Nathan W. Mesko

Thirty-Day Readmission Following Total Hip and Knee Arthroplasty – A Preliminary Single Institution Predictive Model

We sought to identify demographic or care process variables associated with increased 30-day readmission within the total hip and knee arthroplasty patient population. Using this information, we generated a model to predict 30-day readmission risk following total hip and knee arthroplasty procedures. Longer index length of stay, discharge disposition to a nursing facility, blood transfusion, general anesthesia, anemia, anticoagulation status prior to index admission, and Charlson Comorbidity Index greater than 2 were identified as independent risk factors for readmission. Care process factors during the hospital stay appear to have a large predictive value for 30-day readmission. Specific comorbidities and patient demographic factors showed less significance. The predictive nomogram constructed for primary total joint readmission had a bootstrap-corrected concordance statistic of 0.76.

Medical malpractice and sarcoma care—A thirty‐three year review of case resolutions, inciting factors, and at risk physician specialties surrounding a rare diagnosis

We reviewed medico‐legal cases related to extremity sarcoma malpractice in order to recognize those factors most commonly instigating sarcoma litigation.

MFH and high-grade undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma—what's in a name?

In 2002, with the advent of better classification techniques, the World Health Organization declassified malignant fibrous histiocytoma (MFH) as a distinct histological entity in favor of the reclassified entity high‐grade undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma (HGUPS). To date, no study has evaluated comparative outcomes between patients designated historically in the MFH group and those classified in the new HGUPS classification. Our goal was to determine the presence of clinical prognostic implications that have evolved with this new nomenclature.

Sarcopenia Does Not Affect Survival or Outcomes in Soft-Tissue Sarcoma

Background and Objective. Sarcopenia is associated with decreased survival and increased complications in carcinoma patients. We hypothesized that sarcopenic soft-tissue sarcoma (STS) patients would have decreased survival, increased incidence of wound complications, and increased length of postresection hospital stay (LOS). Methods. A retrospective, single-center review of 137 patients treated surgically for STS was conducted. Sarcopenia was assessed by measuring the cross-sectional area of bilateral psoas muscles (total psoas muscle area, TPA) at the level of the third lumbar vertebrae on a pretreatment axial computed tomography scan. TPA was then adjusted for height (cm2/m2). The association between height-adjusted TPA and survival was assessed using Cox proportional hazard model. A logistical model was used to assess the association between height-adjusted TPA and wound complications. A linear model was used to assess the association between height-adjusted TPA and LOS. Results. Height-adjusted TPA was not an independent predictor of overall survival (p = 0.746). Patient age (p = 0.02) and tumor size (p = 0.009) and grade (p = 0.001) were independent predictors of overall survival. Height-adjusted TPA was not a predictor of increased hospital LOS (p = 0.66), greater incidence of postoperative infection (p = 0.56), or other wound complications (p = 0.14). Conclusions. Sarcopenia does not appear to impact overall survival, LOS, or wound complications in patients with STS.

Factors Associated With Acute and Chronic Wound Complications in Patients With Soft Tissue Sarcoma With Long-term Follow-up

Objectives: To identify the rates of acute and chronic wound complications and factors associated in a cohort of patients treated for soft tissue sarcoma (STS) with modern radiotherapy (RT) and surgical techniques. Materials and Methods: An Institutional Review Board–approved database was used to identify all adult nonmetastatic patients treated for STS at a single institution between 2006 and 2015 with a minimum follow-up of 1 year. Factors associated with acute and chronic wound complications were analyzed using binomial logistic regression including interaction terms. Results: In all, 271 patients were identified with a median follow-up of 3.2 years. The rate of acute wound complications was 22.1%. On univariate analysis, trunk versus extremity location (P<0.001), radiation therapy (P=0.04), and preoperative therapy (P=0.03) were associated with acute wound complications and a trend was noted for reconstruction (P=0.07). On multivariate analysis, extremity tumors were associated with a higher rate of acute wound complications compared with trunk tumors without RT (P=0.02). Utilization of RT was associated with increased risk for extremity tumors (P=0.07). The rate of chronic wound complications was 3.3%. Radiation was associated with increased chronic wound complications (P=0.03) and trends were noted for trunk versus extremity location (P=0.08) and a history of acute wound complications (P=0.12). Conclusions: Several factors associated with acute and chronic wound complications were identified in STS patients including timing of RT, tumor site, and reconstruction use. The development of acute wound complications may also be associated with an increased risk of chronic wound complications.

Treatment Challenges of Prosthetic Hip Infection with Associated Iliacus Muscle Abscess: Report of 5 Cases and Literature Review

Prosthetic joint infection is an unfortunate though well-recognized complication of total joint arthroplasty. An iliacus and/or iliopsoas muscle abscess is a rarely documented presentation of hip prosthetic joint infection. It is thought an unrecognized retroperitoneal nidus of infection can be a source of continual seeding of the prosthetic hip joint, prolonging attempts to eradicate infection despite aggressive debridement and explant attempts. The current study presents five cases demonstrating this clinical scenario, and discusses various treatment challenges. In each case we report the patients clinical history, pertinent imaging, management and outcome. Diagnosis of the iliacus muscle abscess was made using computed tomography imaging. In brief, the mean number of total drainage procedures (open and percutaneous) per patient was 4.2, and outcomes consisted of one patient with a hip girdlestone, two patients with delayed revisions, and two patients with retained prosthesis. All patients ended with functional pain and on oral antibiotic suppression with an average follow up of 18 months. This article highlights an iliacus muscle abscess as an unrecognized source of infection to a prosthetic hip. It demonstrates resilience to standard treatment protocols for prosthetic hip infection, and is associated with poor patient outcomes. Aggressive surgical debridement appears to remain critical to treatment success, and early retroperitoneal debridement of the abscess should be considered.

