and symptomatology.

C-Arm Fluoroscope Angle Settings for Fluoroscopically Guided Lumbar Transforaminal Epidural Injections.

BACKGROUND DATA: Minimizing fluoroscopy time in spine interventions is critical for time of procedure as well as radiation safety of the patient and medical personnel. Specific fluoroscopy angle settings for fluoroscopically guided L4-S1 transforaminal epidural injections (TFEIs) have not been described. OBJECTIVES: To describe the most common encountered settings for the C-arm fluoroscope angles for fluoroscopically guided L4-S1 (TFEI). METHODS: Each subject was placed in prone position on a flat fluoroscopy table without utilizing any device to alter innate lumbar spine curvature. The data from 246 consecutive patients at their first encounter in the fluoroscopy suite for a single level subpedicular lumbosacral TFEI was retrospectively analyzed. Most procedures occurred at the L4-5, L5-S1, and S1 levels (227 subjects). The C-arm angles including the oblique, cephalad/caudal were recorded for each subject upon observing final needle positioning for successful completion of the procedure according to ISIS Guidelines. RESULTS: For the L4-5 level, 71% of cases had oblique angle of 30°±5° and 94% of cases had neutral cephalad/caudal tilt (0°±5°) observed. For the L5-S1, 72% of cases had oblique angle of 30°±5° and 62% of cases had cephalad tilt angle of 15°±5° observed. For the S1 level, 73% of cases had oblique angle of 5°±5° and 69% of cases had cephalad tilt angle of 15°±5° observed. DISCUSSION/CONCLUSION: This retrospective descriptive study suggests fluoroscope angles for L4-S1 TFEI as a starting point before fine tuning views accounting for individual anatomy. Angles suggested for each level (oblique/cephalad tilt angles) are as follows: L4-5 (30/0°), L5-S1 (30/15°), and S1 (5/15°). Prospective studies using these guidelines would need to be undertaken to prove reproducibility between interventionalists, time efficiency, and radiation exposure reduction.

Bedside ultrasonography for obstetric and gynecologic emergencies.

There has been an increase in the availability and use of bedside ultrasonography in the acute care setting. The approach to the female patient with a pelvic complaint (including pelvic pain, vaginal bleeding, vaginal bleeding in pregnancy, or vaginal discharge) has been transformed by the use of bedside ultrasonography. Providers familiar with the transabdominal and transvaginal (endocavitary) ultrasonographic examination can obtain more accurate information faster, thereby improving time to consultation or discharge and achieving an increase in patient satisfaction. This article reviews the use of ultrasonography for evaluation of obstetric and gynecologic complaints in the acute care setting.

Decoding twitter: Surveillance and trends for cardiac arrest and resuscitation communication.

AIM OF THE STUDY: Twitter has over 500 million subscribers but little is known about how it is used to communicate health information. We sought to characterize how Twitter users seek and share information related to cardiac arrest, a time-sensitive cardiovascular condition where initial treatment often relies on public knowledge and response. METHODS: Tweets published April-May 2011 with keywords cardiac arrest, CPR, AED, resuscitation, heart arrest, sudden death and defib were identified. Tweets were characterized by content, dissemination, and temporal trends. Tweet authors were further characterized by: self-identified background, tweet volume, and followers. RESULTS: Of 62,163 tweets (15,324, 25%) included resuscitation/cardiac arrest-specific information. These tweets referenced specific cardiac arrest events (1130, 7%), CPR performance or AED use (6896, 44%), resuscitation-related education, research, or news media (7449, 48%), or specific questions about cardiac arrest/resuscitation (270, 2%). Regarding dissemination (1980, 13%) of messages were retweeted. Resuscitation specific tweets primarily occurred on weekdays. Most users (10,282, 93%) contributed three or fewer tweets during the study time frame. Users with more than 15 resuscitation-specific tweets in the study time frame had a mean 1787 followers and most self-identified as having a healthcare affiliation. CONCLUSION: Despite a large volume of tweets, Twitter can be filtered to identify public knowledge and information seeking and sharing about cardiac arrest. To better engage via social media, healthcare providers can distil tweets by user, content, temporal trends, and message dissemination. Further understanding of information shared by the public in this forum could suggest new approaches for improving resuscitation related education.

Prenatally diagnosed clubfeet: comparing ultrasonographic severity with objective clinical outcomes.

BACKGROUND: Improvements in obstetric sonography (US) have led to an increased prenatal detection of clubfoot, but studies have not been able to correlate sonographic severity to clinical deformity at birth. The purpose of this study was to decrease the false positive (FP) rate for prenatally identified clubfeet, and to predict clinical severity using a new prenatal sonographic classification system. METHODS: We retrospectively identified all pregnant patients referred to the fetal care center at our institution for a diagnosis of clubfoot between 2002 and 2007. A total of 113 fetuses were identified. Follow-up information was available for 107 fetuses (95%). Out of 107 fetuses, 17 were terminated or died shortly after birth. Seven patients had normal studies or were not seen at our center. Out of 83 patients, 42 had an US available for rereview. A novel sonographic severity scale for clubfoot (mild/moderate/severe) was assigned by a radiologist specializing in prenatal US to each fetus based on specific anatomic features. The prenatal sonographic scores were then assessed with respect to final postnatal clinical diagnosis and to clinical severity. RESULTS: None of the pregnancies were terminated because of an isolated diagnosis of clubfoot. Of the remaining 83 fetuses with a prenatal diagnosis of at least 1 clubfoot, 67 had a clubfoot documented at birth (FP=19%). A foot classified as "mild" on prenatal US was significantly less likely to be a true clubfoot at birth than when a "moderate" or "severe" diagnosis was given (Odds Ratio=21, P<0.0001). If "mild" clubfoot patients were removed from the analysis, our FP rate decreased to 3/42. For a subgroup in which postnatal DiMeglio scoring was available, prenatal sonographic stratification of clubfoot did not relate to postnatal clinical severity. CONCLUSIONS: Our initial experience with this novel sonographic scoring system showed improved detection of a true clubfoot prenatally and a decrease in the FP rate. An isolated "mild" clubfoot diagnosed on a prenatal sonogram is less likely to be a clubfoot at birth; this will have substantial impact on prenatal counseling. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III Diagnostic Study.