Der Unfallchirurg
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The biggest obstacle to overcome for routine treatment of various pathologies with fresh osteochondral allograft is the availability of tissue for transplantation. Large fresh osteochondral allografts are usually harvested from organ donors, but in contrast to organs, tissues can be procured after cardiac arrest. ⋯ Currently, a lot of potential concerning musculoskeletal tissue grafts remains unused. Most importantly, families should be encouraged to speak about their potenzial will to donate and educational programs should be established to increase trust in organ and tissue donation and the allocation system and to increase knowledge about the importance of transplantation medicine. But joined efforts of different parts of the medical systems and different organizations involved in tissue transplantation should improve the situation for patients waiting for much needed transplants.
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The number of ankle fractures in elderly patients is increasing. The aim of treatment of ankle fractures in the elderly is to guarantee a possible unlimited autonomy and quality of life for patients. ⋯ The results are essentially determined by the soft tissue management, reduction and stable osteosynthesis; however, an orthogeriatric co-management with the implementation of treatment paths and standard operating procedures is recommended. The advantages of an interdisciplinary cooperation of trauma surgeons and geriatricians are obvious in this situation.
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As a result of immense heterogeneity with regard to morphology and stability, the recent literature lacks consensus concerning the treatment of sacral insufficiency fractures. We report the case of a 79-year-old woman with bilateral sacral insufficiency fractures following anterior pelvic ring fractures who was treated with teriparatide. During a two-week hospital stay, the patient was successfully mobilised and the regularly conducted pelvic X‑ray controls showed full consolidation of the fractures.
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The clinical outcome of fresh allogeneic osteochondral allografts (OCA) is greatly dependent on the number of viable chondrocytes at the time of implantation. The selection and preparation of a suitable recipient can be very time-consuming and the number of tissue donors is greatly limited; therefore, the preservation of high allograft viability before transplantation is a focal point of current research. ⋯ A major difficulty in comparing the relevant studies on storage solutions is that multiple aspects in the study design varied between the studies. Due to this no definite conclusion on what the ideal storage strategy should look like could be drawn. Further studies are needed to conclusively show whether cell culture medium-based storage solutions are truly superior to those based on Ringer-lactate solutions.
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Cartilage defects in adult patients do not heal well. Fresh osteochondral allograft (OCA) transplantation is based on mature, living, mechanically sound hyaline cartilage attached to a bone interface, which is brought into an osteochondral defect, where it becomes osseointegrated. According to current knowledge, intact hyaline cartilage tissue is immune privileged and does not, in contrast to bone, meniscus or ligaments, cause an immune reaction. ⋯ All transplants showed sound osseointegration. Cartilage failure was the reason for unsuccessful outcome. Challenges remain regarding graft availability, precise size matching, complex logistics, demanding surgical technique in complex geometries, and open questions in immunology and chimerism.