A comparison of three adjustable cortical button ACL fixation devices.

Purpose: Adjustable cortical fixation has gained popularity recently for ACL reconstruction; however, one concern with these types of devices is the potential for laxity occurring post-operatively. An indicator of clinical laxity is cyclic displacement during bench-top mechanical testing. The hypothesis was that the cyclic displacement and maximum strength of different adjustable buttons currently on the market would vary depending on their mechanism of fixation.

Evaluation of sterilization methods following contamination of hamstring autograft during anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

Purpose: Inadvertent contamination of the hamstring autograft during ACL reconstruction is infrequent, but can result in significant complications. The purpose of this study is to evaluate bacterial contamination of hamstring autografts dropped onto the operating room floor and methods of graft decontamination.

Methods: Hamstring tendons were harvested from patients.

Contact area and pressure in suture bridge rotator cuff repair using knotless lateral anchors.

Purpose: To evaluate whether the use of knotless lateral anchors in a suture bridge construct produces better contact area and pressure parameters than a suture bridge construct with standard lateral anchors that require knots or a double-row repair. The hypothesis was that knotless lateral anchors would produce better contact area and pressure parameters than the other two constructs.

Methods: A total of fifteen matched pairs of cadaveric shoulders were divided into three groups.

Clinical diagnosis of hip pain.

This article reviews the evaluation of the hip including the clinical history and physical examination. As our understanding of hip pathology evolves, and arthroscopic and other minimally invasive operative techniques improve, the focus is shifting toward earlier identification of hip pathology. Risk factors for the development of arthritis are now well established and include femoral acetabular impingement, labral tearing, developmental dysplasia, and slipped capital femoral epiphysis.

The use of a non-benzodiazepine hypnotic sleep-aid (Zolpidem) in patients undergoing ACL reconstruction: a randomized controlled clinical trial.

Purpose: Previous studies have addressed post-operative pain management after ACL reconstruction by examining the use of intra-articular analgesia and/or modification of anesthesia techniques. To our knowledge, however, no previous studies have evaluated the effect of zolpidem on post-operative narcotic requirements, pain, and fatigue in patients undergoing outpatient arthroscopic ACL reconstruction. The purpose of this prospective, blinded, randomized, controlled clinical study was to evaluate the effect of zolpidem on post-operative narcotic requirements, pain, and fatigue in patients undergoing outpatient arthroscopic ACL reconstruction.

Inappropriate transfer of patients with orthopaedic injuries to a Level I trauma center: a prospective study.

Objective: The objective of this study was to analyze the appropriateness of transfer of patients with orthopaedic injuries to a Level I trauma center from surrounding Level II to IV centers.

Design: A prospective study was conducted over a 5-month period by collecting data on all orthopaedic patients being transferred to our facility. All transfer diagnoses were designated as appropriate or inappropriate.

Propionibacterium acnes colonization of the human shoulder.

Background: Propionibacterium acnes (P. acnes) is frequently cultured in patients with wound infections after shoulder surgery. The purpose of this study was to characterize the colonization of various anatomic locations with P.

Reduced allergenic potency of VR9-1, a mutant of the major shrimp allergen Pen a 1 (tropomyosin).

The major shrimp allergen, tropomyosin, is an excellent model allergen for studying the influence of mutations within the primary structure on the allergenic potency of an allergen; Pen a 1 allows systematic evaluation and comparison of Ab-binding epitopes, because amino acid sequences of both allergenic and nonallergenic tropomyosins are known. Individually recognized IgE Ab-binding epitopes, amino acid positions, and substitutions critical for IgE Ab binding were identified by combinatorial substitution analysis, and 12 positions deemed critical were mutated in the eight major epitopes. The mutant VR9-1 was characterized with regard to allergenic potency by mediator release assays using sera from shrimp-allergic subjects and sera from BALB/c, C57BL/6J, C3H/HeJ, and CBA/J mice sensitized with shrimp extract using alum, cholera toxin, and Bordetella pertussis, as adjuvants.

Molecular basis of arthropod cross-reactivity: IgE-binding cross-reactive epitopes of shrimp, house dust mite and cockroach tropomyosins.

Background: Shrimp may cross-react with other crustaceans and mollusks and nonedible arthropods such as insects (cockroach and chironomids), arachnids (house dust mites) and even nematodes. Since the muscle protein tropomyosin has been implicated as a possible cross-reacting allergen, this study characterized the IgE-binding epitopes in shrimp tropomyosin, Pen a 1, that cross-react with other allergenic invertebrate tropomyosins in house dust mites (Der p 10, Der f 10) and cockroaches (Per a 7). Pen a 1-reactive sera from shrimp-allergic subjects were used to evaluate the effect on IgE binding of different amino acid substitutions in Pen a 1 epitopes based on homologous sequences in Per a 7 and Der p 10/Der f 10.