Publications by authors named "Erol Gercek"

Successful total knee replacement (TKR) heavily depends on postoperative rehabilitation. This study aims to investigate the efficacy of continuous passive motion (CPM) partially replacing group physiotherapy in an inpatient rehabilitation setting in order to contribute to the lack of physiotherapists in patients' care. Adult patients after TKR were included.

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  • The study focuses on evaluating the long-term performance of Vitamin E-infused highly cross-linked polyethylene (VEPE) monoblock cups in total hip arthroplasty (THA), particularly concerning migration and wear patterns over ten years.
  • The research involved 101 patients and assessed clinical outcomes using the Harris Hip Score and pain/satisfaction scales, finding significant improvements and minimal wear and migration of the cups.
  • Results showed a 100% survival rate with no need for cup-related revisions, suggesting that VEPE cups could effectively reduce issues like aseptic loosening, but longer follow-up is necessary for validation.
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  • The study aimed to create an easy-to-use score, called the OF Pelvis Score, to help decide between non-operative and surgical treatments for patients with osteoporotic pelvic fractures.
  • The score was developed through expert consensus based on extensive analysis of fractures and includes factors like fracture type, pain level, mobility, and overall health, categorizing scores below, above, or equal to 8 for treatment recommendations.
  • In a retrospective evaluation of 107 patients, the score guided therapy decisions effectively, with a high compliance rate, and emphasized its adaptable nature as patient conditions evolve.
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Being implicated in bone metastasis development, bone sialoprotein (BSP) expression is upregulated in patients with cancer. While BSP regulates cancer cell adhesion to the extracellular matrix, to the best of our knowledge, the specific adhesive molecular interactions in metastatic bone disease remain unclear. The present study aimed to improve the understanding of the arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD) sequence of BSP and the integrin receptors αvβ3 and αvβ5 in BSP-mediated cancer cell adhesion.

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  • * Diagnosis usually involves standard X-rays, but younger kids might benefit from ultrasounds; treatment varies based on fracture severity, with less than 20° angulation potentially allowing for conservative management, while surgery may be required for larger dislocations.
  • * Complications can arise, including joint issues and deformation, necessitating a multidisciplinary treatment approach, but long-term outcomes are generally favorable, emphasizing the importance of understanding potential complications for effective management.
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During the last decades, effective pain reduction and early mobilization were identified as the central priorities in therapy of insufficiency fractures of the pelvis. For operative treatment minimally-invasive stabilization techniques are favored. While there is consensus on the significance of sufficient dorsal stabilization the role of additional fixation of the anterior fracture component stays under discussion.

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  • About one-third of cervical spine injuries happen in the upper section, specifically between the base of the skull (occiput) and the second cervical vertebra, with 70% of injuries occurring at this location.
  • Types of injuries in this area include atlas fractures, occipital condyle fractures, and injuries to ligaments associated with the upper cervical spine.
  • Treatment options range from conservative therapy for stable injuries to surgical intervention for unstable cases, with the article covering details on injury frequency, diagnosis, classification, and standard treatment methods.
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  • The proximal tibial epiphyseal inclination, measured through the tibial bone varus angle (TBVA), serves as a potential indicator of recovery success after knee osteotomy, but traditional x-ray methods have shown inconsistencies in measurement.
  • This study aimed to assess the reliability of measuring TBVA and related angles using digital imaging by three orthopaedic surgeons analyzing 100 radiographs in a blinded format.
  • Results indicated that while the visibility scores for the epiphyseal scar had fair interobserver reliability, key angles like TBVA, GPTP angle, and a modified version of TBVA displayed good to excellent reliability among and within observers.
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  • Bucket-handle meniscal tears are primarily treated with arthroscopic surgery, but the timing of the surgery has unclear effects on recovery outcomes.
  • A study involving 60 patients showed that an average wait of 14.4 days for surgery did not significantly affect reoperation rates, pain levels, or return to sports.
  • The findings suggest that surgical timing is not a predictor of post-surgery success, indicating that careful planning and expertise matter more than urgency in treatment.
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  • Proximal humeral fractures in children are uncommon and typically managed non-operatively, especially in those under ten, with treatment decisions influenced by age and the degree of fracture angulation.
  • A study assessed the agreement among pediatric trauma surgery experts in Germany regarding the assessment of fracture angulation and treatment decisions, revealing moderate agreement among them on fracture angulation measurements and fair agreement on treatment methods.
  • The findings highlight a need for a standardized approach to measuring fracture angulation in children to improve treatment consistency, suggesting that adopting a commonly accepted method may enhance decision-making over relying on complex techniques.
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Purpose: Calcaneal fractures (CFs) are rare but potentially debilitating injuries. Apart from the open, far lateral or sinus tarsi approach, operative treatment can be performed minimally invasive and percutaneously with intramedullary nailing. In this study, we sought to investigate the functional outcome of severe CFs treated with the C-Nail® implant.

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Background: Lateralization and distalization in reverse shoulder arthroplasty (RSA) can be measured on anteroposterior (AP) radiographs using 2 previously described angles: lateralization shoulder angle (LSA) and distalization shoulder angle (DSA). However, these 2 angles measure global lateralization and distalization but do not allow to differentiate how much lateralization or distalization are attributable to the glenoid and the humerus. We hypothesized that new angles could allow us to separately measure glenoid vs.

