Registry Data Show Complication Rates and Cost in Revision Hip Arthroplasty.

BACKGROUND: Revision total hip arthroplaty (rTHA) places a burden on patients, surgeons, and health care systems because outcomes and costs are less predictable than primary THA. The purpose of this study was to define indications and treatments for rTHA, quantify risk for readmissions, and evaluate the economic impacts of rTHA in a hospital system. METHODS: The arthroplasty database of a hospital system was queried to generate a retrospective cohort of 793 rTHA procedures, performed on 518 patients, from 2017 to 2019 at 27 hospitals. Surgeons performed chart reviews to classify indication and revision procedure. Demographics, lengths of stay, discharge dispositions, and readmission data were collected. Analyses of direct costs were performed and categorized by revision type. RESULTS: Totally, 46.3% of patients presented for infection. Patients presenting for infection were 5.6 times more likely to have repeat rTHA than aseptic patients. Septic cases (4.3 days) had longer length of stay than aseptic ones (2.4) (P < .0001). However, 31% of patients discharged to a skilled nursing facility. Direct costs were greatest for a two-stage exchange ($37,642) and lowest for liner revision ($8,979). Septic revisions ($17,696) cost more than aseptic revisions ($11,204) (P < .0001). The 90-day readmission rate was 21.8%. Septic revisions had more readmissions (13.5%) than aseptic revisions (8.3%). CONCLUSIONS: Hip revisions, especially for infection, have an increased risk profile and create a major economic impact on hospital systems. Surgeons may use these data to counsel patients on risks of rTHA and advocate for improved reimbursement for the care of revision patients.

Treatment of an Acromial Stress Fracture After Reverse Total Shoulder Arthroplasty With Teriparatide: A Case Report.

CASE: A 78-year-old woman who underwent reverse total shoulder arthroplasty (RTSA) for proximal humerus fracture developed a Type-3 acromial stress fracture, resulting in increased pain and decreased function 9 months post-op. She was managed nonoperatively with adjunctive teriparatide (FORTEO), and after a 4-month course, she had regained excellent motion and achieved union. CONCLUSION: Teriparatide is a viable adjunct in treating patients nonoperatively with acromial stress fractures after RTSA.

Necrotizing Sweet Syndrome of the Upper Extremity After Elective Hand Surgery.

Sweet syndrome, or acute febrile neutrophilic dermatosis, is a systemic disease process mainly characterized by hyperpyrexia and skin lesions. A newly described entity, necrotizing Sweet syndrome, is a severe and locally aggressive dermatological condition that clinically and histopathologically resembles a necrotizing soft tissue infection. It is characterized by pathergy, a nonspecific inflammatory response to cutaneous trauma resulting in a propagation of the disease. In contrast to a necrotizing infection, this condition responds to systemic steroids. A high clinical suspicion is required in order to distinguish a necrotizing polymicrobial infection from noninfectious necrotizing Sweet syndrome. We present a case following elective hand surgery.

Musculoskeletal Medicine Is Underrepresented in the American Medical School Clinical Curriculum.

BACKGROUND: Musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions are common, and their burden on the healthcare system is increasing as the general population ages. It is essential that medical students be well prepared to evaluate and treat MSK disorders in a confident manner as they enter the workforce. Recent studies and the American Association of Medical Colleges have raised concern that medical schools may not give sufficient instruction on this topic. Other authors have shown that preclinical instruction has increased over the past decade; however, it is unclear if required clinical instruction also has followed that trend. QUESTIONS/PURPOSES: The purposes of this study were: (1) to assess the presence and duration of required or selective instruction in a MSK medicine specialty within the clinical years of undergraduate medical education; and (2) to assess the current state of requirements of clinical clerkships or rotations in other surgical and nonsurgical fields for comparison with the initial findings. METHODS: The web sites of all 141 US medical schools were assessed to determine the content of their clinical curricula for the 2014-2015 academic year; five were excluded because they had not yet had a graduating class by the conclusion of the 2014-2015 academic year. Complete information on required rotations was obtained through the schools' web sites for all 136 (100%) medical schools. For selective experience during the surgery clerkships, complete information was available for 130 of the remaining 136 (96%) web sites. RESULTS: Mean (in weeks, ± SD) duration of core clerkships were as follows: internal medicine (10 ± 2), surgery (8 ± 2), pediatrics (7 ± 1), obstetrics/gynecology (6 ± 1), and psychiatry (5 ± 1). Other common required clerkships were: family medicine (required in 96% [131 of 136] of schools, mean duration of 6 ± 2 weeks), neurology (81% [110], 4 ± 1), and emergency medicine (55% [75], 3 ± 1). Required MSK instruction, at a mean of 2 ± 1 weeks, was only present in 15% (20 of 136) of medical schools. In addition, clinical MSK instruction was offered as a selective (eg, students pick from a selection of subspecialties such as orthopaedics, plastics, or urology during a general surgery clerkship) in 34% (44 of 130) of all medical schools. This is less than other non-core specialties: geriatrics/ambulatory care (required in 40% [54 of 136] of schools, mean duration of 3 ± 1 weeks), critical care (30% [41], mean of 3 ± 1 weeks), radiology (26% [35], mean of 3 ± 1 weeks), anesthesiology (23% [31], mean of 2 ± 1 weeks), and other surgical subspecialties (19% [26], mean of 3 ± 1weeks). CONCLUSIONS: Traditional core clerkships continue to be well represented in the clinical years, whereas three newer specialties have gained a larger presence: family medicine, neurology, and emergency medicine; these comprise the "big eight" of clinical clerkships. Given the high prevalence and burden of MSK disorders, required experience in MSK medicine continues to be underrepresented. Further discussion at a national level is needed to determine appropriate representation of MSK medicine specialties during the clinical years.

