Lawrence A. Rinsky

Chronic Recurrent Multifocal Osteomyelitis: A Distinct Clinical Entity

Summary: We reviewed the cases of five children with the diagnosis of chronic recurrent multifocal osteomyelitis (CRMO) and compared and contrasted them to 11 cases of subacute osteomyelitis. Significant differences were found between these two groups in the number of cases with positive biopsy cultures, number of clinical episodes, and number of bones involved. In CRMO, cultures are negative, and recurrent clinical episodes involve different bones at different times. The data indicate that CRMO is a distinct clinical entity, different from subacute osteomyelitis; it is a benign, self-limiting inflammatory disease of bone, and no chronic problems have occurred as a result of CRMO. Restraint in antibiotic treatment and in performing repeated biopsies is indicated in CRMO.

Arthropathy of the ankle in hemophilia.

Seventy-five patients who had hemophilia were followed clinically and roentgenographically to assess the prevalence of hemarthrosis and the prevalence and severity of arthropathy of the ankle. The mean age of the patients at the time of follow-up was twenty-two years and seven months. The patients were divided into four age-groups: less than ten years (eleven patients), ten to nineteen years (twenty-one patients), twenty to thirty years (twenty-four patients), and more than thirty years (nineteen patients). Intra-articular bleeding occurred more frequently in the joints of the lower extremities than in the joints of the upper extremities. During the second decade of life, hemarthroses occurred more often in the ankle than in the knee. A history of recurrent bleeding into the ankle joint, chronic synovitis, and overgrowth of the medial portion of the distal tibial epiphysis was associated with an early onset of arthropathy. In older patients, compression arthrodesis of the ankle joint was helpful in eliminating pain, recurrent bleeding, and equinus deformity.

Complications of intramedullary rods in osteogenesis imperfecta: Bailey-Dubow rods versus nonelongating rods.

Summary: Twenty-nine patients with osteogenesis imperfecta underwent 108 intramedullary roddings with 42 Bailey-Dubow rods and 66 nonelongating rods. The average age at insertion of the first rod was 5 years; average follow-up was 3.1 years (range 1–9 years). The overall complication rate was 60%—69% for Bailey-Dubow rods and 55% for nonelongating rods. Forty-seven percent of bones receiving rods required reoperation. Nonelongating rods had a 29% reoperation rate and a 24% replacement rate; Bailey-Dubow rods had a 19% reoperation rate and a 12% replacement rate.

Simultaneous correction of pelvic obliquity, frontal plane, and sagittal plane deformities in neuromuscular scoliosis using a unit rod with segmental sublaminar wires: a preliminary report.

Ten patients with neuromuscular scoliosis and pelvic obliquity had segmental spinal instrumentation using a unit Luque rod with sublaminar wires and fixation into the pelvis. Nine of the 10 patients also had anterior spinal fusion without instrumentation before the posterior procedure. Average preoperative pelvic obliquity was 42° which was corrected to 6° (82% correction). Average preoperative scoliosis was 92°, which was corrected to 16° (81% correction). Complications included a wound hematoma in one patient and a superficial wound dehiscence in another. There have been no pseudarthroses or hardware failures to date. Excellent correction of the pelvic obliquity and the spinal curve in neuromuscular scoliosis can be obtained with use of a unit rod and without use of anterior instrumentation.

Established hip dislocations in children with cerebral palsy.

Hip dislocation in children with cerebral palsy is caused by a combination of factors, including spastic muscle imbalance, persistent fetal femoral geometry, acetabular dysplasia, and flexion-adduction contracture. The incidence of dislocation correlates with the severity of the spasticity, and the prevalence is close to 50% in neurologically immature, spastic quadriplegic children. Successful hip reductions improve muscular balance, provide satisfactory reduction of the femoral head, and establish good pelvic coverage. In 31 occurrences of established hip dislocation in 24 patients, the most successful operations used a combined procedure consisting of soft-tissue release, open reduction, femoral varus derotation and shortening osteotomy, and pelvic osteotomy.

