Omur Caglar

Evaluation of acetabular development after Dega acetabuloplasty in developmental dysplasia of the hip.

The Dega acetabuloplasty is considered to be safe and effective in the treatment of hip pathologies, but the number of clinical follow-up series in the literature is not sufficient. The aim of our study was to identify the alterations in acetabular development in 35 patients (43 hips) with developmental dysplasia of the hip who were treated with Dega acetabuloplasty. This study is a retrospective review of 7 years of one surgeon’s experience with Dega acetabuloplasty performed between May 2002 and January 2010. A total of 35 patients (43 hips) were evaluated, with an average of 58 months (range 25–108 months) of follow-up. Dega acetabuloplasties that were performed for neuromuscular or other conditions and patients who had a follow-up period of less than 2 years were excluded. Open reduction was performed and femoral shortening or varus osteotomy was added whenever the surgeon considered it necessary. The preoperative mean acetabular index (AI) was 35° (range 27–53°), and the mean age of operation was 35 months (range 18–65 months). The mean AI in the early postoperative period was 20° (range 10–34°). At the last follow-up, all patients were pain-free and had unlimited physical activity with no limp, with an improvement in AI to 13° (range 5–23°). An improvement of 7° was observed in AI within the follow-up period. The maximum improvement was 17° and occurred within an 83-month period. In 42 of 43 (98%) of the hips, the AI improved; in one of 43 (2%) of the hips, it remained unchanged and in none of hips did the AI worsen over time. This study is one of the largest series in the English-language orthopedic literature to report that Dega osteotomy is effective in improving the AI and femoral coverage, and that the index further improves over the course of the follow-up period.

Pre‐operative flexion contracture determines the functional outcome of haemophilic arthropathy treated with total knee arthroplasty

Summary.  End‐stage haemophiliac arthropathy can be successfully treated with total knee arthroplasty. However, the functional results may not be as good as anticipated and certain pre‐op knee characteristics may alter the functional results. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the functional outcome of TKA in haemophilic patients with specific attention to final range of motion and residual flexion contracture of the joint. Twenty‐one consecutive patients were retrospectively reviewed. The average age was 34 years with an average follow‐up of 5.7 years. Functional status was evaluated with Hospital for Special Surgery Knee Score. Receiving Operating Characteristics analysis was used to determine the threshold of pre‐operative flexion contracture degree to avoid residual knee contracture. The range of motion was increased in 16 joints and unchanged in three joints and decreased in the remaining two. Preoperative average range of motion was 37.6°, improved to 57.1° post‐operatively. The average knee score increased from 27.85 (15–30) points pre‐operatively to 79.42 (12–94) points at the last follow‐up. The degree of pre‐operative flexion contracture was found to be a good predictor for residual flexion contracture. (Specificity: 85.7%, sensitivity: 100%, cut‐off: 27.5°). Total knee replacement improves the quality of life in patients with advanced haemophilic arthropathy. Statistical analysis revealed that pre‐op flexion contracture of 27.5° is an important threshold. Patients should be operated before that stage to gain maximum benefit with minimal gait abnormalities.

Radiological outcome of proximal femoral varus osteotomy for the treatment of lateral pillar group-C Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease.

Results from 26 hips of 24 Legg–Calvé–Perthes disease patients were evaluated retrospectively. There were 22 male and two female patients in the study group. The mean age of the patients was 8.3 years and the mean follow-up was 13.03 years. All the patients were older than 6 years of age and all of them had lateral pillar group C hips. The patients were treated with intertrochanteric uniplanar varus osteotomy. All the patients were mature at the time of the last evaluation. Radiological end results were evaluated according to Stulbergs classification. Six hips healed with spherical congruency (Stulberg class 1 or 2), 19 with aspherical congruency (Stulberg class 3 or 4) and one with aspherical incongruency (Stulberg class 5). Six of 14 hips treated before 9 years of age healed with spherical congruency but all hips treated after 9 years of age healed with Stulberg class 3, 4 or 5 results. Trochanteric overgrowth was evident in 20 hips. The results of this radiological outcome study showed that Herring class C hips treated with proximal femoral varus osteotomy had a poor outcome, especially after 9 years of age in this group of patients.

