Journal of orthopaedic trauma
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Case Reports
Forearm compartment syndrome due to automated injection of computed tomography contrast material.
Automated injection of computed tomography contrast material can produce a compartment syndrome if extravasation occurs. Unconscious patients and the elderly may be at particular risk. Selection of nonionic contrast material, careful evaluation of the intravenous administration site, and close monitoring of the patient during use of a power injector may help minimize or prevent extravasation injuries.
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Thoracolumbar burst fractures are a major cause of disability; however, there are few studies on the functional outcome of patients with this injury. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the functional outcome of patients with thoracolumbar burst fractures using a generic and a condition-specific health status survey. The SF-36 survey (generic) and the Roland scale (condition-specific) were administered to 24 patients who had a minimum of 2 years follow-up after a thoracolumbar burst fracture without neurologic deficit. ⋯ There was a strong correlation (r = 0.71) between the Roland scale and the SF-36 pain scale. There were poor correlations between the Roland scale and residual kyphosis (r = 0.003), and between the SF-36 pain scale and residual kyphosis (r = 0.10). There was no significant difference in the functional outcome of those patients treated operatively versus nonoperatively.
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We report a very rare case of an avulsion of the pectoralis major tendon in association with a two-part proximal humerus fracture. Pectoralis major tendon avulsion was confirmed intraoperatively during open reduction and internal fixation of the humerus fracture. In retrospect, the preoperative radiographic finding of posterolateral and proximal displacement of the humeral shaft suggested an injury to the pectoralis major. Because others have reported that the best treatment of a pectoralis major tendon avulsion is surgical repair, we feel that it is important to suspect such an injury in a proximal humerus fracture when this anatomic displacement is present.
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Malpositioning of iliosacral screws happens more often when common variations in the morphology of the upper sacral segments are unrecognized. Radiological-anatomic correlations of sacral anatomy were studied in 10 fresh-frozen cadaveric pelvises without evidence of skeletal disease, obtained from six male and four female donors. Eighty consecutive patients with complicated pelvic fractures treated operatively by the same surgeon using percutaneously placed iliosacral screws were evaluated. ⋯ On the true lateral projections, the iliac cortical density adjacent to the sacroiliac joint parallels the sacral alar slope and is almost always caudal and posterior to it; it delineates the anterior extent of the "safe zone" for iliosacral screw insertion. Thus, the lateral sacral image provides the surgeon with a better understanding of the sacral alar slope and can help prevent iliosacral screw placement errors. The lateral sacral image should always be used intraoperatively with the inlet and outlet images to guide iliosacral screw placement.
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A proposed extensile medial approach to the medial surface of the shaft of the femur was studied on 30 cadaver thighs. The incision is made along a line extending from the mid inguinal point to a point one-third the distance from the adductor tubercle to the medial side of the patella. After mobilizing the sartorius muscle posteromedially, the medial femur is exposed by a three-step technique. ⋯ Distal extension can be made to expose the knee joint. The approach can be extended proximally to the lesser trochanter between the vastus medialis and both the adductor brevis and pectineus muscles. Anatomic measurements in relation to the adductor tubercle and cross-sections of the thigh were made to better describe anatomic constants and variables in this rather unfamiliar medial thigh area.