The Cisterna Chyli in Orthopaedic Surgery

The cisterna chyli is normally hidden in prevertebral tissue and rarely encountered by orthopaedic surgeons. However, hyperextension injury and anterior surgical approach to the spine can result in injury and the complication of chylothorax. Prevention of postoperative chylothorax is mainly through awareness of normal anatomic distribution. If a chylothorax occurs, conservative treatment should be instituted (ie, thoracentesis and/or intercostal tube drainage). If drainage persists, exploration may be required to ligate ducts. Intraoperative discovery of an injury can be treated with ligation or repair. Ten orthopaedic spine surgeons were surveyed (estimated 1000 anterior spinal approaches) disclosing observation of the structure 12 times and chylothorax on only three occasions. When using the anterior approach in both spinal trauma and deformity, one must be aware of the structure and the potential complication of injury.

Electromyographic Differentiation of Diplegic Cerebral Palsy from Idiopathic Toe Walking: Involuntary Coactivation of the Quadriceps and Gastrocnemius

Clinical differentiation of patients with mild diplegic cerebral palsy (CP) and idiopathic toe walking (ITW) can be difficult. However, an involuntary extensor pattern may be a distinguishing sign. The purpose of this study was to determine if selected gait parameters or patterns of electromyogram (EMG) timing of quadriceps, gastrocnemius, and tibialis anterior during knee extension while sitting can distinguish between these patients. The hypothesis was that EMG testing for selective control of the quadriceps and gastrocnemius could differentiate patients with diplegic CP from normal controls and from patients with ITW. We evaluated 10 control, eight CP, and eight ITW subjects. Measurements included walking speed, energy expenditure index (EEI), ankle position during stance, and EMG of the quadriceps, gastrocnemius, and tibialis anterior during gait and during knee extension while sitting. Dynamic EMG timing during gait showed significant differences in the mean onset of the gastrocnemius between subjects with CP and ITW, but there was considerable overlap. More consistent differences were found during active and active-resisted knee extension while sitting. Mean values for gastrocnemius EMG timing recorded as a percentage of duration of quadriceps EMG while sitting were 0 and 0.4% for controls, 0 and 3.9% for ITW subjects, and 84.3% and 93.4% for CP subjects. Patterns of EMG timing of the quadriceps and gastrocnemius during knee extension while sitting can help to differentiate patients with mild diplegic CP from those with ITW.

Segmentai Instrumentation Without Fusion in Children With Progressive Scoliosis

Nine young children had segmentai spinal stabilization without fusion for progressive scoliosis. External bracing was not used. There were no immediate complications, but at a mean follow-up of 28 months, the mean loss of correction was 32% and only four patients maintained the initial correction. The mean interval spinal growth was only 0.8 cm. Rods failed in three patients, requiring revision and fusion. Thus, the early results of this technique are discouraging.

A cervical spinal cord injury following chiropractic manipulation.

Analysis of X-rays of 317 traumatic paraplegics and tetraplegics of different racial groups shows that there is no higher incidence of ectopic bone formation in dark-skinned patients although there is an increased predisposition for keloid formation in dark-skinned races. There is a higher incidence of ectopic bone formation in complete paraplegics. Patients with stab wounds show lower incidence of this complication.

Orthopaedic aspects of central core disease.

We studied the cases of fifteen patients who had central core disease, a non-progressive congenital myopathy that is usually inherited as an autosomal dominant trait. As infants, the patients had poor muscle tone and developmental delay, and as adolescents and adults, they had varying degrees of proximal muscle weakness and tended to use the Gower maneuver. The most common musculoskeletal problems were dislocation or subluxation of the hip, pes planus, and hypermobility of the joints. The most serious orthopaedic problems were in the hips: ten patients had a total of nine dislocations and six subluxations, nine being present at birth and six developing later. Only nine hips were stable after the initial treatment, and there was a propensity for hip-joint contractures. Scoliosis and patellar instability were also seen. Although patients who have central core disease have been reported to be at increased risk for malignant hyperthermia, this did not occur in our patients.