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  • There is an increasing focus on understanding insufficiency fractures of the pelvis, emphasizing early mobility and pain management as key treatment goals.
  • A study compared two methods of fixing dorsal fractures using an osteoporotic bone model, testing their stability with and without additional anterior fixation.
  • Results showed that fixation methods incorporating anterior stabilization improved stability significantly, suggesting it could help prevent further fractures and failures in dorsal stabilization.
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Introduction: Bone preservation and long-term survival are the main challenges in cementless total hip arthroplasty (THA). A good bone stock is especially important for adequate anchorage of the cup in revision cases. However, the optimal acetabular cup design for preserving good bone stock is still unclear.

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  • Proximal femoral fractures are the most common type of fracture in Germany, making up over 20% of all fractures, and must be surgically treated within 24 hours according to a 2019 ruling.
  • A study analyzed data from a trauma center between 2016 and 2022, revealing that the number of these surgeries doubled, with a significant 60% increase noted from 2020 to 2022, suggesting a broader area is being served.
  • The increase in workload at the trauma center may be due to fewer hospitals offering emergency treatment, compounded by resource shortages and pandemic-related challenges, all while the center’s infrastructure remained unchanged.
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Post-traumatic joint stiffness (PTJS) is accompanied by a multidimensional disturbance of joint architecture. Pharmacological approaches represent promising alternatives as the traumatic nature of current therapeutic standards may lead to PTJS' progression. Losartan is an auspicious candidate, as it has demonstrated an antifibrotic effect in other organs.

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Large bone defects such as those that occur after trauma or resections due to cancer still are a challenge for surgeons. Main challenge in this area is to find a suitable alternative to the gold-standard therapy, which is highly risky, and a promising option is to use biomaterials manufactured by 3D printing. In former studies, we demonstrated that the combination of polylactic acid (PLA) and bioglass (BG) resulted in a stable 3D-printable material, and porous and finely structured scaffolds were printed.

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  • The study investigates the interpretation of "normal" and "abnormal" metatarsophalangeal angles (MTPA) for the second to fifth toes among orthopedic surgeons and radiologists.
  • Observers categorized various MTPA ranges as normal or abnormal: MTP-2 (0° to -20° normal), MTP-3 (0° to -15° normal), MTP-4 (0° to -10° normal), and MTP-5 (5° valgus to 15° varus normal).
  • The findings reveal high variability in individual assessments and suggest a lack of agreement between different observers, indicating that the terms "normal" and "abnormal" should be applied cautiously
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Bone fracture healing is a multistep process, including early immunological reactions, osteogenesis, and as a key factor, angiogenesis. Molecules inducing osteogenesis as well as angiogenesis are rare, but hold promise to be employed in bone tissue engineering. It has been demonstrated that the bone sialoprotein (BSP) can induce bone formation when immobilized in collagen type I, but its effect on angiogenesis still has to be characterized in detail.

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(1) Background: Diaphyseal forearm fractures are a common injury in children and adolescents. When operative treatment is needed, elastic stable intramedullary nailing (ESIN) is the most common surgical procedure. Although there is no clear evidence, hardware removal after fracture healing is performed in many patients.

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  • The study examined the effects of atorvastatin on posttraumatic joint contracture using a rat model, involving 48 rats divided into atorvastatin and control groups.
  • Despite atorvastatin reducing the number of myofibroblasts and collagen in the joint capsule, it did not significantly improve joint mobility or prevent contracture formation.
  • The findings indicate that the primary cause of joint contracture was arthrogenic, and atorvastatin's antifibrotic properties did not translate into better joint function in this context.
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  • Osteoporotic fractures of the pelvis (OFP) are becoming a significant concern in orthopedics, prompting the need for a new, simpler, and more reliable classification system (CS) that uses both CT and MRI, as existing systems have limited reliability.
  • A consensus among trauma and orthopedic experts in German-speaking countries led to the creation of the new OF-Pelvis CS over five years, which was validated by having experienced surgeons categorize 25 anonymized cases using imaging scans.
  • The new classification has five subgroups indicating increasing instability and three modifiers that can be used alone or in combination; the inter-rater reliability scores are notably high, showing strong agreement among both the developers and the
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Background: Recent minimal-invasive posterior fusion devices are supposed to provide stability and obtain fusion in combination with interbody cages in the instrumented segment. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the primary stability of two minimal-invasive posterior prototypes compared to an established spinous process plate and standard pedicle screw instrumentation.

Methods: Seven fresh frozen human cadaver lumbar spines (L2-L5) were tested in a spinal testing device with a moment of 7.

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In a consensus process with four sessions in 2017, the working group on "the upper cervical spine" of the German Society for Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgery (DGOU) formulated "Therapeutic Recommendations for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Fractures to the Upper Cervical Spine", incorporating their own experience and current literature. The following article describes the recommendations for the atlas vertebra. About 10% of all cervical spine injuries include the axis vertebra.

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