The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Orthopaedic Trauma Surgery in a District General Hospital in the United Kingdom.

Introduction The 2020 COVID-19 pandemic led to a national lockdown and a major reorganization of healthcare services in the United Kingdom. The center where the study was done was one of the worst affected hospitals in the United Kingdom at the outset of the pandemic. Our study evaluates the impact of the pandemic and national lockdown on the outcomes for patients undergoing orthopedic trauma surgery. Methods We prospectively identified all patients undergoing orthopedic trauma surgery in the unit from 1st March 2020 to 31st May 2020. We recorded demographics, diagnoses, COVID-19 infection status, length of stay, and mortality. This was compared with a comparative group in the same period in 2018 and 2019. Results There was a significant reduction in the number of orthopedic trauma surgery cases (318) performed in 2020 compared to 2019 (423 cases, p<0.001) and 2018 (444 cases, p<0.001). The mean time from injury to presentation was 3.6 days, with 40 patients (12.6%) presenting more than one week after injury. The 30-day mortality was 8.2%, and the six-month mortality was 15.1%, with both significantly higher than in 2018 (p<0.001) and 2019 (p<0.001). COVID-19 testing was positive in 39% of patients, with 30-day mortality in this group at 37%, rising to a 53% six-month mortality. No patients under the age of 50 years old died. The majority of admissions (51%) were due to falls at home. The second most common mechanism was Do-It-Yourself (DIY) injuries. Road traffic accidents accounted for 2%. Conclusion There were significantly fewer cases of orthopedic trauma surgery during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to the same period in previous years. The type of trauma also showed low numbers of high-energy and sporting injuries as a result of the national lockdown. Patients undergoing orthopedic trauma surgery who tested positive for COVID-19 had significantly higher 30-day mortality than those without COVID-19, and this increased mortality persisted to six months post-operatively. However, patients under 50 years old appear to be at low risk of death.

Extended proximal femoral osteotomy: technical tip.

Extended proximal femoral osteotomy is a well-established technique in complex primary and revision hip surgery. It is commonly indicated for extraction of well-fixed femoral components either cemented or uncemented. Some of the problems encountered during this procedure are gaining an accurate reduction in the osteotomized fragment and a stable reduction and fixation. Here, we present a modification to the standard surgical technique which aids in anatomical reduction and enhances the stability of the reduced fragment. We make the distal transverse cut oblique rather than vertical. This modification allows for a more stable and anatomical reduction in the osteotomy. Our experience with this modified technique demonstrated 100 % union of the osteotomy.

Modified Technique of Tibial Tuberosity Transfer.

Tibial tuberosity transfer is a well-established procedure in the treatment of patellar instability and in selected cases of anterior knee pain. Several techniques have been advocated in the literature. Some of the common complications associated with this procedure have been pain and discomfort due to prominent screw heads, necessitating their removal; nonunion and delayed union of the osteotomy; and failure of fixation. Tibial fractures have also been reported in some case reports. We present our technique of tibial tuberosity transfer using two 4-mm cannulated screws for stabilization of the tuberosity fragment. We have used this technique either for isolated tibial tuberosity transfer or as part of a combined procedure along with medial patellofemoral ligament reconstruction in treating patellar instability. Using this technique, we have encountered no patients with wound problems, nonunion, delayed union, or loss of fixation and only 1 patient with a metal work problem needing a second procedure for its removal. We attribute our good outcomes to the preservation of the soft-tissue attachments to the tuberosity fragment; minimal soft-tissue dissection, which allows rapid bony consolidation of the osteotomy, which in turn allows accelerated rehabilitation; and the use of 4-mm cannulated screws for fixation of the osteotomy, minimizing the potential for metal work problems.

Complications resulting from tracker pin-sites in computer navigated knee replacement surgery.

Intra-osseous pin sites used in Computer Navigated knee Arthroplasty are known to cause complications including infection, neurovascular injury, thermal necrosis and peri-prosthetic fracture. Many studies have looked at ways of reducing these risks to improve results in computer-navigated surgery. We present our complication rates and techniques used to reduce complications in a retrospective study of 321 patients performed by a single surgeon in between 2009 and 2013. One patient was identified with a superficial pin site infection. No major complications were recorded during a mean follow up period of 31 months. Attention to detail in every aspect of pin insertion reduces the rates of both minor and major complications. In particular rates of peri-prosthetic fracture were shown to be lower when using a uni-cortical drilling technique compared with the use of bicortical drilling in other studies.