Ortho News: 3/11/12

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Hip fracture surgery type impacts future fracture risk

Patients with a primary proximal femoral fracture who undergo closed reduction and percutaneous pinning have a significantly increased risk of subsequent contralateral hip fracture compared with those who undergo arthroplasty, according to a study published in the March 7 issue of The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery. MedicalXpress

European Society of Musculoskeletal Radiology: ESSR Ultrasound Group Protocols

ESSR Ultrasound Group Protocols:

Shoulder

Elbow

Wrist

Hip

Knee

Ankle

John Theurer Cancer Center Surgeon Co-Authors the Only Guide on Orthopedic Oncology Tumor Surgery

James C. Wittig, M.D., Chief Orthopedic Oncology and Co-Chief, Skin and Sarcoma at the John Theurer Cancer Center at Hackensack University Medical Center, one of the nation’s top 50 best hospitals for cancer, joined leading experts to co-author the only step by step guide of all operative procedures in orthopedic oncology titled “Operative Techniques in Orthopaedic Surgical Oncology.” John Theurer Cancer Center

Nano rescues skin

Nanoparticles containing chitosan have been shown to have effective antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus saprophyticus and Escherichia coli. The materials could be used as a protective wound-healing material to avoid opportunistic infection as well as working to facilitate wound healing.

Chitosan is a natural, non-toxic and biodegradable, polysaccharide readily obtained from chitin, the main component of the shells of shrimp, lobster and the beak of the octopus and squid. Its antimicrobial activity is well known and has been exploited in dentistry to prevent caries and as preservative applications in food packaging. It has even been tested as an additive for antimicrobial textiles used in clothing for healthcare and other workers.

Now, Mihaela Leonida of Fairleigh Dickinson University, in Teaneck, New Jersey and colleagues writing in the International Journal of Nano and Biomaterials describe how they have prepared nanoparticles of chitosan that could have potential in preventing infection in wounds as well as enhancing the wound-healing process itself by stimulating skin cell growth. Eurekalert!

Calculate is an essential free download for all Android users

When it comes to medical apps and mobile technology, one of the most well used resources is the medical calculator. These apps take user input information and apply defined formulae to calculate a range of useful information.

These apps allow physicians to save time and effort but more importantly reduce the chance of making a mistake. QxMD have developed a highly successful medical calculator called Calculate for iPhone which has recently been ported to Android.

Calculate by QxMD is an incredibly useful free app for Android. It contains over 150 medical calculators and clinical support tools which are all easily accessible from the home menu. iMedicalApps

Supraacetabular Fossa (Pseudodefect of Acetabular Cartilage): Frequency at MR Arthrography and Comparison of Findings at MR Arthrography and Arthroscopy.

Purpose:To evaluate the frequency of the supraacetabular fossa (SAF) (pseudodefect of acetabular cartilage) at magnetic resonance (MR) arthrography of the hip and to compare the MR findings with those from arthroscopy. Dietrich TJ, Suter A, Pfirrmann CW, Dora C, Fucentese SF, Zanetti M. Radiology. 2012 Mar 13. PMID: 22416250

Johns Hopkins: Health apps should have disclaimers

Baltimore-based Johns Hopkins University’s Global mHealth Initiative has undertaken what the Baltimore Sun calls “one of the broadest efforts to assess mHealth strategies” with 49 official studies underway by dozens of university faculty members. According to the report, the initiative is evaluating which mHealth services can help physicians, community health workers and consumers “in ways equal to other more traditional methods” like clinic visits or in-person coaching. (Maybe even in ways superior to existing and legacy methods?) Mobile Health News

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Arc Sterile Turns Any Room into OR

Surgical theaters are not only clean inside, but the air supplied to them is delivered in laminar flow and filtered to maximize sterility. This commonly requires a proper ventilation system built into the infrastructure of the building. What if you’re a hospital administrator and a need arises for another operating room, but upgrading the ventilation system would be way too expensive? MedGadget

New England Journal of Medicine Now Available as iPad App

Massachusetts Medical Society has released an iPad version of its venerable NEJM. In addition to all the content from the print version, the iPad app also includes audio and video materials from the NEJM.org website.

