[Functional outcomes and return to sports, work, and daily activities after revision UKA compared to primary UKA and TKA]. / Funktionelle Ergebnisse und Wiederaufnahme von Sport, Arbeit und Alltagsaktivitäten nach Revision eines Monoschlittens im Vergleich zur Primärimplantation eines Mono- und Doppelschlittens.

BACKGROUND: Unicompartmental knee arthroplasty (UKA), in addition to total knee arthroplasty (TKA), has been shown to be effective in the surgical treatment of knee osteoarthritis with appropriate patient selection. In clinical studies, it has demonstrated superior functional results with lower complication rates. In clinical practice, these advantages must be weighed against the disadvantage of an increased revision rate, especially in younger patients with sports and work activities. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to compare the functional outcome as well as the time to return to daily activities, work, and sports after revision of UKA to TKA with those of primary UKA and primary TKA using a matched-pair analysis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was based on a matched-pair analysis at two defined time points, always comparing 28 patients who underwent either revision of a UKA to a TKA, primary UKA, or primary TKA. Patients completed the Oxford Knee Score, UCLA score, Knee Society score, and WOMAC score during standardized follow-up. In addition, postoperative patient satisfaction and return to activities of daily living, work, and sports were recorded in a standardized manner, and a clinical examination was performed. RESULTS: The four functional scores studied showed a common trend in favor of UKA, followed by primary TKA and revision TKA. The differences between converted UKA and primary TKA were not significant. However, at 3.2 years after the last surgery, the results of the converted UKA were significantly lower than those of the primary UKA. Return to work and sports tended to occur the earliest after UKA, followed by TKA and the revision group. All groups showed a tendency to engage in low-impact sports. CONCLUSION: The functional results of revised UKA were significantly inferior to those of primary UKA based on a 3-year follow-up. Return to work, sports, and activities of daily living tended to take longer after revision than after primary implantation of either a UKA or a TKA.

A new set of metrics and framework to assess the colonization potential of riverscapes by wind-dispersed plant species.

Quantifying the potential of a braided riverscape to be colonized by a plant species is essential for assessing the ecological state of the river and provides an important basis for nature conservation planning and the implementation of restoration measures. Common connectivity indices are largely unsuitable for describing the situation for the mostly wind-dispersed plant species. Our approach provides a set of comparable metrics that allows the quantification of the colonization potential of riverscapes at the patch and riverscape level. We propose a set of cell-based, spatially explicit measures that can easily be implemented. We demonstrate their application using two typical plant species and three riverscapes with different habitat configurations as examples. Our metrics consider shape, size and the spatial configuration of habitat patches, along with the dispersal characteristics of the respective species. The metrics provide a linear, balanced, and realistic representation of the colonization potential at the cell, patch, and riverscape levels. The results are comparable between different riverscapes and species, can be easily extended and used for further modeling. The metrics provide a valuable tool for the planning and evaluation of conservation, restoration, and reintroduction measures and close the gap between habitat availability analyses and large-scale terrestrial connectivity indices.

Summer rain and wet soil rather than management affect the distribution of a toxic plant in production grasslands.

In the northern forelands of the Alps, farmers report an increase of Jacobaea aquatica in production grasslands. Due to its toxicity, the species affects grassland productivity and calls for costly control measures. We are investigating the extent to which management practices or climatic factors are responsible for the increase of the species and how the situation will change due to climate change. We tested for effects of management intensity, fertilization, agri-environmental measures, and soil disturbance, and modeled the occurrence of the species under rcp4.5 and rcp8.5 scenarios. The main determinants of the occurrence of the species are soil type and summer rainfall. A high risk is associated with wet soils and > 400 mm of rain between June and August; an influence of the management-related factors could not be detected. Under the climate-change scenarios, the overall distribution decreases and shifts to the wetter alpine regions. Thus, the current increase is rather a shift in the occurrence of the species due to the altered precipitation situation. Under future climatic conditions, the species will decline and retreat to higher regions in the Alps. This will decrease the risk of forage contamination for production grassland in the lowlands.

Seasonal and temporal patterns of rainfall shape arthropod community composition and multi-trophic interactions in an arid environment.

In arid and semi-arid ecosystems, rainfall and rainfall temporal distribution shape species communities and multi-trophic interactions. Whereas the relationship between climate change-induced decline of precipitation and plants is well know, there is little knowledge of these relationships with consumers, such as arthropods of different trophic levels. In a 6-year period we studied precipitation effects and microhabitat conditions on multi-trophic interactions of ground-dwelling arthropods in an arid savannah. We analysed the effects of seasonal rainfall, plant cover and soil texture on community composition and activity density of arthropods of different trophic levels and investigated the critical window of vegetation and occurrence arthropods in relation to rainfall. Our result show, that arthropod community composition was determined by seasonal rainfall and plant cover. Soil texture did not explain arthropod response sufficiently. Especially detritivorous arthropods were strongly affected by precipitation and can therefore serve as indicators of droughts. Further, multi-trophic interactions can better be explained by short-term rainfall pulses, rather than by seasonal patterns, with a window of seven days being most suitable to explain the influence of rainfall. Plant cover responded immediately after the rainfall, followed by herbivorous and predatory arthropods, and with a lag of 23 days omnivorous arthropods. This highlights the importance of short-term rain pulses for multi-trophic interactions among arthropods and emphasized the relevance of studying detailed precipitation effects for the arthropod diversity and ecosystem stability in arid ecosystems.

