Prophylactic muscle flaps in high-risk-for-poor-healing patients with prosthetic bypasses increases deep wound complications.

BACKGROUND: Incisional complications of groin after inflow or infrainguinal bypasses with prosthetic conduits can result in major morbidities that require reoperation, infected graft removal, and limb loss. Muscle flaps are typically performed to treat groin wound complications, but they are also done prophylactically at the time of index procedures in certain high-risk-for-poor-healing patients to mitigate anticipated groin wound complications. We used a nationwide multi-institutional database to investigate outcomes of prophylactic muscle flaps in high-risk patients who underwent prosthetic bypasses involving femoral anastomosis. METHODS: We utilized ACS-NSQIP database 2005-2021 to identify all elective inflow and infrainguinal bypasses that involve femoral anastomoses. Only high-risk patients for poor incisional healing who underwent prosthetic conduit bypasses were selected. A 1:3 propensity-matching was performed to obtain two comparable studied groups between those with (FLAP) and without prophylactic muscle flaps (NOFLAP) based on demographics and comorbidities. 30-day postoperative outcomes were compared. RESULTS: Among 35,011 NOFLAP, 990 of them were propensity-matched to 330 FLAP. There was no significant difference in 30-day mortality, MACE, pulmonary, or renal complications. FLAP was associated with higher bleeding requiring transfusion, longer operative time, and longer hospital stay. FLAP also had higher overall wound complications (15.2% vs. 10.6%; p = 0.03), especially deep incisional infection (4.9% vs. 2.4%; p = 0.04). CONCLUSION: Prophylactic muscle flap for prosthetic bypasses involving femoral anastomosis in high-risk-for-poor-healing patients does not appear to mitigate 30-day wound complications. Caution should be exercised with this practice and more long-term data should be obtained to determine whether prophylactic flaps decrease the incidence of graft infection.

The impact of heparin and direct thrombin inhibitors on cell-penetrating polymer siRNA transfection.

Gene therapy using siRNA has become a promising strategy to achieve targeted gene knockdown for treatment of cardiovascular pathologies. However, efficient siRNA transfection often relies on cationic delivery vectors such as synthetic cell-penetrating polymers which are susceptible to interference by negatively charged molecules. Anticoagulants such as heparin, which is negatively charged and widely used in cardiovascular applications, may pose a significant barrier to effective siRNA delivery. We therefore conducted in vitro studies utilizing human smooth muscle and endothelial cells transfected with glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) and ß2-microglobulin (B2M) siRNA in the presence of heparin, argatroban, and bivalirudin in order to determine which anticoagulant therapy is most compatible for siRNA delivery. We observed that while heparin, at clinical doses, decreases the efficiency of siRNA targeted mRNA knockdown, mRNA knockdown is not inhibited in the presence of either argatroban or bivalirudin. Our data suggests that heparin should be avoided during siRNA therapy with cationic transfection agents, and argatroban and bivalirudin should be used in its stead.

Diabetes status and postoperative complications for patients receiving open rotator cuff repair.

Background: Diabetic patients are known to have poor wound healing and worse outcomes following surgeries. The purpose of this study is to evaluate diabetes status and complications for patients receiving open rotator cuff repair. Methods: Patients undergoing open rotator cuff repair from 2006 to 2018 were identified in a national database. Patients were stratified into 3 cohorts: no diabetes mellitus, non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), and insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM). Differences in demographics, comorbidities, and complications were assessed with the use of bivariate and multivariate analyses. Results: Of 7678 total patients undergoing open rotator cuff repair, 6256 patients (81.5%) had no diabetes, 975 (12.7%) had NIDDM, and 447 (5.8%) had IDDM. Bivariate analyses revealed that IDDM patients had increased risk of mortality, extended length of stay, and readmission compared to non-diabetic patients (p < 0.05 for all). IDDM patients had higher risks of major complications and readmission relative to NIDDM patients (p < 0.05 for both). On multivariate analysis, there were no differences in any postoperative complications between the non-diabetic, NIDDM, and IDDM groups. Discussion: Diabetes does not affect postoperative complications following open rotator cuff repairs. Physicians should be aware of this finding and counsel their patients appropriately.Level of Evidence: III.

