Acta orthopaedica
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Venous thromboembolism (VTE) remains a substantial cause of morbidity and mortality following hip fracture. Previous work has not identified any risk factors associated with the type of hip fracture. We report the incidence of and risk factors for development of symptomatic VTE in patients following a hip fracture. ⋯ We found that the rate of symptomatic VTE using thromboprophylaxis with heparin was low but that there were a number of groups that were at a significantly higher risk of developing VTE. The patients who are particularly at risk appear to be those with a subtrochanteric or intertrochanteric hip fracture; here, the incidence of symptomatic VTE was twice that of intracapsular hip fractures.
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Parathyroid hormone (PTH) has attracted considerable interest as a bone anabolic agent. Recently, it has been suggested that PTH can also enhance bone repair after fracture and distraction osteogenesis. We analyzed bone density and strength of the newly regenerated mineralized tissue after intermittent treatment with PTH in rabbits, which undergo Haversian bone remodeling similar to that in humans. ⋯ We found that treatment with PTH during distraction osteogenesis resulted in substantially higher mineralized tissue volume, mineral content, and bending strength. This suggests that treatment with PTH may benefit new bone formation during distraction osteogenesis and could form a basis for clinical application of this therapy in humans.
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Editorial Comment
Joint prosthetic infections: a success story or a continuous concern?