The treatment of intertrochanteric fractures comparison of PFN and hemiarthroplasty 3-year mortality study.

Intertrochanteric fractures in elderly patients can increase mortality due to complications and negative functional results. The aim of this study is to retrospectively compare the follow-up and mortality rates among patients given a proximal femoral nail (PFN), the current routine treatment for these types of fractures, with those given hemiarthroplasty.The study retrospectively investigated 202 patients over the age of 60 who completed at least 3 years of follow-up after hemiarthroplasty or PFN for intertrochanteric fractures between 2007 and 2012. While 132 patients underwent cemented hemiarthroplasty, 70 had PFN.The monitoring duration for those with PFN surgery was 31.25±1.3 months while the duration of follow-up for those with hemiarthroplasty surgery was 20.0±1.2 months. At the end of 3 years of monitoring of the 202 patients, 99 were deceased. There was a statistically significant difference found in terms of patient life expectancy between those with PFN and those with hemiarthroplasty; Cox regression analysis identified that the mortality rate of those with hemiarthroplasty was 5.1 times greater.As a result, patients undergoing hemiarthroplasty should be carefully chosen and if possible, PFN should be preferred.

Mean platelet volume and platelet distribution width can be related to bone mineralization.

UNLABELLED: Platelets functions are related to bone resorption and formation. The present study aimed at studying the association between platelet function and bone mineralization. We showed that mean platelet volume (MPV) and platelet distribution width (PDW) levels in osteoporosis patients increased. The study also showed that PDW and age independently associated with bone mineralization. INTRODUCTION: MPV and PDW are widely used for assessing platelet function. Recently, authors argued that platelet function has an important role in bone mineralization. However, only one study has investigated the relationship between MPV and osteoporosis. We aimed to study the levels of MPV and PDW in postmenopausal osteoporosis. METHODS: We investigated 320 bone mineral density (BMD) measurements between the years 2012 and 2013 retrospectively in our clinic. Eighty patients whom chronic diseases are absent and all laboratory findings are complete enrolled in this study. Patients were divided in three groups as an osteoporosis, osteopenia, and normal BMD group. MPV and PDW levels were investigated in these groups. We performed correlation test and linear regression analysis to determine whether there is a relationship between platelet function markers and BMD measurements. RESULTS: Eighty patients were divided as an osteoporosis, osteopenia, and normal BMD group. MPV levels and PDW levels in the osteoporosis group were lower than the normal BMD group. PDW was positively correlated with femur total T (FTT) score and lumbar 1-4T (L1-4T) scores. Linear regression analysis showed that age and PDW were independently related to FTT and LTT scores. CONCLUSION: Platelet functions are related to the bone mineralization. PDW and MPV have a significant role in the development of postmenopausal osteoporosis.

Distribution of the M129V polymorphism of the prion protein gene in a Turkish population suggests a high risk for Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

A polymorphism (M129V) at codon 129 of the prion protein gene (PRNP) results in either a methionine residue (Met) or a valine residue (Val) and is known to determine susceptibility for the development of sporadic or acquired Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). The distributions of M129V genotypes and alleles in various general populations have been reported and there are clear differences between Western Europeans and East Asians. We analysed the coding sequence of the PRNP gene in 100 healthy Turkish subjects to determine whether the distributions of the M129V genotypes and alleles or other PRNP gene variants in the Turkish population differ from those in other normal populations. Three known polymorphisms but no other gene variants were detected in the PRNP coding sequence of the Turkish individuals. Genotype frequencies at codon 129 were 57% Met/Met, 34% Met/Val and 9% Val/Val, with an allele frequency of 0.740:0.260 Met:Val. These distributions are considerably different from those reported for other normal populations residing in Western Europe and East Asia, except in Crete. The higher frequency of 129 Met-homozygotes in Turkey than in Western Europe suggests that the Turkish are at greater risk of developing CJD.