Asthma and Its Impact on Pediatric Patients Undergoing Surgical Management of Tibial Shaft Fractures.

Introduction Tibial shaft fractures are a common presenting injury among the pediatric population. Asthma is also a common diagnosis that is frequently encountered in this population and has a significant impact on healthcare utilization, quality of life, and mortality. Given the high prevalence of these conditions and risks of peri-anesthetic respiratory complications, the purpose of this study was to evaluate an association between asthma and the incidence of 30-day postoperative complications following the surgical management of tibial shaft fractures in the pediatric population. Methods The National Surgical Quality Improvement Program-Pediatric database was used to identify pediatric patients who underwent surgical treatment for tibial shaft fractures from 2013-2019. Patients were categorized into two groups: patients with a history of asthma and patients without a history of asthma. Differences in patient demographics, comorbidities, and postoperative complications were assessed using bivariate and multivariate analyses. Results Of the 2,649 patients who underwent surgical treatment for tibial shaft fractures, 115 (4.3%) had asthma. Compared to those without asthma, patients with a history of asthma were more likely to have other medical comorbidities. After controlling for the differences in baseline characteristics between the two groups, patients with asthma had an increased risk of prolonged hospital stay (OR 5.78; 95% CI 1.67 to 20.00; p=0.006). Conclusion Pediatric patients being surgically treated for tibial shaft fractures with asthma had an increased risk of prolonged hospital stay. It is important that proper preoperative workup, perioperative care, and understanding of the implications of asthma on postoperative recovery are appreciated to reduce prolonged hospitalization lengths and minimize hospital costs associated with tibial shaft fracture surgery.

Anesthesia Type and Postoperative Outcomes for Patients Receiving Arthroscopic Rotator Cuff Repairs.

Background: As the indications for and the volume of arthroscopic rotator cuff repair increase, it is important to optimize perioperative care to minimize postoperative complications and health care costs. Purpose: We sought to investigate if the anesthesia type used affects the rate of postoperative complications in patients undergoing arthroscopic rotator cuff repairs. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study using the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database to identify patients undergoing arthroscopic rotator cuff repair from 2014 to 2018. Patients were divided into 3 cohorts: general anesthesia, regional anesthesia, and combined general plus regional anesthesia. Bivariate and multivariate analyses with stepwise technique were performed on data related to patient demographics, smoking history, functional status, medical comorbidities (ie, bleeding disorders, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and dialysis), and postoperative outcomes within 30 days of discharge. To assess the independent risk factors for postoperative complications, demographics and medical comorbidities were included in the multivariate analyses for any variables that derived P values <.20. Results: Of 24,677 total patients undergoing arthroscopic rotator cuff repair, 15,661 (63.5%) had general anesthesia, 889 (3.6%) had regional anesthesia, and 8127 (32.9%) received combined general plus regional anesthesia. Patients who received general anesthesia rather than regional anesthesia were more frequently white (76.8% vs 74.8%, respectively) and had a medical history of hypertension (47.9% vs 41.8%, respectively), smoking (14.9% vs 12.4%, respectively), and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (3.4% vs 1.6%, respectively). Compared with patients receiving general anesthesia, those receiving combined general plus regional were more likely to have higher American Society of Anesthesiologists class and a smoking history. Following adjustment, patients who underwent regional anesthesia had a decreased risk for postoperative admission compared with patients who had general anesthesia. Patients who underwent combined regional plus general anesthesia had decreased rates of wound complications and readmission compared with those who received general anesthesia. Conclusion: Among patients undergoing arthroscopic rotator cuff repair, this retrospective study found a significantly higher rate of respiratory and cardiac comorbidities with general anesthesia compared with regional anesthesia. When controlling for these confounders, the use of regional anesthesia was still associated with lower rates of postoperative readmission compared with the general and combined subgroups. Patients receiving combined general plus regional anesthesia had decreased rates of wound complications and readmittance compared with general anesthesia. These findings may influence anesthetic choice in minimizing postoperative complications for rotator cuff repairs.