Parathyroid hormone 1-34 enhances extracellular matrix deposition and organization during flexor tendon repair.

Parathyroid hormone (PTH) 1-34 is known to enhance fracture healing. Tendon repair is analogous to bone healing in its dependence on the proliferation and differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells, matrix formation, and tissue remodeling.(1,2,3) We hypothesized that PTH 1-34 enhances tendon healing in a flexor digitorum longus (FDL) tendon repair model. C57Bl/6J mice were treated with either intraperitoneal PTH 1-34 or vehicle-control (PBS). Tendons were harvested at 3-28 days for histology, gene expression, and biomechanical testing. The metatarsophalangeal joint range of motion was reduced 1.5-2-fold in PTH 1-34 mice compared to control mice. The gliding coefficient, a measure of adhesion formation, was 2-3.5-fold higher in PTH 1-34 mice. At 14 days post-repair, the tensile strength was twofold higher in PTH 1-34 specimens, but at 28 days there were no differences. PTH 1-34 mice had increased fibrous tissue deposition that correlated with elevated expression of collagens and fibronectin as seen on quantitative PCR. PTH 1-34 accelerated the deposition of reparative tissue but increased adhesion formation.

Factors impacting musculoskeletal knowledge and clinical confidence in graduating medical students.

BACKGROUND: Despite the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders, the degree to which medical schools are providing students with the knowledge and confidence to treat these problems is unclear. This study evaluated the factors that impact musculoskeletal knowledge and clinical confidence among fourth-year medical students. METHODS: Over a three-year period, 253 fourth-year medical students participated in the study at a single institution. Musculoskeletal knowledge was evaluated using a National Board of Medical Examiners' musculoskeletal medicine subject examination. Factors analyzed included sex, class year, musculoskeletal elective experience, duration of musculoskeletal elective, career choice, and musculoskeletal curriculum satisfaction. RESULTS: The participation rate was 95%. The mean National Board of Medical Examiners' musculoskeletal assessment score (and standard deviation) was 70.7 ± 9.5 points for all fourth-year medical students. Taking a musculoskeletal elective significantly increased knowledge (p < 0.001) but not clinical confidence. Increased satisfaction with how musculoskeletal medicine was taught was associated with increased clinical confidence (p < 0.001). No significant differences were seen if students were going into musculoskeletal medicine or primary care for either musculoskeletal knowledge or clinical confidence. Multivariate analysis of musculoskeletal knowledge found that taking a musculoskeletal elective for two weeks led to an increase of 6 points (from a possible 100 points) in the National Board of Medical Examiners' subject examination scores. CONCLUSIONS: This study reveals that participation in a clinical elective is the only factor that led to a significant increase in musculoskeletal knowledge in fourth-year medical students. A two-week clinical elective can be sufficient time to have an impact on musculoskeletal knowledge, but it alone does not increase clinical confidence. Further studies are needed to determine how to improve musculoskeletal clinical confidence.

Simple overlay device for determining radial head and neck height.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that a simple overlay device can be used on radiographs to measure radial head and neck height. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty anteroposterior elbow radiographs from 30 patients with a clinical diagnosis of lateral epicondylitis were examined to measure radial head and neck height. Three methods using different points along the bicipital tuberosity as a landmark were used. Method 1 used the proximal end of the bicipital tuberosity, method 2 used the most prominent point of the bicipital tuberosity, and method 3 used a simple overlay device (SOD) template that was aligned with anatomic reference points. All measurements were performed three times by three observers to determine interobserver and intraobserver reliability. RESULTS: Intraclass correlation coefficients revealed higher interobserver and intraobserver correlations for the SOD template method than for the other two methods. The 95% limits of agreement between observers were markedly better (-1.8 mm to +1.0 mm) for the SOD template method than for the proximal point method (-3.8 mm to +3.4 mm) or the prominent point method (-5.9 mm to +4.9 mm). CONCLUSIONS: We found that the SOD template method was reliable for assessing radial head and neck height. It had less variability than other methods, its 95% limit of agreement being less than 2 mm. This method could be helpful for assessing whether or not the insertion of a radial head prosthesis has resulted in over-lengthening of the radius.

Arthroscopic removal of the failed silicone radial head prosthesis.

Although silicone radial head arthroplasty has been successful in many patients, it has been associated with complications such as fractures of the prosthesis and silicone synovitis. Synovectomy and removal of the failed silicone radial head, with or without reimplantation of a metallic radial head, is indicated in such complications. In an effort to perform minimally invasive surgery, we performed arthroscopic removal of the silicone head combined with synovectomy in a series of such patients. The silicone prostheses were cut into two or three pieces and then removed. After a median follow up of 26 months, all patients reported excellent pain relief and there were no residual loose bodies. Removal of a failed silicone radial head can be successfully performed arthroscopically. This arthroscopic technique has the advantage of being minimally invasive and can be combined with other procedures including capsulectomy, if necessary.