Evaluation of Results of Conservative Therapy in Patients with Transient Osteoporosis of Hip

   The aim of this study to evaluate general characteristics of 18 cases with transient osteoporosis of the hip(TOH) in our hospital within 3-year and to present their follow-up results after conservative treatment. Physical examination and laboratory findings, hip graphs and magnetic resonance imaging(MRI), Harris hip scores(HHSs), and treatment and follow-up results of cases were retrospectively evaluated. The mean duration of complaints of 6 females and 12 males was 6.1±2.7 weeks before the treatment. Only hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) therapy and a pair of Canadian crutches, but no medical therapy, were recommended for three female patients since they were on breastfeeding. As a standard management, other patients were protected from weight-bearing with Canadian crutches and underwent medical therapy with diclofenac sodium, acetylsalicylic acid, risedronate sodium and an additional HBO therapy. HHS increased from 55.6±7.8 to 88.8±5.8 on the 3rd month and to 96.0±1.8 on the 6th month after the treatment. Change in score with time was found significant.

Does the Difference in Leukocyte Concentration of PRP Affect the Short-Term Follow-Up Results in Cases Diagnosed with Early Stage Knee Osteoarthritis?

This prospective study was conducted for the clinical evaluation of pain severity and knee functionality following PRP injections with different leukocyte (WBC) concentrations applied to cases diagnosed with knee osteoarthritis. A total of 109 patients were included in the study. According to the leukocyte content the PRP injections were prepared as low-leukocyte content PRP (P-PRP) and high concentration leukocyte content PRP (L-PRP). Patients were divided into 2 groups. Group 1 (n=44) received low-leukocyte content PRP and Group II (n = 65) received high-leukocyte content PRP. The patients were evaluated clinically with Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and Knee Society Score (KSS). The changes in the PLT levels of the L-PRP group after the procedure compared to the levels prior to the procedure were found to be statistically significantly greater than the changes in the PPRP group. The mean VAS score of all the cases before treatment was 9.05±0.91 and this score decreased to 3.71±1.46 within 12 months. The increases in the mean Knee Society Score (KSS) values were determined as 16.92±1.97 within 6 months and 16.89±2.97 within 12 months in the P-PRP group and 19.71±1.24 within 6 months and 19.86±0.42 within 12 months in the L-PRP group. The most important aspect of this study is that, in contrast to many other studies, the results continued after the 6th month and were reported to be good in the 12th month. It was also recorded that L-PRP was clinically superior to P-PRP in the treatment of early stage knee osteoarthritis

Evaluation of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio as a marker of inflammatory response in septic arthritis

Is neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio high in patients with septic arthritis? Septic arthritis may lead to higher rates of morbidity or even mortality if not diagnosed on time. This study was planned to answer the question that “Could neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio be utilized to help to diagnose septic arthritis?” The cohort of the study consisted of 39 patients diagnosed with septic arthritis. After ruling out the patients who did not meet the research’s inclusion criteria, the data of 26 patients were evaluated. The control group was collected from healthy volunteers who were admitted to the internal medicine outpatient clinic for a routine medical checkup at the same period (n = 26). Complete blood count (CBC) parameters, C-reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratios of the septic arthritis and control groups were compared statistically. In comparison, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratios of the septic arthritis group were significantly higher than the control group. In conclusion, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio can be utilized in the emergency department or in outpatient clinics to support the diagnosis of septic arthritis

Iopromide- and gadopentetic acid-derived preparates used in MR arthrography may be harmful to chondrocytes

Abstract Background Magnetic resonance arthrography, a procedure through which contrast agents containing gadolinium and/or iopromide are administered intra-articularly, has become a useful tool in musculoskeletal diagnosis. Nevertheless, despite being considered safe for systemic use, certain tissue toxicities have been identified for both drugs. In this study, the effects of short-term exposure of human primary chondrocyte cell cultures to gadolinium and/or iopromide contrast agents were examined by assaying for stage-specific embryonic antigen-1 (SSEA-1) protein expression (a chondrogenic differentiation marker), cell viability, toxicity, and proliferation. Methods Human articular chondrocytes were grown in monolayer culture and were exposed to iopromide and/or gadolinium diethylenetriamine-pentaacetate (Gd-DPT) for 2 and 6 h. Cell cultures with no drug exposure were used as the control group. Cell differentiation status was assessed according to SSEA-1 protein expression. Contrast agent effects on cell viability and proliferation were analyzed using MTT analysis. Further, changes in cell morphology in relation to the control group were evaluated using inverted light microscopy, environmental scanning electron microscopy (ESEM), and 3-tesla magnetic resonance imaging. The obtained data were statistically compared. Results When compared with the control group, both SSEA-1 protein expression and cell proliferation were lowest in the Gd-DPT group (P = 0.000). There was a statistically significant correlation between SSEA-1 expression and MTT results (rho = 0.351; P = 0.003). Conclusions Nevertheless, the data obtained from in vitro experiments may not directly correspond to clinical applications. However, the mere fact that a drug used solely for diagnostic purposes may repress chondrocyte cell proliferation should be carefully considered by clinicians