Survey of awareness and attitudes to the management of fragility fractures among the membership of the Asia Pacific Orthopaedic Association.

A survey of awareness and attitudes to the management of fragility fractures among the membership of the Asia Pacific Orthopaedic Association conducted in 2022 found considerable variation in care across the region. A Call to Action is proposed to improve acute care, rehabilitation and secondary fracture prevention across Asia Pacific. PURPOSE: Fragility fractures impose a substantial burden on older people and their families, healthcare systems and national economies. The current incidence of hip and other fragility fractures across the Asia Pacific region is enormous and set to escalate rapidly in the coming decades. This publication describes findings of a survey of awareness and attitudes to the management of fragility fractures among the membership of the Asia Pacific Orthopaedic Association (APOA) conducted in 2022. METHODS: The survey was developed as a collaboration between the Asia Pacific Osteoporosis and Fragility Fracture Society and the Asia Pacific Fragility Fracture Alliance, and included questions relating to aspects of care upon presentation, during surgery and mobilisation, secondary fracture prevention, and access to specific services. RESULTS: In total, 521 APOA members completed the survey and marked variation in delivery of care was evident. Notable findings included: Fifty-nine percent of respondents indicated that analgesia was routinely initiated in transit (by paramedics) or within 30 minutes of arrival in the Emergency Department. One-quarter of respondents stated that more than 80% of their patients underwent surgery within 48 hours of admission. One-third of respondents considered non-hip, non-vertebral fractures to merit assessment of future fracture risk. One-third of respondents reported the presence of an Orthogeriatric Service in their hospital, and less than a quarter reported the presence of a Fracture Liaison Service. CONCLUSION: A Call to Action for all National Orthopaedic Associations affiliated with APOA is proposed to improve the care of fragility fracture patients across the region.

Intertrochanteric Fracture of the Femur in an Ankylosed Hip: A Case Report.

Intertrochanteric fractures of the femur in ankylosed hips are extremely rare. The aims of the operative management for elderly patients with intertrochanteric fractures are to prevent general complications, to maintain mobility, and to relieve pain. The optimal management to achieve these goals is not clear. The authors present a case of a 74-year-old man with an intertrochanteric fracture of the femur in an ankylosed hip. The fracture was managed surgically with dynamic hip screws and cannulated screws. Two years after the surgery, good union was observed at the fracture, and the patient was ambulating independently.

Melioidosis in Brunei Darussalam.

Melioidosis continues to be a major health care problem in Brunei Darussalam. The age of patients, gender distribution, risk factors, and clinical presentations are similar to those reported from other countries in the region. The incidence of melioidosis was high during the wet months and in the Temburong district, which has the highest annual rainfall. In spite of adequate facilities for diagnosis and treatment, the mortality remains high (27%). Women and those presenting with septic shock had higher mortality. There is a case for making melioidosis a notifiable disease in Brunei Darussalam. Coordinated efforts between policy-makers and various stakeholders are required to effectively combat the disease.

Spontaneous Dissociation of Anatomic Medullary Locking A Plus (AML A Plus) Femoral Component at the Head-Neck Interface.

INTRODUCTION: Innovations in the design of total hip arthroplasty components have been developed to address certain limitations with the use of standard monoblock prosthesis. With increasing use and long-term follow up, certain complications particularly related to fretting, corrosion and fatigue have been recognized. CASE REPORT: A 31 year old active male patient presented with spontaneous dissociation of the Anatomic Medullary Locking A Plus (AML A Plus) Femoral Component at head and neck interface 10 years after surgery. At revision surgery, wear of the acetabular liner and head and neck taper was noted. Definitive treatment required complete revision of the femoral component and change of acetabular liner. CONCLUSION: While modularity allows change of worn out components, this case highlights the importance of various factors in avoiding this complication and the need for surgeon to be prepared to use 'taper sleeves' or revise the components if taper exchange fails particularly in cases with dissociation of head-neck interface which is usually associated with taper damage.

Intertrochanteric Fracture of the Femur in an Ankylosed Hip: A Case Report / Fratura intertrocantérica do fêmur em um quadril anquilosado: Relato de caso

Abstract Intertrochanteric fractures of the femur in ankylosed hips are extremely rare. The aims of the operative management for elderly patients with intertrochanteric fractures are to prevent general complications, to maintain mobility, and to relieve pain. The optimal management to achieve these goals is not clear. The authors present a case of a 74-year-old man with an intertrochanteric fracture of the femur in an ankylosed hip. The fracture was managed surgically with dynamic hip screws and cannulated screws. Two years after the surgery, good union was observed at the fracture, and the patient was ambulating independently.