Late spinal cord compression caused by pulled-out thoracic pedicle screws: a case report.

Study Design. A case report. Objectives. To report a late neurologic compromise caused by pulling-out of thoracic pedicle screws. Summary of Background Data. Although screw misplacement is quite common, only few neurologic injuries have been reported because of penetration of the medial wall of pedicles in the thoracic spine. To our knowledge, neurologic compromise caused by pulling-out of the screws has not been reported to date. Methods. A 6-year-old girl with congenital muscle fiber type disproportion was posteriorly instrumented (T3 to L4) for severe kyphosis. Later, she had a junctional kyphosis over the top of the instrument. Her instrumentation was lengthened to T2 by using transpedicular screws. During the follow-up period, T2 screws were pulled-out and intruded into the canal, causing neurologic compromise. The presenting symptoms, imaging studies, and related literature are reviewed in this report. Results. Patient’s neurologic symptoms subsided after removal of the pedicle screws intruded into the spinal canal. Conclusions. Pulling-out of transpedicular screws inserted at T1 or T2 where the pedicles are oriented more medially may cause late neurologic compromise caused by intrusion of triangulated screws into the spinal canal.

Position of the acetabular component determines the fate of femoral head autografts in total hip replacement for acetabular dysplasia

We have reviewed 54 patients who had undergone 61 total hip replacements using bulk femoral autografts to augment a congenitally dysplastic acetabulum. There were 52 women and two men with a mean age of 42.4 years (29 to 76) at the time of the index operation. A variety of different prostheses was used: 28 (45.9%) were cemented and 33 (54.1%) uncemented. The graft technique remained unchanged throughout the series. Follow-up was at a mean of 8.3 years (3 to 20). The Hospital for Special Surgery hip score improved from a mean of 10.7 (4 to 18) pre-operatively to a mean of 35 (28 to 38) at follow-up. The position of the acetabular component was anatomical in 37 hips (60.7%), displaced less than 1 cm in 20 (32.7%) and displaced more than 1 cm in four (6.6%). Its cover was between 50% and 75% in 34 hips (55.7%) and less than 50% in 25 (41%). In two cases (3.3%), it was more than 75%. There was no graft resorption in 36 hips (59%), mild resorption in 21 (34%) and severe resorption in four (6%). Six hips (9.8%) were revised for aseptic loosening. The overall rate of loosening and revision was 14.8%. Overall survival at 8.3 years was 93.4%. The only significant factor which predicted failure was the implantation of the acetabular component more than 1 cm from the anatomical centre of rotation of the hip.

Treatment of complicated pediatric femoral fractures with titanium elastic nail.

Nonunion and major complications are not very common in pediatric fractures. No commonly accepted methods exist for the treatment of these fractures. In this study, treatment of complicated pediatric femoral fractures with titanium elastic nails was evaluated. Five girls and four boys with nine femoral fractures constituted the group. The mean age of the patients was 8.7 (5–11) years and the mean follow-up was 46.6 (24–84) months. Five of them had implant failure and nonunion, two of them had loss of position in the external fixator, one of them had incomplete union and loss of position in the external fixator and the other had femoral fracture in the lengthening segment of the femur and had loss of position and incomplete union in the spica cast. All the patients were treated with a closed or open reduction of the fracture, debridement if treated with open method and fixation of the fracture with titanium elastic nails. Complete union was achieved in all the patients within the 6–9 months. No neurovascular injury or infection was reported in the group. The result of the treatment showed that fixation of complicated pediatric femoral fractures with intramedullary titanium elastic nails is a good option.

Acute fracture of the acetabulum secondary to a convulsive seizure 3 years after total hip arthroplasty.

