Case-control study on locking plates fixation for the treatment of Neer 3-and 4-part proximal humerus fractures / 中国骨伤

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To compare therapeutic effects of locking plates for the treatment of Neer 3-and 4-part proximal humerus fractures.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>From January 2009 to June 2011, 64 patients with Neer 3-and 4-part proximal humerus fractures were treated with locked plate fixation. There were 39 patients in the 3-part group including 16 males and 23 females, with an average age of (55.12 +/- 12.52) years old; and 25 patients in the 4-part fractures group including 9 males and 16 females,with an average age of (57.92 +/- 13.14) years old. The American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons score (ASES), visual analogue scale (VAS) and complications were documented for analysis before and after treatment.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>All the patients had incision healing at the first stage. All the patients were followed up, and the duration ranged from 12 to 30 months, with a mean of 16.5 months. Comparably better shoulder function recovery was achieved in the 3-part fractures group with regard to the ASES (76.14 +/- 14.10 in the 3-part fractures group vs. 65.93 +/- 11.82 in the 4-part fractures group, P < 0.05). Moreover,a statistical difference (P < 0.05) was observed regarding the VAS pain score (2.12 +/- 1.63 in the 3-part fractures group vs. 3.90 +/- 2.21 in the 4-part fractures group). For the complications rate,no statistical difference was noted between 3-part fractures group and 4-part fractures group (20.51% vs. 36.00%).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The clinical outcomes of the 3-part proximal humerus fractures is better than the 4-part fractures proximal humerus fractures treated with locking plate. Complex proximal humeral fractures treated with locking plates can be achieved a satisfactory outcome when attention is paid to anatomic reduction, stable fixation, proper screws and plate placement, and reasonable functional exercise postoperative.</p>

Antimicrobial resistance and molecular epidemiological characteristics of clinical isolates of Staphylococcus aureus in Changsha area / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Increasing prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), particularly methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) has been reported in China. In this study, we investigated the drug resistance characteristic, genetic background, and molecular epidemiological characteristic of S. aureus in Changsha.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Between January 2006 and December 2008, 293 clinical isolates of S. aureus were collected from 11 hospitals in Changsha and identified by the Vitek-2 system. All the isolates were verified as MRSA by PCR amplification of both femA and mecA genes. K-B disk method was used to test drug sensitivity of S. aureus to antibiotics. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) was performed for genotypic and homologous analysis of 115 isolates randomly selected from the original 293 clinical S. aureus isolates.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>S. aureus was highly resistant to penicillin, ampicillin, erythromycin, and clindamycin with resistant rates of 96.6%, 96.6%, 77.1%, and 67.2% respectively. All the isolates were susceptible to tecoplanin, vancomycin, and linezolid. MRSA accounted for 64.8% (190/293) of all the S. aureus strains. The 115 S. aureus isolates were clustered into 39 PFGE types by PFGE typing, with 13 predominant patterns (designated types A to M) accounting for 89 isolates. The most prevalent PFGE type was type A (n = 56, 48.7%) and 100.0% of type A strains were MRSA. PFGE type A included 13 subtypes, and the most prevalent subtype was subtype A1 (46.4%, 26/56). Strains with PFGE type A were isolated from eight hospitals (8/11), and both subtypes A1 and A4 strains were isolated in a university hospital.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Clinical isolates of S. aureus in Changsha were resistant to multiple traditional antibiotics. There was an outbreak of PFGE type A MRSA in this area and the A1 subtype was the predominant epidemic clone. Dissemination of the same clone was an important reason for the wide spread of MRSA.</p>