Systemic lupus erythematosus Association between Osteomyelitis: A two-sample Mendelian randomization study in European population.

Background: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) has been correlated with osteomyelitis (OM), yet the underlying causal relationship remains poorly understood. This study aims to investigate the causal association between SLE and OM using Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis. Methods: Genetic instrumental variables (IVs) correlated with SLE were extracted from a comprehensive genome-wide association study (GWAS) summary database (5201 cases and 9066 controls). OM was considered a SLE phenotype, and summary data from the fast GWA data portal were utilized for the analysis. Eligible IVs were extracted following rigorous quality control measures (P < 5 × 10-8, LD r2>0.001, distance 1 Mb, and F > 10). MR analysis was conducted using the Inverse Variance Weighted (IVW), MR-Egger, and Weighted Median (WM) methods after excluding potential confounders. Cochran's Q was applied for heterogeneity test. Pleiotropy was evaluated through MR-Egger intercept, MR-Pleiotropy Residual Sum and Outlier (MR-PRESSO) method, and Leave-one-SNP-out analysis. Result: A total of 40 eligible IVs were included for MR analysis. IVW results demonstrated a positive causal association between SLE and OM (P = 0.049, OR = 1.167). Heterogeneity analysis reveal no significant heterogeneity in the IVW analysis (P = 0.5503). Pleiotropy tests, including MR-PRESSO global test and MR-Egger intercept, indicated no evidence of pleiotropy in our findings (P > 0.05). Additionally, the Leave-one-SNP-out analysis showed no substantial deviations when removing individual SNPs, thus supporting the robustness of our results. Conclusion: This study establishes a genetic causal relationship between SLE and OM, indicating an increased risk of developing OM in individuals with SLE. Therefore, proactive management of SLE is advised to mitigate the risk of developing OM.

What is the difference in proprioception between single condylar arthroplasty and high tibial osteotomy? a comparative study on both knees of the same patient.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to investigate the efficacy and outcomes of different surgical procedures, namely unicompartmental knee arthroplasty (UKA) and high tibial osteotomy (HTO), for the treatment of bilateral medial compartment knee osteoarthritis in the same patient. The joint awareness and function of these two surgical methods were evaluated. METHODS: A total of 15 patients with bilateral medial compartment knee osteoarthritis who underwent either UKA or HTO between 2012 and 2020 were included in the study. Patient data, including age, gender, body mass index and length of hospital stay, were collected. Pre- and post-operative measurements were conducted, including tibiofemoral angle, tibial plateau posterior inclination angle, proximal tibial medial angle, distance from mechanical axis to knee joint center, hip-knee-ankle angle, pre- and post-operative knee joint scores, knee joint range of motion, and FIS-12 scores at 3, 6, 12, and 24 months postoperatively. The latest follow-up was used for evaluating the outcomes of osteoarthritis treatment. Normality of continuous variables was assessed using the Shapiro-Wilk test. Between-group comparisons were performed using the paired sample t-test or Wilcoxon rank-sum test. Repeated measures analysis of variance was utilized to analyze FJS-12 measurements at different time points, and the correlation between FJS-12 and postoperative clinical results was examined using Pearson's correlation coefficient. Statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. RESULTS: Significant differences were observed in FJS between the UKA and HTO groups at 3 and 6 months postoperatively, but no significant difference was found at 1 and 2 years postoperatively. FJS in the UKA group demonstrated a significant increase from 3 to 6 months postoperatively, but no significant difference was observed from 6 to 24 months postoperatively. In contrast, FJS in the HTO group showed a significant increase from 3 to 24 months postoperatively. CONCLUSIONS: Patients who underwent UKA exhibited superior joint awareness compared to those who underwent HTO during the early postoperative period. Furthermore, the rate of joint awareness in UKA patients was faster than in HTO patients.

Use of network pharmacology and molecular docking to explore the mechanism of action of curcuma in the treatment of osteosarcoma.

Curcuma has been used as an adjuvant treatment for osteosarcoma (OS) due to its anticancer compounds. However, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the mechanism of action of curcuma in the treatment of OS using network pharmacology and molecular docking. In this study, anticancer compounds were obtained from relevant literature, and curcuma-related targets and OS treatment targets were obtained from public databases. Protein‒protein interaction networks were constructed to screen out the hub genes using the STRING database and Cytoscape software. Cluster analysis of the protein modules was then performed using the Cytoscape MCODE plugin. Furthermore, Gene Ontology enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analyses were performed for common targets among curcuma targets and OS-related targets using the DAVID database. Finally, molecular docking was performed, and the results were verified by Auto dock Tool and PyMOL software. Our research identified 11 potential active compounds, 141 potential therapeutic targets and 14 hub genes for curcuma. AKT1, TNF, STAT3, EGFR, and HSP90AA1 were the key targets closely related to the PI3K/Akt signaling pathways, HIF-1 signaling pathways, ErbB signaling pathways, and FOXO signaling pathways, which are involved in angiogenesis, cancer cell proliferation, metastasis, invasion, and chemotherapy resistance in the microenvironment of OS. Molecular docking suggested that the core compound had a strong affinity for key targets, with a binding energy of less than - 5 kJ/mol. The study showed that curcuma-mediated treatment of OS was a complex process involving multiple compounds, targets, and pathways. This study will enhance the understanding of how curcuma affects the proliferation and invasion of OS cells and reveal the potential molecular mechanism underlying the effect of curcuma on OS lung metastasis and chemotherapy resistance.

Finite element analysis of the mechanical strength of a new hip Spacer.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: At present, the influence of the internal metallic endoskeleton of Spacer on the biomechanical strength of Spacer remains unclear. The aim of this study was to analyze the mechanical stability of a novel Spacer applying a annular skeleton that mimics the structure of trabecular bone using finite element methods. METHEDS: The femur models of three healthy individuals and skeletonless Spacer, K-Spacer, and AD-Spacer were assembled to create 15 3D models. Finite element analysis was performed in an Ansys Bench2022R1. Biomechanical parameters such as stress and strain of the Spacer, internal skeleton and femur were evaluated under three loads, which were applied with the maximum force borne by the hip joint (2100 N), standing on one leg (700 N), and standing on two legs (350 N). The mechanical properties of the new hip Spacer were evaluated. RESULT: The stresses on the medial and lateral surfaces of the AD-Spacer and K-Spacer were smaller than the stresses in the state without skeletal support. The maximum stresses on the medial and lateral surfaces of the AD-Spacer were smaller than those of the inserted K-Spacer, and the difference gradually increased with the increase of force intensity. When the skeleton diameter was increased from 3 to 4 mm, the stresses in the medial and lateral sides of the AD-Spacer and K-Spacer necks decreased. The stress of both skeletons was concentrated at the neck, but the stress of the annular skeleton was evenly distributed on the medial and lateral sides of the skeleton. The mean stress in the proximal femur was higher in femurs with K-Spacer than in femurs with AD-Spacer. CONCLUSIONS: AD-Spacer has lower stress and higher load-bearing capacity than K-Spacer, and the advantages of AD-Spacer are more obvious under the maximum load state of hip joint.