While aseptic loosening, osteolysis, and infection are the most common causes of failure after total hip arthroplasty (THA), late hip pain can also be the result of acetabular fracture related to trauma and resultant prosthetic failure. However, atraumatic fracture of the acetabulum around a well-fixed acetabular component is unusual. We present a patient with an acetabular fracture resulting from a generalized convulsive attack 3 years after an uncomplicated primary THA. A 33-year-old man presented with acute left hip pain. He had chronic renal insufficiency and had undergone bilateral THA due to avascular necrosis. The night prior to his admission, he suffered a generalized convulsive attack with severe extremity contractions. Afterwards, he had acute left groin pain and had difficulty walking. Physical examination revealed moderate left hip pain as well as a 1-cm shortening of the affected limb. Radiological examination demonstrated an acetabular fracture with medial wall comminution. The acetabular component had migrated medially and rotated horizontally. Revision of the acetabular component with a reinforcement ring and implantation of a cemented acetabular component was realized. Severe muscle spasms during generalized seizures are known to lead to various musculoskeletal injuries (fractures of the proximal humerus, femur, acetabulum, and dislocation of the shoulder). Seizures could also lead to acute periprosthetic fracture of the acetabulum in patients with osteopenia. Therefore careful reaming is required to avoid overmedialization of the acetabular component in those patients.

Long-Term Results of Reconstruction with Pelvic Allografts after Wide Resection of Pelvic Sarcomas

Reconstruction after the resection of a pelvic tumor is a challenging procedure in orthopedic oncology. The main advantage of allograft reconstruction is restoration of the bony architecture of the complex pelvic region. However, high complication rates such as infection and allograft resorption had been reported in the literature. In this study, we aimed to retrospectively review nine patients treated with pelvic resection and structural pelvic allograft reconstruction. Functional results, complications, and survival of the patients and the allografts were evaluated. At a mean follow-up of 79 months, three patients were dead. Major complications were detected in eight of the nine patients. Infection (four of the nine patients) and allograft resorption (three of the nine patients) were the most common causes of failure. The cumulative survival of the patients was 66.7 percent at 70 months. However, allograft survival was only 26.7 percent at 60 months. Mean MSTS score was 69. In conclusion, we suggest that other reconstruction options should be preferred after pelvic resections because of the high complication rates associated with massive allograft reconstruction.

The Effect of Collar on Aseptic Loosening and Proximal Femoral Bone Resorption in Hybrid Total Hip Arthroplasty

This study compared proximal femoral bone resorption in hybrid total hip arthroplasty cases that had poor or good contact between the collar and proximal medial femoral neck. A total of 94 patients (102 hips) comprised the study group. Mean patient age was 52 years, and mean follow-up was 4.86 years. Bone resorption of the proximal femur was evaluated with immediate postoperative and follow-up anteroposterior and lateral radiographs. Statistical analysis using the Mann-Whitney test showed no significant difference between the groups that had good or poor contact. The collar did not prevent calcar resorption even when ideal contact was achieved.

Risk factors for cut-out of double lag screw fixation in proximal femoral fractures

OBJECTIVE We assessed factors associated with cut-out after internal fixation of proximal femoral fractures using double lag screw nails. DESIGN Retrospective cohort study. SETTING A university hospital. PATIENTS AND METHODS Patients with non-pathological intertrochanteric femur fractures and a minumum 90days follow-up who underwent internal fixation with dual lag screw nails were included. Potential risk factors for lag screw cut-out investigated by our study were: age, gender, body mass index, comorbidities (American Society of Anesthesiologists [ASA] classification), type of fracture (AO/OTA classification), fracture stability, side, operation time, implant length, reduction quality, tip-apex distance (TAD), and lag screw configuration. Logistic regression was used to investigate potential predictors of screw cut-out. RESULTS Eighty-five of the 118 patients with hip fractures treated between February 2010 and November 2013 at our institution met the inclusion criteria for the study. Fifty-eight patients were female (68.2%), mean age was 77.4 (range: 50-95 years), mean follow up was 380days (range: 150days-2.5 years), and cut of was observed in 9 patients (10.5%). The following variables identified through univariate analysis with p<0.2 were included in multivariant logistic regression model: age, side, reduction quality, implant length, TAD and ASA score. Only TAD (p=0.003) was found to be significant in the multivariant model. CONCLUSIONS Our study confirmed that risk factors for cut-out with single-lag screw devices are also applicable to dual-lag screw implants. We found that TAD was a significant factor for cut-out in dual-lag screw implants. Thus, screw cut-out can be minimized by optimizing screw position.