Foot & ankle international
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Continuous infusion versus single bolus popliteal block following major ankle and hindfoot surgery: a prospective, randomized trial.
Popliteal sciatic nerve blockade is a commonly used technique employed in the management of postoperative pain following foot and ankle surgery. Recent studies have shown that for outpatient surgery, for moderately painful procedures, a continuous infusion of local anesthesia via an in-dwelling catheter for 48 to 72 hours leads to reduced opiate analgesic requirements and improved pain and patient satisfaction scores. ⋯ Despite the statistically significant findings, with such low pain scores in both groups, we believe it remains debatable whether the extra time and cost involved warrants the use of a continuous popliteal blockade over a single bolus injection.
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Tibiotalocalcaneal fusion with a straight rod has a risk of damaging the lateral plantar neurovascular structures and may interfere with maintaining normal heel valgus position.We report the results of a prospective study of tibiotalocalcaneal (TTC) arthrodesis with a short, anatomically curved interlocking, intramedullary nail. ⋯ With a short, anatomically curved intramedullary nail, we had a high rate of tibiotalocalcaneal fusion with minimal plantar neurovascular complications. We believe a short, curved intramedullary nail, with its more lateral entry point, helped maintain hindfoot alignment.
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The Krackow stitch, commonly used for Achilles tendon repair, leaves the bulk of the stitch on the surface of the tendon as a possible nidus for adhesion. The proposed core weave stitch leaves a minimal amount of suture material on the tendon surface. The functional strength of the core weave stitch compared with the Krackow and the optimal number of throws, or stitches crossing the surface of the tendon, with this stitch are not known. ⋯ The proposed core weave stitch provides functional strength similar to that of the Krackow stitch for tendon repair with reduced suture material on the tendon surface.