Recurrent arterial and new-onset neurogenic thoracic outlet syndrome as a complication after previously inadequately excised first and cervical ribs.

Thoracic outlet syndrome commonly presents with the neurogenic subtype and can be caused in rare circumstances by an anatomic abnormality such as a cervical rib, for which surgical excision is the mainstay of management. An inadequately excised first or cervical rib can result in recurrent symptoms. We have reported the case of a 30-year-old woman who had presented with symptoms of right recurrent arterial and neurogenic thoracic outlet syndrome. She underwent repeat right-sided first rib and cervical rib resection with brachial plexus neural lysis and right carotid-axillary bypass via a combined supraclavicular and infraclavicular approach. At 12 months of follow-up, improvement in her symptoms was noted.

Racial Disparities in Postoperative Outcomes Following Operative Management of Pediatric Developmental Dysplasia of the Hip.

BACKGROUND: Developmental dysplasia of the hip in pediatric patients can be managed conservatively or operatively. Understanding patient risk factors is important to optimize outcomes following surgical treatment of developmental dysplasia of the hip. Racial disparities in procedural outcomes have been studied, however, there is scarce literature on an association between race and complications following pediatric orthopaedic surgery. Our study aimed to determine the association between pediatric patients' race and outcomes following operative management of hip dysplasia by investigating 30-day postoperative complications and length of hospital stay. METHODS: The National Surgical Quality Improvement Program-Pediatric database was utilized from the years 2012 to 2019 to identify all pediatric patients undergoing surgical treatment for hip dysplasia. Patients were stratified into 2 groups: patients who were White and patients from underrepresented minority (URM) groups. URM groups included those who were Black or African American, Hispanic, Native American or Alaskan, and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander. Differences in patient demographics, comorbidities, and postoperative outcomes were compared between the 2 cohorts using bivariate and multivariate analyses. RESULTS: Of the 9159 pediatric patients who underwent surgical treatment for hip dysplasia between 2012 and 2019, 6057 patients (66.1%) were White and 3102 (33.9%) were from URM groups. In the bivariate analysis, compared with White patients, patients from URM groups were more likely to experience deep wound dehiscence, pneumonia, unplanned reintubation, cardiac arrest, and extended length of hospital stay. Following multivariate analysis, patients from URM groups had an increased risk of unplanned reintubation (odds ratio: 3.583; P=0.018). CONCLUSIONS: Understanding which patient factors impact surgical outcomes allows health care teams to be more aware of at-risk patient groups. Our study found that pediatric patients from URM groups who underwent surgery for correction of hip dysplasia had greater odds of unplanned reintubation when compared with patients who were White. Further research should investigate the relationship between multiple variables including race, low socioeconomic status, and language barriers on surgical outcomes following pediatric orthopaedic procedures. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III-retrospective cohort analysis.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is an independent risk factor for postoperative complications following operative treatment of distal radius fracture.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and postoperative complications for patients receiving distal radius fracture (DRF) open reduction internal fixation (ORIF). METHODS: From 2007 to 2018, patients undergoing operative treatment for distal radius fracture were identified in the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database. Patients were separated into 2 cohorts: non-COPD and COPD patients. In this analysis, thirty-day postoperative complications evaluated included wound, cardiac, pulmonary, renal, thromboembolic, sepsis, mortality, urinary tract infections, postoperative transfusion, extended length of stay, reoperation, and readmission. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed. RESULTS: Of 12,424 total patients who underwent operative treatment for distal radius fracture, 11,957 patients (96.2%) did not have a diagnosis of COPD and 467 (3.8%) had COPD. Following adjustment, compared to patients who did not have COPD, those with COPD had an increased risk of any postoperative complications (OR 2.160; p = 0.010), postoperative transfusion requirement (OR 17.437; p = 0.001), extended length of hospital stay greater than 3 days (OR 1.564; p = 0.038), and readmission (OR 2.515; p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: COPD is an independent risk factor for any postoperative complication including transfusions, extended length of stay, and readmission for patients receiving DRF ORIF. Pulmonary evaluation would be a critical step in preoperative management and counseling of these patients before DRF ORIF.