Resumo A fratura intertrocantérica do fêmur em um quadril anquilosado é extremamente rara. O objetivo do manejo operatório em idosos com fraturas intertrocantéricas é prevenir complicações gerais, manter a mobilidade, e aliviar a dor. O manejo ideal para atingir tal objetivo não é claro. Os autores apresentam o caso de um paciente do sexo masculino de 74 anos com fratura intertrocantérica do fêmur em um quadril anquilosado. A fratura foi tratada cirurgicamente com parafuso de quadril dinâmico e parafuso canulado. Dois anos após a cirurgia, observou-se boa união na fratura, e o paciente deambula de forma independente.

Correlation of low back pain to a high-intensity zone of the lumbar disc in Indian patients.

PURPOSE: To assess the correlation between low back pain and a high-intensity zone (HIZ) of the lumbar disc in Indian patients. METHODS: 200 patients with low back and/or leg pain underwent magnetic resonance imaging of the lumbosacral spine. The location and severity of pain and disability were assessed using the pain drawing, visual analogue scale, and Oswestry Disability Index, respectively. The inter-observer reliability was assessed using the kappa statistic. RESULTS. The prevalence of an HIZ was 13% and 17% according to observers A and B, respectively. The inter-observer reliability was fair (kappa=0.64, p<0.005). The presence of an HIZ did not correlate with low back pain according to the pain drawing, visual analogue scale, and Oswestry Disability Index. According to the pain drawing data, the sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive values of an HIZ to low back pain were 11%, 82%, and 62%, respectively. CONCLUSION: The presence of an HIZ is not diagnostic of a disrupted and painful disc, and should be interpreted together with other prevailing symptoms and clinical findings.

Normative reference database for bone mineral density in Indian men and women using digital X-ray radiogrammetry.

Osteoporosis is a major healthcare problem around the world and its importance lies in the fractures that result. A variety of devices are available in India and other Asian countries for bone mineral density (BMD) assessment, but their clinical utility is limited because of non-availability of local normative database. The purpose of this study was to establish the normative reference database for BMD in Indian women and men using digital x-ray radiogrammetry (DXR). Radiographs of the non-dominant hand were obtained on 262 women and 178 men between 20 and 79 years of age following strict inclusion and exclusion criteria. The radiographs were analysed by DXR using pronosco x-posure system V.2 to estimate the BMD (DXR-BMD). The peak value for DXR-BMD in women was 0.588 g/cm2 at age 35 years and 0.602 g/cm2 in men at age 42 years. There were statistically significant differences in BMD in women and men across all age ranges. An age dependent decline in BMD was seen in both women and men over the age of 50 years. The use of DXR should broaden the availability of fracture risk assessments in places where DXA is not available.

Nonunion of the diaphysis of long bones.

The treatment of diaphyseal nonunion of long bones is difficult and controversial. We retrospectively reviewed 113 patients with diaphyseal nonunion treated by various modalities, during 15 years at one institution. There were 36 cases of nonunion of the tibia, 23 nonunions of the femur, 21 nonunions of the humerus, 13 nonunions of the radius, 18 nonunions of the ulna and two nonunions of the clavicle. The minimum followup was 24 months (average, 40 months, range 2-15 years). The nonunions were classified as aseptic (84) and septic (29) and additionally classified as hypertrophic (61) and atrophic (52) in order to determine the treatment. The treatment was individualized based on the stability at the nonunion site, need for bone grafting, and control of infection. All fractures healed and every patient in the study regained functional use of the limb without pain or instability and functional range of movements that they had at the time of presentation with nonunion. Residual problems seen in some patients were joint stiffness, limb length discrepancy, and angular deformity. Twenty-six patients required repeat surgery using bone grafting because no satisfactory progress of fracture healing was seen in 4 months. Complications were related to the iliac crest donor site and persistent infection at the nonunion site.

