Ortho News: 4/15/12

Friday, April 20, 2012

Prevention of Venous Thromboembolism After Hip or Knee Arthroplasty Findings From a 2008 Survey of US Orthopedic Surgeons

A survey was mailed to a representative sample of US orthopedic surgeons to assess protocols for the prevention of venous thromboembolism after lower extremity total joint arthroplasty. Practices were examined by type of operation, annual surgical volume, and opinions of consensus guidelines issued by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and the American College of Chest Physicians. Although there was near-unanimous agreement that routine thromboprophylaxis should be the standard practice for patients who undergo hip or knee arthroplasty, surgeons were divided as to the exact management approach. Frederick A. Anderson Jr., Wei Huang, Richard J. Friedman,, Louis M. Kwong, Jay R. Lieberman, Vincent D. Pellegrini, The Orthopaedic Surgeon's Survey Steering Committee. The Journal of Arthroplasty; Volume 27, Issue 5, May 2012, Pages 659–666.e5 PDF

Video Review of the New England Journal of Medicine iPad App

So how does the iPad app stack up? Does it merely take the online version of the NEJM and put PDF files on your iPad? Or, does it utilize the dynamic user interface of the iPad and allow for a transformational reading experience?

We have a video review of the app here: (register for free to view the video). iMedicalApps

Thursday, April 19, 2012

New coating for hip implants could prevent premature failure

Every year, more than a million Americans receive an artificial hip or knee prosthesis. Such implants are designed to last many years, but in about 17 percent of patients who receive a total joint replacement, the implant eventually loosens and has to be replaced early, which can cause dangerous complications for elderly patients.

To help minimize these burdensome operations, a team of MIT chemical engineers has developed a new coating for implants that could help them better adhere to the patient's bone, preventing premature failure.

"This would allow the implant to last much longer, to its natural lifetime, with lower risk of failure or infection," says Paula Hammond, the David H. Koch Professor in Engineering at MIT and senior author of a paper on the work appearing in the journal Advanced Materials. Eurekalert!

Surgical Flaps is a great tool for students and junior residents to visually understand flap surgery

As a medical student in the OR, it can often be a frustrating experience. Surgery is a foreign and exciting domain, but even by scrubbing in and being close to the field, “why are they doing that?” is a common feeling.
When it comes to Plastic surgery, there is a dual goal of restoring function and maintaining a cosmetic result. To that affect, the use of flaps is a common technique employed. iMedicalApps

Medtronic’s New POWEREASE Instruments for Reconstructive Spine Surgery

This system brings new capability to the operating room through compatibility with two of the leading pedicle screw platforms on the market, the CD HORIZON® SOLERA™ Spinal System and the TSRH® 3Dx™ Spinal System, and is integrated with other advanced surgical technologies, specifically Medtronic’s NIM-ECLIPSE® neuromonitoring, O-ARM® imaging, and STEALTHSTATION® navigation systems. MedGadget

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Researchers find joint failures potentially linked to oral bacteria

The culprit behind a failed hip or knee replacements might be found in the mouth. DNA testing of bacteria from the fluid that lubricates hip and knee joints had bacteria with the same DNA as the plaque from patients with gum disease and in need of a joint replacement. MedicalXpress

Research potential? Students invent device for the perfect bicep curl

To achieve buff biceps, proper form for strength-training exercises is key, and people often turn to professional trainers to correct them and prevent injury. Cornell student engineers have developed an alternative: A simple electronic device that guides the user through a proper bicep curl. PhysOrg.com

Knee injuries in women linked to motion, nervous system differences

In this study, just published in the European Journal of Applied Physiology, the scientists found that most aspects of spinal motor control and rapid activation of muscles were similar in 17 men and 17 women that were examined – with one exception. Men had a higher level of "recurrent inhibition," which is a process in the spinal cord that helps select the appropriate muscle response. Eurekalert!

Specialists must work together to prevent leg amputations, urge experts

A lack of cooperation between doctors is allowing the number of leg amputations to remain high, despite major advances in treatment, warn experts from Imperial College London at an international symposium at the College today. Researchers will highlight the need for early referral and interdisciplinary management at the CX Symposium, which is attended by 3,500 specialists in vascular medicine from across the world. MedicalXpress

Sunday, April 15, 2012

A new twist in Robotic Surgery

Instead of using robots to asssist with surgery, how about specializing in performing surgery on robots?

Scientists build robot with muscles and joints

The next time you see someone doing the dance “The robot,” it might not be accurate in the world of modern robotics. Scientists at the University of Sussex, the University of Belgrade, and the Artificial Intelligence Lab of the University of Zurich have been working on a new humanoid robot that has muscles and joints, just like real humans. This means their movements won’t be as rigid as everyone has come to expect from robots. Slash Gear

New Ortho books to consider

Pediatric Orthopedic Surgical Emergencies by Joshua M. Abzug and Martin J. Herman (May 31, 2012) Hardcover

Current Management of Shoulder and Elbow Trauma by W. Levine, Christopher S. Ahmad and Edwin R. Cadet (May 30, 2012) Hardcover

Orthopaedic Emergencies by Casey J. Humbyrd, Benjamin Petre, Arjun S. Chanmugam and Dawn M. LaPorte (May 18, 2012) Paperback

Mercer's Textbook of Orthopaedics and Trauma by Sureshan Sivanathan and Eugene Sherry (May 1, 2012)

Physeal Injury Other Than Fracture by Hamlet A. Peterson (Apr 28, 2012)

ASSH Manual of Hand Surgery by Warren C. Hammert, Warren C. Hammert, Martin I. Boyer and David J. Bozentka (Mar 30, 2012) - Kindle eBook

Imaging of the Foot and Ankle by Thomas H. Berquist (Mar 30, 2012) - Kindle eBook

Some digital news of note

Google Scholar: See your citations
Have you realized that now scientisits can create Google Scholar profiles and receive citation reports automatically? It saves plenty of time and efforts. Great service! ScienceRoll

Prestigious medical journal The Lancet arrives on iPad
The next big move for medical journals is to move into the digital domain. The medical community has already seen a number of prestigious journals such as the NEJM and BMJ launch electronic versions which are available on the iPad. Electronic journals offer a number of advantages over traditional paper journals such as the ability to carry an entire back catalogue of issues, save, share and favourite articles for further reading. One of the latest journals to join the range of digital journals is The Lancet. The Lancet app is a free app for the iPad which offers current subscribers rapid access to recently published content from The Lancet and other specialty publications; The Lancet Oncology, The Lancet Neurology and The Lancet Infectious Diseases. iMedicalapps

The future of medicine is … here: TEDMED 2012
In just a few short years, the TEDMED conference has grown in size and prominence to become an annual highlight for healthcare visioneers and digerati. The list of speakers shows it to include some of the best and brightest in the nation, and spans disciplines from engineering to medicine to informatics to chemistry. iMedicalapps

Open PubMed with NMCP LinkOut Before Accessing Articles