Prediction of Hamstring Autograft sizes for Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction using Preoperative Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study is to determine whether preoperative magnetic resonance image measurements can predict the hamstring tendon autograft diameter during anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. METHODS: We prospectively evaluated Forty-two patients with anterior cruciate ligament injury who underwent reconstruction using hamstring tendon autograft. Preoperative diameters and cross-sectional areas of the hamstring tendons were estimated using magnetic resonance imaging of the knee. Intraoperative diameters of the hamstring tendon graft were measured using a cylindrical graft sizer. We used Pearson's correlation test to compare the Preoperative and intraoperative graft size measurements. A possible cutoff value for the hamstring graft size was determined using Receiver operating characteristic analysis. RESULTS: The mean age of the patient in the study was 27.5 ± 8.5 years. There were statistically significant correlations between preoperative and intraoperative hamstring tendon graft measurements (P < 0.001). Our study found 13.3 mm² cross-sectional area as the cutoff for predicting 7mm of quadrupled hamstring graft size with both sensitivity and specificity of 85.7 %, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: We can conclude that preoperative magnetic resonance imaging measurements can predict the intraoperative graft size. This study can help in preoperatively planning for the graft choice.

Hospital Resilience After the 2015 Earthquake in Nepal: Results From Semi-structured Interviews With Hospital Staff.

Background: Resilient hospitals are increasingly recognized as a cornerstone of disaster reduction in global policies such as the Sendai Framework for Action. However, current hospital resilience frameworks emerged from pre-disaster conceptualizations, and have not been verified in real-life disaster contexts nor in the frontlines. Our aim was to study a tertiary hospital's resilience after the 2015 earthquake in Nepal, as experienced by its staff. Methods: We undertook a qualitative study in the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital (TUTH), where we conducted 18 semi-structured interviews with hospital staff. We inductively created themes to describe the earthquake burden to the hospital, and to analyze individual resilience of hospital staff. In addition, we deductively documented the resilience of the hospital as a system, according to the system resilience dimensions: means of resilience (redundancy and resourcefulness), and ends of resilience (robustness and rapidity). Results: In terms of robustness, TUTH increased its capacity for earthquake victims as elective activities were temporarily interrupted and quality of care was not a priority. Three stages of rapidity were identified: critical rapidity to address immediate needs, stabilizing rapidity until the hospital re-started routine activities, and recovery rapidity. In addition to the disaster plan, emerging adaptations played a major role in redundancy and resourcefulness. We found that individual resilience depended on three determinants: safety, meaningfulness, and sense of belonging. Conclusions: Hospital resilience results from a complexity of emerging and planned adaptations, as well as from interdependencies with individual resilience. Frameworks and plans to improve hospital resilience must reflect flexibility of response, and a concern for well-being of hospital staff is central for sustainable disaster response and improved resilience.

Changes in patient admissions after the 2015 Earthquake: a tertiary hospital-based study in Kathmandu, Nepal.

Literature on earthquake impact on hospital admissions is lacking, particularly in low-resource settings. Our aim was to study the pattern of admissions before and after the 2015 earthquake in a tertiary hospital in Nepal. We used routine hospital data from 9,596 admissions, and defined four periods: pre-earthquake (pre-EQ), acute (EQ1), post-acute (EQ2), and post-earthquake (post-EQ). We compared length of hospital stay (LOS) across the study periods using negative binomial regressions. We used logistic regressions to study changes in probability of admission for diagnostic categories, and Generalized Additive Models to model the difference in number of admissions compared to pre-EQ baseline. LOS was longer in EQ1 than during pre-EQ, in particular for injury-related admissions. In EQ1, the odds of injury admissions increased, while they decreased for the majority of other diagnoses, with the odds of pregnancy-related admissions remaining low until post-EQ. The number of admissions dropped in EQ1 and EQ2, and returned to pre-EQ trends in post-EQ, accumulating 381 admissions lost (CI: 206-556). Our findings suggest that hospital disaster plans must not only foresee injury management after earthquakes, but also ensure accessibility, in particular for pregnant women, and promote a quick return to normality to prevent additional negative health outcomes.

Clinical and demographic profile of admitted victims in a tertiary hospital after the 2015 earthquake in Nepal.