Characterizing the Relationship Between Neutralization Sensitivity and env Gene Diversity During ART Suppression.

Although antiretroviral therapy (ART) successfully suppresses HIV-1 replication, ART-treated individuals must maintain therapy to avoid rebound from an integrated viral reservoir. Strategies to limit or clear this reservoir are urgently needed. Individuals infected for longer periods prior to ART appear to harbor more genetically diverse virus, but the roles of duration of infection and viral diversity in the humoral immune response remain to be studied. We aim to clarify a role, if any, for autologous and heterologous antibodies in multi-pronged approaches to clearing infection. To that end, we have characterized the breadths and potencies of antibody responses in individuals with varying durations of infection and HIV-1 envelope (env) gene diversity as well as the sensitivity of their inducible virus reservoir to broadly neutralizing antibodies (bNAbs). Plasma was collected from 8 well-characterized HIV-1+ males on ART with varied durations of active infection. HIV envs from reservoir-derived outgrowth viruses were amplified and single genome sequenced in order to measure genetic diversity in each participant. IgG from plasma was analyzed for binding titers against gp41 and gp120 proteins, and for neutralizing titers against a global HIV-1 reference panel as well as autologous outgrowth viruses. The sensitivity to bNAbs of these same autologous viruses was measured. Overall, we observed that greater env diversity was associated with higher neutralizing titers against the global panel and also increased resistance to certain bNAbs. Despite the presence of robust anti-HIV-1 antibody titers, we did not observe potent neutralization against autologous viruses. In fact, 3 of 8 participants harbored viruses that were completely resistant to the highest tested concentration of autologous IgG. That this lack of neutralization was observed regardless of ART duration or viral diversity suggests that the inducible reservoir harbors 'escaped' viruses (that co-evolved with autologous antibody responses), rather than proviruses archived from earlier in infection. Finally, we observed that viruses resistant to autologous neutralization remained sensitive to bNAbs, especially CD4bs and MPER bNAbs. Overall, our data suggest that the inducible reservoir is relatively resistant to autologous antibodies and that individuals with limited virus variation in the env gene, such as those who start ART early in infection, are more likely to be sensitive to bNAb treatment.

Operation time effect on rates of perioperative complications after operative treatment of distal radius fractures.

PURPOSE: The purpose is to identify the impact of operation time length on complications for patients undergoing operative treatment of distal radius fracture. METHODS: Patients who underwent operative treatments for distal radius fractures were identified in a national database. Data collected include patient demographic information, comorbidities, and complications. RESULTS: Operation time was found to be an independent predictor for return to the operating room. Operation time was not found to be a predictor of other postoperative complications. CONCLUSION: Surgeons should work to shorten procedure duration whenever possible to minimize the risks that longer operative times can have on patient outcomes.

Diabetes mellitus effect on rates of perioperative complications after operative treatment of distal radius fractures.

PURPOSE: This study focuses on distal radius fractures that require surgical treatment. Patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) are at increased risk of bone fracture despite normal areal bone mineral density. The aim of this study is to identify the impact of DM on perioperative complications for patients undergoing operative treatment of distal radius fracture. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was conducted using data collected through the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database. All patients who underwent operative treatments for distal radius fractures from 2007 through 2018 were identified. Data collected include demographic information, comorbidities, and complications occurring within 30 days of initial surgical intervention. The incidence of adverse events following surgery was evaluated with univariate and multivariate analyses where appropriate. RESULTS: Patients with DM were found to have a low rate of complications postsurgical repair of distal radius fractures. Preoperative comorbidity analysis showed that the diabetic group had significantly higher rates of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, hypertension, congestive heart failure, renal failure, steroid use, bleeding disorders, dyspnea, and poorer functional status. Diabetes was found to be an independent predictor for unplanned intubation, sepsis, and septic shock. Diabetes was not found to be an independent predictor of other postoperative complications. CONCLUSION: Complications after surgical repair of distal radius fracture are low except when it comes to reintubation, sepsis, and septic shock. While the risks of independent complications remain relatively low, diabetes remains an important factor to consider when selecting surgical candidates and to ensure appropriate pre-operative risk assessment.