Evan D. Nigh

Case: A 22-year-old woman with Klippel-Feil syndrome who underwent cervical disc arthroplasty (CDA) presented 3 months postoperatively with worsening neck pain and radiculopathy. Work-up was negative for infection, but single-photon emission computed tomography revealed increased metabolic activity in the vertebral body below the implant. During revision, the implant was grossly loose and multiple cultures grew Cutibacterium acnes. She was treated with an antibiotic course and conversion to anterior fusion without recurrence. Conclusion: This report highlights the rare presentation of an early periprosthetic infection after CDA caused by C. acnes.

Simultaneous bilateral total hip arthroplasty (blTHA) offers the benefit of a single episode of care with the potential for lower cumulative operative times and rehabilitation periods than staged bilateral total hip arthroplasty (stTHA). This study analyzes short-term complication rates after blTHA relative to unilateral THA (ulTHA) and projected stTHA in patients with bilateral hip osteoarthritis. We compared complications in a simultaneous blTHA group and a ulTHA group using the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) database. ulTHA patients were propensity-matched two-to-one against blTHA patients using morbidity probability score. Thirty-day complication rates were compared. Outcomes in staged procedures (stTHA) were projected by doubling complication rates in ulTHA procedures. There were 805 blTHA patients and 1,610 ulTHA patients used to estimate stTHA outcomes. The rate of major complications or death after blTHA was no higher than the projected stTHA rate (2.0 vs 3.0%, p = 0.179), but minor complications were more common after blTHA than stTHA projections (13.5 vs 6.8%, p < 0.001). Mean operative time for blTHA was 39.2 minutes shorter than that for stTHA (p < 0.001); mean hospital stay was 1 day shorter for blTHA than that for stTHA (p < 0.001). Thirty-day rates of periprosthetic fracture (0.62 vs 0.12%, p = 0.045) and dislocation (0.50 vs 0.1%, p = 0.1) were higher after blTHA than stTHA. Simultaneous blTHA appears safe in patients medically fit to tolerate longer uninterrupted surgery and appears to shorten operative time and hospital stay relative to staged THA. There is a significantly higher risk of blood transfusion, periprosthetic fracture, and dislocation after blTHA.

Adequate vitamin D and calcium supplementation therapy in osteoporosis reduces the risk of fragility fractures and correlates with improved mortality outcomes in postoperative fragility hip fracture patients. However, the prevalence of adequate supplementation in this population remains unclear. Our purpose was to describe supplement use among the adult population in United States who have been told they had osteoporosis and identify factors associated with adequate supplementation, particularly in patients with history of hip fracture. The study sample comprised a total of 15,968 respondents from the National Health and Examinations Survey (NHANES 2007–2010, 2013–2014); 1,065 self-reported a diagnosis of osteoporosis and 266 self-reported a history of hip fracture. Additional patient factors were analyzed by multivariable logistic regression to assess associated factors of adequate vitamin D (≥ 600 international unit [IU]/day) and calcium (≥ 1000 mg/day) supplementation. The prevalence of vitamin D and calcium supplementation was significantly higher in the osteoporosis group than without (p = 0.001). However, supplemental intake reached adequate levels (≥ 600 IU/day of vitamin D and ≥ 1000mg/day of calcium) in only 28.8% of individuals with osteoporosis for vitamin D, 51.6% for calcium, and 19.2% for both. Of individuals with additional history of hip fracture, only 14% reported adequate intake of both nutrients. Female sex (odds ratio [OR]: 2.35, p < 0.001), older age (OR: 1.02, p < 0.001), and Caucasian race (OR: 1.456, p = 0.004) were positive factors of adequate supplementation, while Hispanic ethnicity was a negative factor (OR: 0.658, p = 0.009). Unexpectedly, a history of hip fracture did not affect the odds of adequate treatment (OR: 0.685, p = 0.176). Adults with known osteoporosis in the United States are self-reporting inadequate supplementation therapy, and significant gender and racial disparities exist. There is a broad need for improved supplementation to help manage this disease, particularly among adults with prior hip fracture, a vulnerable population most relevant for orthopaedic surgeons. This study serves as a call-to-action for orthopaedic surgeons to ensure their fragility hip fracture patients receive adequate supplementation postoperatively to maximize their health and recovery. This was a Level III, retrospective cohort study.

Introduction: Contribution toward clinical research is paramount to the education of physician trainees and is required by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. From 1987 through 2015, our single institution orthopaedic surgery residency research experience included 2 dedicated research rotations. Because few resident projects were pursued to completion, feedback was used to restructure the curriculum, including the appointment of 2 clinical orthopaedic faculty to serve as codirectors, development of a revised curriculum, use of research teams, and a centralized research database. Our group previously displayed increased resident productivity within 2 years after the 2015 implementation. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of orthopaedic residency curricular changes on scholarly activity of orthopaedic teaching faculty. Methods: The curriculum vitae (CVs) of a single institution's orthopaedic teaching faculty were collected and retrospectively reviewed from 2014 through 2018 to determine academic productivity of clinical faculty. Indicators of academic productivity included peer-reviewed publications (including journal impact factors) and podium or poster presentations. Results: Twenty-three of 27 faculty members responded to our request for CVs. One hundred three CVs were reviewed on 23 faculty. All academic indicators increased over 5 years. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) using a multivariate repeated measures analysis was completed. A sphericity χ² test was violated for all measures, precluding us from using unadjusted univariate analysis. Univariate MANOVA with repeated measures displays significance regarding impact factor (f < 0.02, p < 0.05) and journal publications (f < 0.004, p < 0.05). Subsequent multivariate analysis shows similar results regarding impact factor (f < 0.0008), journal publications (0.0005), and poster presentations (f < 0.016). Conclusions: Improved structure of an established resident research rotation combined with enhanced faculty mentorship resulted in a significant increase in academic productivity for clinical teaching faculty of the department of orthopaedic surgery. This increase parallels that seen in orthopaedic resident research productivity; indicating a positive impact on teaching faculty scholarly activity. Level of Evidence: III.