Lateral collateral ulnar ligament reconstruction techniques in posterolateral rotatory instability of the elbow: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Elbow chronic instability is a disable complication, presenting as recurrent joint subluxations or dislocations. This systematic review aims to assess (1) the clinical outcome and (2) the complication rates of the surgical techniques currently used in the management of posterolateral rotatory elbow instability. METHODS: OVID-MEDLINE®, SCOPUS, and PubMed were searched from January 2009 to February 2019 to identify relevant studies. The search terms used were "LUCL", "Posterolateral dislocation", "Elbow Docking technique", "Elbow Jobe technique" and "Elbow single strand technique". The methodological qualities of the studies were evaluated, relevant data were extracted. RESULTS: Three studies, published between 2012 and 2015, were included in this review. No studies concerning the single strand technique met the inclusion criteria. The included studies had a level of evidence IV and recruited 33 patients undergoing a Jobe technique reconstruction and 8 patients undergoing a Docking technique. Jobe procedure registered better clinical and functional outcome, assessed using the Mayo Clinic Elbow Performance Scale (MEPS), compared with patients managed with Docking technique. Nonetheless, this difference is not significant. There was not a significantly different complication rate (p = 0.57) between patients treated with these two different techniques. CONCLUSION: This systematic review showed that both Jobe and Docking techniques are safe and effective in the treatment of posterolateral elbow instability. However, future studies with larger sample size and a longer follow-up interval are needed to draw stronger conclusions on the efficacy of the different LUCL surgical reconstruction techniques.

Volar locking plate versus external fixation in distal radius fractures: A meta-analysis.

The purpose of this meta-analysis is to evaluate the efficacy of plate or external fixator treatments in distal radius fractures, based not only on clinical and radiographic parameters but on Health Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) parameters. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Metanalyses (PRISMA) guidelines were followed when conducting this systematic review. The Revised Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews (RAMSTAR) checklist was additionally consulted in order to ensure a high-quality methodological process, encompassing such elements as an 'a priori' design, independent reviews and comprehensive search. The literature search was carried out on PubMed, MEDLINE and Scopus. The search terms used were "Radius fracture AND osteosynthesis", "Wrist fracture AND external fixator" and "Wrist fracture AND plate". Two reviewers independently screened titles, abstracts and full texts. To determine inter-reviewer agreement, a k score was calculated after each screening state. Of the 5753 studies collected through the initial databases search, two studies were included in the final meta-analysis (125 treated with external fixator vs 132 with volar plate). There was a substantial inter-reviewer agreement as to the title (0.73; 95% confidence interval, 0.67-0.79) abstract (0.65; 95% CI, 0.46-0.83) and fulltext screening stages (0.89; 95%CI, 0.67-1). The meta-analysis reported a mean difference equal to 0.00 (95%CI= -0.05 - 0.05), in accordance with I2= 0% and p test for the heterogeneity value=0.089. This meta analysis confirms and quantifies that the two techniques are superimposable as regards the quality of life reported by patients at least one year of follow-up.

Internal fixation of acetabular quadrilateral plate fractures in elderly patients: Could the fracture reduction quality affect their functional recovery?

BACKGROUND: Osteoporotic acetabular fractures frequently involve the quadrilateral plate (QP), a flat and thin bone constituting the medial wall of the acetabulum. This study aims to assess the impact of the quality of osteoporotic QP fractures reduction on the patients' functional recovery, at 24 months follow-up. METHODS: Patients referring with osteoporotic QP fractures to our Level I trauma centre were prospectively recruited. INCLUSION CRITERIA: patients aged 60 years old or older; osteoporosis, defined as Dual-energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA) T-score ≤ - 2.5; acute acetabular fracture; anatomic or good fracture reduction according to Matta on postoperative CT. EXCLUSION CRITERIA: moderate cognitive impairment (defined as Mini-Mental State Examination < 19); a history of malignant neoplasm; concomitant fractures in other sites; traumatic head injury; lower limb joint prostheses; patient not able to walk independently before trauma; poor fracture reduction, according to Matta, on postoperative CT. All the QP fractures were surgically managed. After surgery, the reduction of each QP fracture was classified as anatomical (displacement 0-1 mm), good (displacement 2-3 mm) and poor (displacement > 3 mm) on postoperative CT. Based on this classification: patients with a poor fracture reduction were excluded from this study, patients with an anatomical reduction were recruited in Group-A and patients with a good reduction in Group-B. All the patients underwent a clinical and radiographic 24-months follow-up. RESULTS: 68 patients (males 38; females 30; mean age 68.6 years old; range 60-79) were finally included in in the study. No cases of open fractures or concomitant pelvic ring fractures were observed. Based on the post-operative CT, 39 patients showed an anatomic fracture reduction (Group-A) while the remaining 29 patients revealed a good fracture reduction (Group-B). Complication rates and mean clinical scores showed no significant differences between groups, at 24-months follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, the functional recovery at 24 months follow-up showed no significant differences in elderly patients with QP fracture undergoing anatomical reconstruction (displacement 0-1 mm) compared to patients receiving a good QP fracture reconstruction (displacement ≤ 3 mm).

Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection of shoulder joint after latissimus dorsi tendon transfer: A case report.

Infection rates of arthroscopic procedures have been consistently reported at approximately 1% and are even less common in shoulder arthroscopy (0.3%). We are unaware of any prior reports of infection associated with an arthroscopic-assisted latissimus dorsi transfer and report on a 60-year-old male who experienced this event. At the 2-month follow-up, he reported an infection of the shoulder joint, characterized by a fistula on the portal scar. Laboratory tests revealed a Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection which was treated with arthroscopic irrigation and debridement of the shoulder joint followed by oral antibiotics for 6 weeks. At 1-year follow-up no findings of infection were presented. To our knowledge, this is the first case of P. aeruginosa infection of the shoulder after an arthroscopic-assisted latissimus dorsi tendon transfer. Because the empirical pharmacological therapy initially adopted did not produce a clinically important improvement, a more organism-specific antibiotic was used. In conclusion, the key points of positive results were surgical approach with careful washout, debridement of surgical accesses, and targeted antibiotic therapy.

Extension and grading of osteomyelitis are not related to limb salvage in Charcot neuropathic osteoarthropathy: A cohort prospective study.

AIMS: Charcot neuropathic osteoarthropathy (CN) represents a complication for diabetic patients which involves a progressive alteration of the osteoarticular apparatus with high risk of amputation. The aim of the study was to assess whether the localization of CN and the extent or grading of the osteomyelitis have an influence on the rate of limb salvage and the time to recovery. METHODS: We treated a diabetic population affected by CN complicated by ulceration and widespread osteomyelitic involvement. All patients were treated surgically to eliminate infected tissues, stabilize and correct the bone deformities. Histopathological and microbiological analyses were carried out on the bone specimens. RESULTS: Thirty-three patients affected by CN complicated by large osteomyelitic involvement of midfoot and/or ankle were treated between January 2010 and May 2014. The mean follow-up was 409,35 ± 154,06 days. Thirty patients had complete recovery (90.91%) at the end of follow-up. No difference in limb salvage rate and time to recovery was observed when stratifying the population according to CN localization, extent and grading of osteomyelitis. CONCLUSIONS: In this cohort prospective study we observed a high percentage of limb salvage in patients affected by CN complicated by diffuse midfoot/hindfoot osteomyelitis. The localization of Charcot deformity and the extent/stage of osteomyelitis did not change the rate of limb salvage.