Collagen for the knee: Gel-like implant invented
Source: Science Daily
Millions of people suffer cartilage damage to the knee every year. Cartilage injuries are not only painful; they can lead to osteoarthritis decades later. In the course of the disease, the protective shock absorbing cartilage that covers the bone within the joint slowly is removed until the bone is finally exposed, typically requiring an artificial joint replacement. A biotechnology company has developed a one-step minimally-invasive surgical procedure for the treatment of cartilage defects: a gel-like implant.
‘A glass of milk a day’ may delay knee osteoarthritis in women
Source: Medical News Today
A degenerative disease causing pain and swelling of the knee joints, knee osteoarthritis currently has no cure. But researchers say drinking milk every day has been linked to reduced progression of the disease.
Publishing their results in the American College of Rheumatology journal Arthritis Care & Research, the researchers say while their findings show that women who regularly drank fat-free or low-fat milk experienced delayed progression of knee osteoarthritis (OA), those who ate cheese actually experienced an increase in progression of the disease.
Study: UCL reconstruction surgery likely to put major league pitchers back on the field
Source: Healio
Major League Baseball pitchers who undergo ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction have a strong likelihood of resuming their professional baseball careers after surgery, according to results of a recently published study.
“When compared with demographic-matched controls, patients who underwent [ulnar collateral ligament] UCL reconstruction had better results in multiple performance measures,” Brandon J. Erickson, MD, and colleagues stated in the study. “Reconstruction of the UCL allows for a predictable and successful return to the [Major League Baseball] MLB.”
The study analyzed 179 MLB pitchers who underwent UCL reconstruction. Overall, 174 (97.2%) resumed pitching in professional organized baseball and 148 (83%) returned to the MLB level. Mean time to return to MLB was 20.5 months and the average career after surgery was 3.9 years, however, 56 pitchers were still pitching at the start of the 2013 MLB season.
Pitchers had fewer losses, lower earned run average, losing percentage, hits per inning and fewer walks, hits and home runs allowed after UCL reconstruction than before surgery.
“There is a high rate of [return to pitching] RTP in professional baseball after UCL reconstruction,” Erickson and colleagues concluded. “Performance declined before surgery and improved after surgery.” -by Christian Ingram
High-demand patients returned to work quickly after arthroscopic treatment of a dislocated elbow
Source: Healio
Investigators found patients returned to work 2.7 weeks after acute arthroscopic repair of the radial ulnohumeral ligament for elbow dislocation.
Michael J. O’Brien, MD, and colleagues retrospectively reviewed the results of surgeries they performed in 14 consecutive high-demand patients. The investigators defined high-demand patients as those who needed both hands to work or play a competitive sport. One patient in the series was a surgeon.
Few guidelines exist about return to work after elbow dislocation, according to O’Brien, who presented the results at the American Academy of Orthopaedics Surgeons Annual Meeting, here.
In this series, “All patients returned to their pre-injury level of function,” he said.
The investigators followed the patients for an average of 30 months after either acute or subacute treatment of the radial ulnohumeral ligament (RUHL).
O’Brien said all patients achieved a Mayo Elbow Performance Score that was excellent and ranged from 95 points to 100 points.
According to the paper abstract, results using a goniometer showed a final range of motion from -3 º in full extension to full flexion that exceeded 130 º.
O’Brien said the return to work was longer — at about 4.6 weeks — in the patients who underwent arthroscopic stabilization subacutely.
Ask a Sports Medicine Doc: Hip injuries among youth
Source: VailDaily
Q: My 14 year old daughter is a competitive ski racer and has been having hip pain. Could she have a labral tear?
A: Hip injuries are on the rise in adolescent athletes. This is due to the increasing number of young athletes participating in organized sports as well as advances in technology that have improved clinician’s diagnostic ability.
Smith & Nephew DYONICS(TM) PLAN brings first-of-its-kind, individualized surgical planning to hip arthroscopy
Source: The Wall Street Journal
Smith & Nephew (NYSE:SNN;LSE:SN), the global medical technology business, will launch its DYONICS PLAN Hip Impingement Planning System at this week’s American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) annual meeting in New Orleans. Unlike standard imaging tools, DYONICS PLAN is a revolutionary 3D software system that allows surgeons to visualize, assess and generate a comprehensive surgical report for each patient’s unique Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) surgery before that patient ever enters the operating room.
Genetics may explain high-functioning senior athletes with hip abnormalities
Source: Science Daily
Genetics may explain why some senior athletes are high functioning despite having one or both hip abnormalities typically associated with early onset osteoarthritis: developmental dislocation of the hip (dysplasia), a loose hip joint; or femoroacetabular impingement (FAI), a condition in which the hip bones are abnormally shaped.
Silk-based surgical implants could offer a better way to repair broken bones
Source: Science Daily
Using pure silk protein derived from silkworm cocoons, investigators have developed surgical plates and screws that offer improved remodeling following injury and can be absorbed by the body over time. When a person suffers a broken bone, current treatment calls for the surgeon to insert screws and plates to help bond the broken sections and enable the fracture to heal. These “fixation devices” are usually made of metal alloys. But metal devices may have disadvantages: Because they are stiff and unyielding, they can cause stress to underlying bone, among other problems.
Trials to begin on new degradable surgical implant
Source: BBC News Health
Researchers in Oxford have developed a degradable implant which they say has huge potential to improve surgical success rates.
The protective patch, which wraps round soft tissue repairs, will be trialled in patients with shoulder injuries.
82% of college football players return to field after ACL surgery, shows study
Source: News Medical
High-level college football players frequently return to the field after an ACL reconstruction, according to research presented today at the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine’s (AOSSM) Specialty Day. The study added to earlier research by exploring specific factors that affected return to play, including player standing on rosters and year in school.