The software is free to download, and includes one complete New England Journal of Medicine issue, but subscriptions are $14.99 per month and $5.99 for a single issue. MedGadget

University of Chicago study demonstrates efficiency gains from using iPads in medicine

Ever since the first iPad was released in early 2010, physicians have been adopting tablet devices in droves. According to a survey by QuantiaMD in May ’11, 80% of physicians surveyed owned a smartphone or tablet and 30% owned a tablet device. And from this individual adoption, physicians are increasingly using their mobile devices in their clinical duties, creating headaches for many IT managers out there. iMedicalApps

Clinical news alert: Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons highlights

Highlights of new research articles appearing in the March 2012 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (JAAOS), as well as the full table of contents. Each news highlight, and listed title in the table of contents, includes a link to the study abstract. AAOS

Italian researchers found how to stop low back pain

Italian researchers at the Catholic University of Sacred Heart in Rome found an important molecular mechanism responsible for low back pain and other acute vertebral problems like cervical axial pain, all due to aging and degeneration of the vertebral column.

The team led by Dr. Luigi Aurelio Nasto and Enrico Pola also developed an experimental drug to inhibit this degenerative mechanism, by blocking its principal culprit, the molecule, "NF-kB" and tested it successfully in mice. The study was carried out in collaboration with the University of Pittsburgh research team led by Paul Robbins, James Kang and Nam Vo (e-mail: von@upmc.edu).

Researchers reported their findings in the February 16 online edition of the journal Spine. Eurekalert!

Storage time for cartilage transplant tissue doubled by MU researchers

In a study due to be published in the Journal of Knee Surgery, Cook and Aaron Stoker from MU's Comparative Orthopaedic Laboratory, Clark Hung and Eric Lima from Columbia University, and James Stannard, the J. Vernon Luck Sr. Distinguished Professor in Orthopaedic Surgery in the MU School of Medicine, tested tissue using their patented system, which includes storing the tissue at room temperature in a specially designed container and storage solution. The researchers found that their system preserved transplant-quality tissue for as long as 63 days. The collaborative team of researchers also developed a way to monitor the quality of the stored tissue simply by testing a few drops of their patented storage solution. Eurekalert!

Monday, March 12, 2012

Two new open-access Ortho related journals

Bone & Joint Research
"A new 'open access' journal set to revolutionise research communication in the field of orthopaedics and the musculoskeletal sciences."

Skeletal Muscle
Skeletal Muscle is a peer-reviewed, open access, online journal that publishes articles investigating molecular mechanisms underlying the biology of skeletal muscle. A wide range of skeletal muscle biology is included: development, metabolism, the regulation of mass and function, aging, degeneration, dystrophy and regeneration. The emphasis is on understanding adult skeletal muscle, its maintenance, and its interactions with non-muscle cell types and regulatory modulators.

Delay in surgery can cause irreparable meniscus tears in children with ACL injuries

For children aged 14 and under, delaying reconstructive surgery for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries may raise their risk of further injury, according to a new study by pediatric orthopaedic surgeons. If surgery occurs later than 12 weeks after the injury, the injury may even be irreparable.

"Treating ACL injuries in these children is controversial, because they are still growing and the surgery has a small risk of causing a growth disturbance," said study leader J. Todd Lawrence, M.D., Ph.D., an orthopaedic surgeon at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. "However, we found that the risk of additional injury outweighs the risk of growth disturbance in most children."

Lawrence's study appeared in a recent issue of The American Journal of Sports Medicine. Eurekalert!

A lifetime of research may be leading to a life-saving treatment for shock

A 200-patient Phase 2 clinical pilot study will be initiated this month to test the efficacy and safety of a new use, and method of administering, an enzyme inhibitor for critically ill patients developed by University of California, San Diego Bioengineering Professor Geert Schmid-Schönbein. Conditions expected to qualify for the study include new-onset sepsis and septic shock, post-operative complications, and new-onset gastrointestinal bleeding. MedicalXpress

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