Medical News Today

Complication rates for nonagenarian patients similar to those of younger patients undergoing total hip replacement surgery

As more Americans are living well into their 90s, the number of nonagenarian total hip replacement (THR) candidates continues to increase.

The authors of the study concluded that nonagenarian patients can safely undergo a THR, despite advanced age and a higher prevalence of comorbidities. Overall, the nonagenarian patients experienced a complication rate comparable to those of younger THR patients, and the higher mortality rate is well within expectations for individuals age 90 and older.

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Select rheumatoid arthritis patients can safely undergo same-day double knee replacement

Same-day bilateral knee replacement surgery is safe for select patients with rheumatoid arthritis, researchers from Hospital for Special Surgery in New York have found.

Generally, patients with an inflammatory systemic disease such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are sicker than patients with the degenerative condition osteoarthritis (OA), says senior study author Mark Figgie, M.D., chief of the Surgical Arthritis Service at Hospital for Special Surgery, and the hospital's first Allan E. Inglis, MD, Chair in Surgical Arthritis.

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The leading cause of failed prosthetic knee joints is infection

The number of total knee replacement (TKR) procedures continues to climb, as does the number of revision total knee replacement (RTKR) surgeries.

Elderly and female patients with a moderate number of comorbidities represented the largest proportion of the revision population. The authors suggest that optimizing patient health before surgery and paying meticulous attention to efforts by the surgical team to minimize the risk of periprosthetic joint infection may decrease the number of knee replacement revisions.

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Surgeons describe new knee ligament

At the Belgian University Hospitals Leuven, two knee surgeons have for the first time given a full anatomical description of a new ligament that they term the anterolateral ligament (ALL).

The new ligament is thought to play an important role in anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears.

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Treatment with platelet-rich plasma shows potential for knee osteoarthritis

Several treatments for osteoarthritis exist, including exercise, weight control, bracing, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories, Tylenol, cortisone shots and viscosupplementation, a procedure that involves injecting a gel-like substance into the knee to supplement the natural lubricant in the joint. A new treatment that is being studied by a small number of doctors is PRP injections. PRP, which is produced from a patient's own blood, delivers a high concentration of growth factors to arthritic cartilage that can potentially enhance healing.

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Sports training and ACL reconstruction should focus on unique characteristics of the female knee

Female athletes are three times more likely to suffer from anterior cruciate ligament (ACL)ruptures, one of the most common knee injuries, compared to male athletes. The ACL is one of the four main ligaments within the knee that connect the femur (upper leg bone) to the tibia (lower leg bone). Recent research highlights the unique anatomical differences in the female knee that may contribute to higher injury rates, and should be taken into consideration during reconstructive surgery and sports training, according to a review article in the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (JAAOS).

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Vitamin D no help for arthritis in the knee

Adults with osteoarthritis in the knees who take vitamin D supplements did not show an improvement in pain relief or cartilage loss, according to a new study published in JAMA.

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Global efforts necessary to prevent fragility fractures due to osteoporosis

The International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) has released a new report, revealing approximately 80 percent of patients treated in clinics or hospitals following a fracture are not screened for osteoporosis or risk of future falls. Left untreated, these patients are at high risk of suffering secondary fractures and facing a future of pain, disfigurement, long-term disability and even early death.

The report 'Capture the Fracture - A global campaign to break the fragility fracture cycle' calls for concerted worldwide efforts to stop secondary fractures due to osteoporosis by implementing proven models of care.

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Tough gel stretches to 21 times its length, recoils, and heals itself - may pave the way to replacing damaged cartilage in human joints

A team of experts in mechanics, materials science, and tissue engineering at Harvard have created an extremely stretchy and tough gel that may pave the way to replacing damaged cartilage in human joints.
"Conventional hydrogels are very weak and brittle - imagine a spoon breaking through jelly," explains lead author Jeong-Yun Sun, a postdoctoral fellow at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS). "But because they are water-based and biocompatible, people would like to use them for some very challenging applications like artificial cartilage or spinal disks. For a gel to work in those settings, it has to be able to stretch and expand under compression and tension without breaking."

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Minor exercise can protect premenopausal women's bones

According to new research, premenopausal women who engage in physical activity can significantly reduce a known inhibitor of bone formation called sclerostin.

The study, which will be published in the October issue of Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (JCEM), also found that physical activity improved IGF-1 levels, which have a positive impact on bone formation.

"Physical activity training is conceptually simple, inexpensive, and can serve practical purposes including reducing the risk of low bone mass, osteoporosis, and consequently fractures. Our study found that even minor changes in physical activity were associated with clear effects on serum levels of sclerostin, IGF-1 and bone turnover markers."

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