Ligament Healing After Anterior Cruciate Ligament Rupture: An Important New Patient Pathway?

Recent studies have shown satisfactory functional results after spontaneous healing of a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). However, current literature on this topic may exclude important parting selection, outcome measures, and long-term results. Rehabilitation protocols applied in those studies, as well as objective assessments appear far from the usual gold standard after ACL reconstruction. Ideally, outcomes measures should be based on the same testing procedures that are recommended to clear an athlete to return to sport following ACL reconstruction. There is still a lot to understand in how an injured ACL may heal, and therefore ACL injury management should be individualized to each patient and carefully discussed

Rehabilitation versus surgical reconstruction for non-acute anterior cruciate ligament injury (ACL SNNAP): a pragmatic randomised controlled trial

BackgroundAnterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture is a common debilitating injury that can cause instability of the knee. We aimed to investigate the best management strategy between reconstructive surgery and non-surgical treatment for patients with a non-acute ACL injury and persistent symptoms of instability.MethodsWe did a pragmatic, multicentre, superiority, randomised controlled trial in 29 secondary care National Health Service orthopaedic units in the UK. Patients with symptomatic knee problems (instability) consistent with an ACL injury were eligible. We excluded patients with meniscal pathology with characteristics that indicate immediate surgery. Patients were randomly assigned (1:1) by computer to either surgery (reconstruction) or rehabilitation (physiotherapy but with subsequent reconstruction permitted if instability persisted after treatment), stratified by site and baseline Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score—4 domain version (KOOS4). This management design represented normal practice. The primary outcome was KOOS4 at 18 months after randomisation. The principal analyses were intention-to-treat based, with KOOS4 results analysed using linear regression. This trial is registered with ISRCTN, ISRCTN10110685, and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02980367.FindingsBetween Feb 1, 2017, and April 12, 2020, we recruited 316 patients. 156 (49%) participants were randomly assigned to the surgical reconstruction group and 160 (51%) to the rehabilitation group. Mean KOOS4 at 18 months was 73·0 (SD 18·3) in the surgical group and 64·6 (21·6) in the rehabilitation group. The adjusted mean difference was 7·9 (95% CI 2·5–13·2; p=0·0053) in favour of surgical management. 65 (41%) of 160 patients allocated to rehabilitation underwent subsequent surgery according to protocol within 18 months. 43 (28%) of 156 patients allocated to surgery did not receive their allocated treatment. We found no differences between groups in the proportion of intervention-related complications.InterpretationSurgical reconstruction as a management strategy for patients with non-acute ACL injury with persistent symptoms of instability was clinically superior and more cost-effective in comparison with rehabilitation management

Trends in total knee arthroplasty in a developing region: a survey of Latin American orthopaedic surgeons

Introduction: A number of different total knee arthroplasty techniques are available. There is also a degree of surgeon preference for these, and the variation across orthopaedic surgeons in Latin America is currently unknown. Methods: A survey on members of Sociedad Latinoamericana de Artroscopia, Rodilla y Deporte was performed, with questions based on categories within worldwide national joint registries. In total, 315 Sociedad Latinoamericana de Artroscopia, Rodilla y Deporte members received the survey via e-mail, and the return answers were compared with the latest worldwide national joint registry annual reports. Results: The survey was completed in full by 262 surgeons (83%). It was answered that 19% of surgeons perform less than 10 total knee arthroplasties per year, 54% perform less than 30, and only 9% perform more than 100. Seventy-three percent of surgeons use a posterior stabilized total knee replacement, 18% use a cruciate retaining total knee replacement, and 9% use a medial pivot design. Forty-nine percent of surgeons resurface the patella, 27% never resurface it, and 24% choose to resurface it based on an individual case scenario. Ninety-eight percent of surgeons use cemented fixation in the femur and tibia, with the remaining 2% choosing hybrid fixation and 1% using fully noncemented fixation. Conclusion: This survey among Latin American surgeons has demonstrated important differences in surgical technique and implants choice compared with worldwide national registries

International Survey of Practice for Prophylactic Systemic Antibiotic Therapy in Hip and Knee Arthroplasty

(1) Background: Prophylactic systemic antibiotics are acknowledged to be an important part of mitigating prosthetic joint infections. Controversy persists regarding optimal antibiotic regimes. We sought to evaluate current international antibiotics guidelines for total joint arthroplasty (TJA) of the hip and knee. (2) Methods: 42 arthroplasty societies across 6 continents were contacted and their published literature reviewed. (3) Results: 17 societies had guidelines; of which 11 recommended an antibiotic agent or antibiotic class (10—cephalosporin; 1—cloxacillin); 15 recommended antibiotic infusion within an hour of incision and 10 advised for post-operative doses (8—up to 24 h; 1—up to 36 h; 1—up to 48 h). (4) Conclusions: Prophylactic antibiotic guidelines for TJA are often absent or heterogenous in their advice

International Survey of Practice for Prophylactic Systemic Antibiotic Therapy in Hip and Knee Arthroplasty.

(1) Background: Prophylactic systemic antibiotics are acknowledged to be an important part of mitigating prosthetic joint infections. Controversy persists regarding optimal antibiotic regimes. We sought to evaluate current international antibiotics guidelines for total joint arthroplasty (TJA) of the hip and knee. (2) Methods: 42 arthroplasty societies across 6 continents were contacted and their published literature reviewed. (3) Results: 17 societies had guidelines; of which 11 recommended an antibiotic agent or antibiotic class (10-cephalosporin; 1-cloxacillin); 15 recommended antibiotic infusion within an hour of incision and 10 advised for post-operative doses (8-up to 24 h; 1-up to 36 h; 1-up to 48 h). (4) Conclusions: Prophylactic antibiotic guidelines for TJA are often absent or heterogenous in their advice

Determining the change in length of the anterolateral ligament during knee motion: A three-dimensional optoelectronic analysis

International audienc

The prevalence of a prominent anterior inferior iliac spine

International audienc