Acta orthopaedica
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Background and purpose - Patients with osteoporosis who present with an acute onset of back pain often have multiple fractures on plain radiographs. Differentiation of an acute osteoporotic vertebral fracture (AOVF) from previous fractures is difficult. The aim of this study was to investigate the incidence of concomitant AOVFs and previous OVFs in patients with symptomatic AOVFs, and to identify risk factors for concomitant AOVFs. ⋯ Interpretation - Concomitant and previous osteoporotic vertebral fractures are common. Risk factors for concomitant fractures are a low T-score and a low number of previous vertebral fractures in cases of osteoporotic vertebral fracture. An MRI scan of the the complete thoracic and lumbar spine with STIR sequence reduces the risk of under-diagnosis and under-treatment.
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Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Posterior approach compared to direct lateral approach resulted in better patient-reported outcome after hemiarthroplasty for femoral neck fracture.
Background and purpose - Hemiarthroplasty (HA) is the most common treatment for displaced femoral neck fractures in many countries. In Norway, there has been a tradition of using the direct lateral surgical approach, but worldwide a posterior approach is more often used. Based on data from the Norwegian Hip Fracture Register, we compared the results of HA operated through the posterior and direct lateral approaches regarding patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) and reoperation rate. ⋯ The risk of reoperation was similar between the approaches. Interpretation - Hemiarthroplasty for hip fracture performed through a posterior approach rather than a direct lateral approach results in less pain, with better patient satisfaction and better quality of life. The risk of reoperation was similar with both approaches.
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Multicenter Study
Signs of knee osteoarthritis common in 620 patients undergoing arthroscopic surgery for meniscal tear.
Background and purpose - Recent evidence has questioned the effect of arthroscopic knee surgery for middle-aged and older patients with degenerative meniscal tears with or without concomitant radiographic knee osteoarthritis (OA). We investigated the prevalence of early or more established knee OA and patients' characteristics in a cohort of patients undergoing arthroscopic surgery for a meniscal tear. Patients and methods - 641 patients assigned for arthroscopy on suspicion of meniscus tear were consecutively recruited from February 2013 through January 2015. ⋯ Results - 43% of patients (269 of 620) had early or more established knee OA. Of these, a large proportion had severe cartilage lesions with almost half having a severe cartilage lesion in at least 1 knee compartment. Interpretation - Based on a definition including frequent knee pain, cartilage damage, and degenerative meniscal tissue, early or more established knee OA was present in 43% of patients undergoing knee arthroscopy for meniscal tear.
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Background and purpose - The quality of pin fixation of displaced supracondylar humerus fractures in children has not been assessed, and the clinical value of radiographic examinations after pin fixation is unclear. We evaluated pin configuration, quality of osteosynthesis, and outcome in 264 supracondylar fractures. The clinical significance of postoperative radiographs was analyzed. ⋯ All 94 patients with follow-up (97%) who were treated during 2012-2014 were satisfied with the outcome. Interpretation - Despite pin fixation being deemed unsatisfactory in one-third of the cases, significant malunion was rare. Postoperative radiography did not alter management or outcome.
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Multicenter Study
Early mortality and morbidity after total hip arthroplasty in patients with femoral neck fracture.
Background and purpose - Early postoperative mortality is relatively high after total hip arthroplasty (THA) that has been performed due to femoral neck fracture. However, this has rarely been investigated after adjustment for medical comorbidity and comparison with the mortality in an age-matched population. We therefore assessed early mortality in hip fracture patients treated with a THA, in the setting of a nationwide matched cohort study. ⋯ Interpretation - The adjusted early mortality in femoral neck fracture patients who underwent THA was about double that in a matched control population. Patients with femoral neck fracture but with no substantial comorbidity and an age of less than 80 years appear to have a low risk of early death. Patients older than 80 years and those with a Charlson comorbidity index of more than 2 have a high risk of early death, and such patients would perhaps benefit from treatment strategies other than THA, but this should be investigated further.