BACKGROUND: In 2015, an earthquake killing 9,000 and injuring 22,000 people hit Nepal. The Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital (TUTH), a reference tertiary hospital, was operational immediately after the earthquake. We studied the profile of earthquake victims admitted in TUTH and assessed what factors could influence hospital length of stay. METHODS: An earthquake victim dataset was created based on patient records, with information on sex, age, date of admission and discharge, diagnosis, and surgical intervention. We performed an initial descriptive overview of the earthquake victims followed by a time-to-event analysis to compare length of hospital stay in different groups, using log rank test and cox regression to calculate Hazard Ratios. RESULTS: There were in total 501 admitted victims, with the peak of admissions occurring on the fifth day after the earthquake. About 89% had injury as main diagnosis, mostly in lower limbs, and 66% of all injuries were fractures. Nearly 69% of all patients underwent surgery. The median length of hospital stay was 10 days. Lower limb and trunk injuries had longer hospital stays than injuries in the head and neck (HR = 0.68, p = 0.009, and HR = 0.62 p = 0.005, respectively). Plastic surgeries had longer hospital stays than orthopaedic surgeries (HR = 0.57 p = 0.006). Having a crush injury and undergoing an amputation also increased time to discharge (HR = 0.57, p = 0.013, and HR = 0.65 p = 0.045 respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Hospital stay was particularly long in this sample in comparison to other studies on earthquake victims, indirectly indicating the high burden TUTH had to bear to treat these patients. To strengthen resilience, tertiary hospitals should have preparedness plans to cope with a large influx of injured patients after a large-scale disaster, in particular for the initial days when there is limited external aid.

McMurray's Test and Joint Line Tenderness for Medial Meniscus Tear: Are They Accurate?

BACKGROUND: Meniscus tears are the most common injury of the knee. The McMurray's test and Joint line tenderness for diagnosing meniscus tear have been widely tested, but results reported by different authors vary. The wide variations reported have an impact on clinical decision concerning whether to go for other diagnostic tests before going for diagnostic arthroscopy, which is considered as the gold standard.The purpose of this study was to determine the diagnostic value of Joint line tenderness and McMurray's test, as clinical signs, to diagnose underlying medial meniscus tears. METHODS: This was a prospective observational study done in Tribhuwan University Teaching Hospital. Patients undergoing knee arthroscopy were included in the study period of one year (from February 2011 to January 2012). Each patient was clinically examined with McMurray's test and joint line tenderness. The findings were then matched by the arthroscopic findings. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and accuracy were then calculated. RESULTS: The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value , negative predictive value and accuracy for medial joint line tenderness in diagnosing medial meniscus tear were 50%, 61.7%, 51.8%, 60% and 56.45% respectively. The result was insignificant (p value=0.352). The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and accuracy for McMurray's test for diagnosing medial meniscus tear were 54%, 79%, 68% , 67.50% and 67.74% respectively. The result was significant (p value=0.007). CONCLUSION: Clinical tests like McMurray and joint line tenderness have low diagnostic value when applied individually. They may be useful when combined together with the background of clinical history. The decision to scope the knee should not be solely taken on the results of clinical tests.

Validity of flounce sign to rule out medial meniscus tear in knee arthroscopy.

BACKGROUND: The meniscal flounce is wavy fold in free inner border of meniscus seen during knee arthroscopy. The presence of this flounce in medial meniscus has been found to be highly predictive of normal medial meniscus. With meniscus related symptoms being commonest indication for undergoing knee arthroscopy, presence or absence of medial meniscus flounce, can be a good guiding sign. In this study, we aimed to validate the significance of the flounce sign in ruling out medial meniscus tear. METHODS: A prospective study was undertaken to validate the significance of flounce sign. There were 62 patients who underwent arthroscopic surgery of the knee over the duration of one and half years. Free inner margin of medial meniscus as seen through anterolateral portal was recorded for the presence or absence of flounce. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV) and accuracy of this sign was then calculated for diagnosing normal medial meniscus. Significance was tested with chi square test with 95 % confidence interval. RESULTS: A total of 62 cases were included. The sensitivity, specificity, PPV, NPV and accuracy of flounce sign was found to be 67.64 %, 92.85 %, 92 %, 70.27 % and 79.03 % respectively, and the result was significant (p value = 0.0001). CONCLUSION: The flounce sign has been shown to have high diagnostic value. Use of it in routine knee arthroscopy can be helpful, particularly during screening procedure and in exploring tears which are usually not seen easily through routine portals.

Managing the injury burden in Nepal.

Nepal loses about 530,000 disability adjusted life years (DALYs) per year to injury, predominantly due to falls. It takes 30,000 Nepali rupees (NR), or approximately US$430 at 70 rupees per $US saved per DALY to achieve primary prevention and 6000 NR per DALY if we invest in hospitals, versus 1000 NR invested in prehospital care, because simpler less expensive actions performed early have a greater impact on outcome than more complex measures later. A system for prehospital services was planned for medical emergencies at a national level meeting at the Medical University of Nepal to promote healthcare to victims in inaccessible regions by empowered or enlightened citizens. Feasible actions for common emergencies were defined and a tutorial required to help the majority of such victims was created and packaged. The knowledge and attitude component of the tutorial will be delivered through a web site to citizens motivated to learn and help with emergencies. The knowledge will be tested through a net-based Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ) test. Practical training in medical triage skills will be provided to those who qualify for the test at the University or its designated affiliates. A mobile phone-based information system will be created and used to make these enlightened citizens available to the victim at the site/time of the emergency.