Radiation Therapy in the Management of Soft Tissue Sarcoma: A Clinician's Guide to Timing, Techniques, and Targets.

Radiation therapy represents a vital component in the multidisciplinary management of soft tissue sarcomas. Combined with limb-preserving surgery, radiation therapy represents a standard of care treatment option for patients with high-grade sarcomas. Radiation therapy for soft tissue sarcoma continues to evolve with changes in timing, techniques, and targets. Over the past 2 decades, increasing data have supported the role of preoperative radiotherapy with the potential for lower total doses of radiation and improved long-term function coming at the cost of increased wound complications for certain locations. Retroperitoneal sarcomas represent a location where preoperative treatment is becoming the standard of care based on anatomic constraints and challenges with delivering postoperative radiotherapy. Multiple radiation therapy techniques exist to deliver treatment; currently both 3-dimensional conformal radiotherapy and intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) are appropriate options, although increasing data support the role of IMRT in reducing dose to critical structures (bone, bowel, kidneys, vessels) while maintaining target coverage. Traditional target volumes have included larger fields; however, recent prospective data have demonstrated that image guidance in conjunction with smaller treatment volumes may reduce toxicity while not increasing marginal failures, although follow-up is short. Because of the toxicity associated with treatment, novel radiotherapy strategies are being used such as stereotactic radiotherapy as well as the use of tumor genetics to identify patients most likely to benefit most from radiotherapy.

Adult soft tissue sarcoma and time to treatment initiation: An analysis of the National Cancer Database

The primary goal of this investigation is to determine the current national standards for time to treatment initiation (TTI) in soft tissue sarcoma (STS). Additionally, we aim to identify the variables affecting TTI variability in STS.

Longer duration of symptoms at the time of presentation is not associated with worse survival in primary bone sarcoma

Aims The primary aim of this study was to determine the effect of the duration of symptoms (DOS) prior to diagnosis on the overall survival in patients with a primary bone sarcoma. Patients and Methods In a retrospective analysis of a sarcoma database at a single institution between 1990 and 2014, we identified 1446 patients with non‐metastatic and 346 with metastatic bone sarcoma. Low‐grade types of tumour were excluded. Our data included the demographics of the patients, the characteristics of the tumour, and the survival outcome of patients. Cox proportional hazards analysis and Kaplan‐Meier survival analysis were performed, and the survivorship of the non‐metastatic and metastatic cohorts were compared. Results In the non‐metastatic cohort, a longer DOS was associated with a slightly more favourable survival (hazard ratio (HR) 0.996, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.994 to 0.998, p < 0.001). In all types of tumour, there was no difference in survival between patients with a DOS of greater than four months and those with a DOS of less than four months (p = 0.566). There was no correlation between the year of diagnosis and survival (p = 0.741). A diagnosis of chondrosarcoma (HR 0.636, 95% CI 0.474 to 0.854, p = 0.003) had the strongest positive effect on survival, while location in the axial skeleton (HR 1.76, 95% CI 1.36 to 2.29, p < 0.001) had the strongest negative effect on survival. Larger size of tumour (HR 1.05, 95% CI 1.03 to 1.06, p < 0.001) and increased age of the patient (HR 1.02, 95% CI 1.01 to 1.03, p < 0.001) had a slightly negative effect on survival. Metastatic and non‐metastatic cohorts had similar median DOS (16 weeks, p = 0.277), although the median survival (15.5 months vs 41 months) and rates of survival at one year (69% vs 89%) and five years (20% vs 59%) were significantly shorter in the metastatic cohort. Conclusion A longer DOS prior to diagnosis is not associated with a poorer overall survival in patients with a primary bone sarcoma. Location in the axial skeleton remains the strongest predictor of a worse prognosis. This may be helpful in counselling patients referred for evaluation on a delayed basis. Cite this article: Bone Joint J 2018;100‐B:652–61.

Validation of a Novel Surgical Data Capturing System Following Total Hip Arthroplasty

BACKGROUND The OrthoMiDaS (Orthopedic Minimal Data Set) Episode of Care (OME) database was developed in an effort to advance orthopedic outcome measurements on a national scale. This study was designed to evaluate if the OME data capture system would increase the quality of data collected in the context of primary and revision total hip arthroplasty (THA) compared to conventional operative notes. METHODS This study includes data from the first 100 primary THAs and 100 revision THAs performed by 15 surgeons at a single institution from January through April 2016. Surgeons prospectively entered procedural details into OME following surgery. The OME database and operative notes were compared to evaluate completion rates and agreement. Completion rates were compared using McNemars test (with continuity correction), while agreement was analyzed using Cohens kappa (κ) and concordance correlation coefficient. RESULTS The OME database had significantly higher completion rates for 41% (39/96) of the variables. Proportion of data points that matched between the operative notes and OME data revealed that 54% (52/96) had a proportion agreement >0.90, and 79% (76/96) had a proportion agreement >0.80. In regard to measured agreement, 25% (24/96) of variables had almost perfect agreement, 29% (28/96) had substantial agreement, and 14% (13/96) had moderate agreement. Only 4% (4/96) had fair agreement, 8% (8/96) had slight agreement, and 6% (6/96) had poor agreement. CONCLUSION The OME data capture system is an efficient tool to document procedural details following THA. The system is user-friendly, comprehensive, and accurate. It has the potential to be a valuable tool for future orthopedic research.