Limited clinical utility of pain drawing in assessing patients with low back pain.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to assess the use of pain drawing by studying its ability to identify patients with low back pain and abnormal psychological profile. The intraevaluator repeatability of the penalty point method of scoring of pain drawing was also evaluated. METHODS: A total of 331 consecutive patients with low back pain were prospectively recruited. The psychologic profile was assessed using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. The pain drawings were scored with the penalty point method. The ability of pain drawing to identify patients with significant anxiety and depression was assessed by calculating the sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive value. The intraevaluator repeatability was calculated for scoring done at an interval of 1 month using the kappa statistic. RESULTS: There were statistically significant differences in the anxiety and depression scores in patients with normal (n = 200) and abnormal (n = 131) pain drawing (anxiety: 9 +/- 4 vs 10.3 +/- 3.7; depression: 8.1 +/- 3.5 vs 8.8 +/- 3.6; P < 0.005). The pain drawing had a low sensitivity for detecting patients with any degree of anxiety (43%) or depression (40%). The positive predictive value of pain drawing for anxiety and depression was 78% and 69%, respectively. The kappa value for intraobserver assessment was 0.6 (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Though there are differences in anxiety and depression scores in patients with normal and abnormal pain drawing, the performance characteristics of pain drawing are less than acceptable and therefore limit its use in clinical practice.

Prevalence of low bone mass in healthy Indian population.

Osteoporosis is a major problem of health care delivery services, both in the developed and developing countries. The first normative reference database of bone mineral density in the Indian women and men was established using digital x-ray radiogrammetry. Further analysis of this database revealed that 29.9% of women and 24.3% of men between the age of 20 and 79 years had low bone mass. About 50% women and 36% of men over 50 years of age were noted to have low bone mass. The observations of this study suggest that there is higher prevalence of low bone man in the Indian population compared to the western population.

The role of bed rest in acute low back pain.

Acute low back pain is a common problem and clinicians from a number of different disciplines are involved in its management. Advice on daily activities constitutes an important part in the management of low back pain. In spite of evidence against its efficacy, bed rest continues to be a cornerstone of treatment. The purpose of this review is to present evidence from literature to determine the effectiveness of bed rest for patients with acute low back pain together with comparison of bed rest versus advice to stay active, bed rest versus other treatment modalities and shorter periods of bed rest (2 to 4 days) versus longer periods (more than 4 days) of bed rest. There is strong evidence to suggest that bed rest is not effective in the management of acute low back pain.

Graf ligamentoplasty: a 7-year follow-up.

Graf ligamentoplasty is seen as a means of stabilising and reducing the mobility of one or more severely symptomatic motion segments associated with degenerative disc disease. It is a less invasive procedure than fusion and appears to have a similar or slightly better success rate. Some studies have reported mixed results at early follow up; generally, they have suffered from poorly defined indications for the procedure, which are now much clearer. Reports on the first 50 patients undergoing Graf stabilisation in 1990/1991 were published in the European Spine Journal in 1995, with a 2-year follow-up. In the present study, the results of which were independently reviewed by the second author (K.C.P.), a spinal research fellow from an unrelated centre, we were able to establish postal contact with 40 of those patients, of whom 31 still had Graf instrumentation in situ. Examination of the clinical records of the ten non-responders when last seen indicated no particular bias of the results. The average age at surgery and average follow-up were 41.8 years (range 17.2-60 years) and 7.4 years (range 5.6-8.5 years) respectively. Excellent and good subjective results were reported in 62% of patients; 61% reported significant or total relief of low-back pain and 77% never or occasionally used analgesics. Patients were evaluated using the Oswestry Disability Score and the MSPQ (Modified Somatic Perception Questionnaire) and Zung Depression Index with the DRAM (Disability and Risk Assessment Method). Additional information was obtained from the clinical notes and radiographs at last review. The mean Oswestry Disability Score was 59+/-10% pre-operatively and 37.7+/-14% after 7 years. There was a statistically significant correlation between the Oswestry scores and the subjective outcome (P=0.009). The results of this study suggest that the beneficial effects of Graf ligamentoplasty are sustained in the longer term in spite of the presence of an established degenerative process.

Atypical spinal tuberculosis.

Typical spinal tuberculosis is readily diagnosed and treated. Certain atypical clinical and radiologic presentations of spinal tuberculosis are described. Failure to recognize these presentations may lead to delay in diagnosis and initiation of treatment. In some atypical forms of the disease, this may have disastrous consequences. The current authors present a new classification for atypical spinal tuberculosis and describe the various presentations. The role of advanced imaging studies such as computed tomography scanning and magnetic resonance imaging and imaging-guided aspiration cytology is discussed.