Commercially available activity monitors such as the fitbit charge and apple watch show poor validity in patients with gait aids after total knee arthroplasty.

Purpose: The aim of this study is to determine the validity of consumer grade step counter devices during the early recovery period after knee replacement surgery.

Methods: Twenty-three participants wore a Fitbit Charge or Apple Watch Series 4 smart watch and performed a walking test along a 50-metre hallway. There were 9 males and 14 females included in the study with an average age of 68.

Bone Allograft Pedicle Screw Augmentation: A Biomechanical Study.

Study Design: We performed a comprehensive cadaveric biomechanical study to compare the fixation strength of primary screws, screws augmented with bone allograft, and screws augmented with polymethylmethacrylate cement.

Objective: To evaluate a novel technique for screw augmentation using morselized cortico-cancellous bone allograft to fill the widened screw track of failed pedicle screws.

Background: To date, there are no known biological methods available for failed pedicle screw augmentation or fixation.

The Impact of Adjunct Medical Therapy on Survival after Spine Metastasis: A Systematic Review and Pooled Data Analysis.

Targeted therapy has greatly improved the outlook for patients with spinal metastatic cancers. Scoring systems like the Tokuhashi or Tomita scores are commonly used to predict prognosis and inform surgical decisions, but they are outdated and fail to consider recent advancements. We aimed to investigate the current state of the literature and treatment options pertaining to advancements in targeted therapy compared to other forms of medical management for metastatic spinal tumors.

Contribution of the Bony Bankart in Calculating Glenoid Bone Loss.

Background: Determining the magnitude of glenoid bone loss in patients with anterior shoulder instability is an important step in guiding management. Most calculations to estimate the bone loss do not include the bony Bankart fragment. However, if it can be reduced and adequately fixed, the estimation of bone loss may be decreased.

What can we learn from surveys? A systematic review of survey studies addressing femoroacetabular impingement syndrome.

The purpose of this study was to systematically review the methodology, response rate and quality of survey studies related to femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) syndrome. A search was conducted on three databases (PubMed, EMBASE, MEDLINE) for relevant studies from database inception to 27 January 2020. Data extracted included study and survey characteristics, as well as response rates.

Is Therapy Needed After Distal Radius Fracture Treatment, What Is the Evidence?

The role of hand therapy in management of distal radius fractures remains unclear. Some evidence demonstrates that initiating early range of motion and urging patients to return to routine activities of daily living as soon as possible may produce favorable outcomes that are as effective as formal supervised therapy. Extended supervised therapy does not appear to impact outcomes and a single instruction session with a home-based program produces similar results.

The economic impact of periprosthetic infection in total knee arthroplasty.

Background: Currently, the gold standard treatment for periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is 2-stage revision, but few studies have looked at the economic impact of PJI on the health care system. The objective of this study was to obtain an accurate estimate of the institutional cost associated with the management of PJI in TKA and to assess the economic impact of PJI after TKA compared to uncomplicated primary TKA.

Methods: We identified consecutive patients in our institutional database who had undergone 2-stage revision TKA for PJI between 2010 and 2014 and matched them on age and body mass index with patients who had undergone uncomplicated primary TKA over the same period.

Evaluation of the Effect of Gait Aids, Such as Canes, Crutches, and Walkers, on the Accuracy of Step Counters in Healthy Individuals.

Background: Wearable step-counter devices have become inexpensive tools that enable patients, researchers, and clinicians to objectively monitor physical activity. It is unknown how the use of gait aids, such as canes, crutches, and walkers, affects the accuracy of these devices. Such gait aids are commonly used by patients with chronic physical impairment and after joint-replacement surgery.

Clinical performance of Determine HBsAg 2 rapid test for Hepatitis B detection.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is estimated to affect 292 million people worldwide, 90% of them are unaware of their HBV status. The Determine HBsAg 2 (Alere Medical Co, Ltd Chiba Japan [Now Abbott]) is a rapid test that meets European Union (EU) regulatory requirements for Hepatitis B surface antigen 2 (HBsAg) analytical sensitivity, detecting the 0.1 IU/mL World Health Organization (WHO) International HBsAg Standard.

The Use of Denosumab in Osteoblastoma of the Metacarpal.

Osteoblastoma is a benign aggressive primary bone tumor that occasionally presents in the hand. Because surgical treatment remains the mainstay of treatment, there are no established nonsurgical pharmacological options for patients in whom resection is not feasible. Novel therapies, such as denosumab, are currently being investigated in primary bone tumors.

Assessment of bone mineral density in tenofovir-treated patients with chronic hepatitis B: can the fracture risk assessment tool identify those at greatest risk?

Background: Tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) is an established nucleotide analogue in the treatment of chronic hepatitis B. Bone mineral density loss has been described in TDF-treated patients with human immunodeficiency virus infection, but limited data exist for patients with chronic hepatitis B. Dual X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) was used to determine bone mineral density changes in TDF-exposed patients.

A novel porcine model of traumatic thoracic spinal cord injury.

Spinal cord injury (SCI) researchers have predominately utilized rodents and mice for in vivo SCI modeling and experimentation. From these small animal models have come many insights into the biology of SCI, and a growing number of novel treatments that promote behavioral recovery. It has, however, been difficult to demonstrate the efficacy of such treatments in human clinical trials.

Highly selective intraportal transplantation of pancreatic islets.

Background: Histological assessment of intraportally transplanted islets in experimental rodent models is limited by the wide dissemination of islets throughout the liver. We describe a technique of highly selective intraportal islet transplantation, which increases the density of transplanted islets and hence facilitates their histological analysis and validate this model as a means of quantitative histological analysis of islet graft survival. We also compared the number of islets visualized histologically with that of nonabsorbable dextran beads, representing the number of transplanted islets there would have been if there had been no graft loss.

Time course and quantification of pancreatic islet revascularization following intraportal transplantation.

A large proportion of islets are lost after transplantation partly due to a lack of functional vasculature. Islets revascularize from host tissue but the process takes up to 2 weeks and has been suggested to result in reduced vascular density in engrafted islets. We describe a method for observing and quantifying the revascularization of intraportally transplanted islets that includes number, density, and branching of islet capillaries.