Rolling pits of Hartmann's mountain zebra (Zebra equus hartmannae) increase vegetation diversity and landscape heterogeneity in the Pre-Namib.

Microsites created by soil-disturbing animals are important landscape elements in arid environments. In the Pre-Namib, dust-bathing behavior of the near-endemic Hartmann's mountain zebra creates unique rolling pits that persist in the landscape. However, the ecohydrological characteristics and the effects of those microsites on the vegetation and on organisms of higher trophic levels are still unknown. In our study, we characterized the soil grain size composition and infiltration properties of rolling pits and reference sites and recorded vegetation and arthropod assemblages during the rainy season of five consecutive years with different amounts of seasonal rainfall. We further used the excess green vegetation index derived from drone imagery to demonstrate the different green up and wilting of pits and references after a rainfall event. In contrast to the surrounding grassland, rolling pits had finer soil with higher nutrient content, collected runoff, showed a higher infiltration, and kept soil moisture longer. Vegetation in the rolling pits was denser, dominated by annual forbs and remained green for longer periods. The denser vegetation resulted in a slightly higher activity density of herbivorous arthropods, which in turn increased the activity density of omnivorous and predatory arthropods. In times of drought, the rolling pits could act as safe sites and refuges for forbs and arthropods. With their rolling pits, Hartmann's mountain zebras act as ecosystem engineers, contributing to the diversity of forb communities and heterogeneity of the landscape in the Pre-Namib.

A dominance shift in arid savanna: An herbaceous legume outcompetes local C4 grasses.

The characteristic vegetation structure of arid savannas with a dominant layer of perennial grass is maintained by the putative competitive superiority of the C4 grasses. When this competitive balance is disturbed by weakening the grasses or favoring the recruitment of other species, trees, shrubs, single grass, or forb species can increase and initiate sudden dominance shifts. Such shifts involving woody species, often termed "shrub encroachment", or the mass spreading of so-called increaser species have been extensively researched, but studies on similar processes without obvious preceding disturbance are rare. In Namibia, the native herbaceous legume Crotalaria podocarpa has recently encroached parts of the escarpment region, seriously affecting the productivity of local fodder grasses. Here, we studied the interaction between seedlings of the legume and the dominant local fodder grass (Stipagrostis ciliata). We used a pot experiment to test seedling survival and to investigate the growth of Crotalaria in competition with Stipagrostis. Additional field observations were conducted to quantify the interactive effect. We found germination and growth of the legume seedlings to be facilitated by inactive (dead or dormant) grass tussocks and unhindered by active ones. Seedling survival was three times higher in inactive tussocks and Crotalaria grew taller. In the field, high densities of the legume had a clear negative effect on productivity of the grass. The C4 grass was unable to limit the recruitment and spread of the legume, and Crotalaria did outcompete the putative more competitive grass. Hence, the legume is able to spread and establish itself in large numbers and initiate a dominance shift in savannas, similar to shrub encroachment.

Herbaceous Legume Encroachment Reduces Grass Productivity and Density in Arid Rangelands.

Worldwide savannas and arid grasslands are mainly used for livestock grazing, providing livelihood to over a billion people. While normally dominated by perennial C4 grasses, these rangelands are increasingly affected by the massive spread of native, mainly woody legumes. The consequences are often a repression of grass cover and productivity, leading to a reduced carrying capacity. While such encroachment by woody plants has been extensively researched, studies on similar processes involving herbaceous species are rare. We studied the impact of a sustained and massive spread of the native herbaceous legume Crotalaria podocarpa in Namibia's escarpment region on the locally dominant fodder grasses Stipagrostis ciliata and Stipagrostis uniplumis. We measured tussock densities, biomass production of individual tussocks and tussock dormancy state of Stipagrostis on ten 10 m x 10 m plots affected and ten similarly-sized plots unaffected by C. podocarpa over eight consecutive years and under different seasonal rainfalls and estimated the potential relative productivity of the land. We found the percentage of active Stipagrostis tussocks and the biomass production of individual tussocks to increase asymptotically with higher seasonal rainfall reaching a maximum around 300 mm while the land's relative productivity under average local rainfall conditions reached only 40% of its potential. Crotalaria podocarpa encroachment had no effect on the proportion of productive grass tussocks, but reduced he productivity of individual Stipagrostis tussocks by a third. This effect of C. podocarpa on grass productivity was immediate and direct and was not compensated for by above-average rainfall. Besides this immediate effect, over time, the density of grass tussocks declined by more than 50% in areas encroached by C. podocarpa further and lastingly reducing the lands carrying capacity. The effects of C. podocarpa on grass productivity hereby resemble those of woody encroachers. Therefore, against the background of global change, the spread of herbaceous legumes and the underlying patterns needs to be further investigated to develop adequate counter measures for a sustainable land use.