Bilateral osteonecrosis of the femoral head associated with pregnancy: four new cases and a review of the literature.

Osteonecrosis is thought to result from the temporary or permanent loss of blood supply to the bones. Without proper nutrition, the bone tissue dies, is resorbed, and collapses. If the process involves the bones in a joint, it often leads to collapse of the joint surface.

Mini external fixation in the hand.

External fixation is an effective means of addressing several pathologies of the hand. The advantages of its use include the ability to achieve stable fixation, minimize soft tissue trauma at the site of injury, and allow wound care and mobilization of adjacent joints. External fixators can be constructed from material readily available in the operating room or obtained from a commercial source.

Pediatric orthopaedic injuries: the effect of treatment on school attendance.

This study aims to determine whether children experience difficulty attending school after an acute orthopaedic injury and, if so, what the barriers are to attendance. Seventy-eight school-aged patients receiving treatment of acute orthopaedic injuries or conditions at the authors' institution were enrolled in this prospective study. Follow-up interviews were conducted with children who could not return to school.

Osseous sarcoidosis of the hand: pathologic analysis and review of the literature.

A destructive granulomatous process involving the right fifth metacarpal and the soft tissues of the right thumb and nose of an African-American woman without pulmonary disease is described. The initial biopsy examination of the metacarpal showed caseating and noncaseating granulomata. After a fifth-ray amputation the disease progressed, leading to the referral of the patient to our institution.

Biomechanical evaluation of a novel glenoid design in total shoulder arthroplasty.

The amount of articular curvature mismatch providing optimal performance in total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA) is unknown. The objectives of this study were to quantify glenohumeral joint mechanics before and after TSA and to compare the performance of 3 glenoid components: (1) nonconforming, (2) conforming, and (3) a novel design featuring a conforming center extending into a nonconforming periphery. Six fresh-frozen cadaveric shoulders (mean age, 43 years) were mechanically tested on a custom apparatus by use of simulated muscle forces and a coordinate-measuring machine to determine joint kinematics.

Effect of bracing on the quality of life of adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis.

Background Context: There is considerable controversy regarding the effectiveness of bracing for patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS). Furthermore, little work has focused on the effect of formal bracing on the health-related quality of life (QOL) of affected adolescents.

Purpose: This study is an attempt to assess the QOL of adolescents with AIS who were treated with a brace in comparison to those who were not.

Sequential wear patterns of the articular cartilage of the thumb carpometacarpal joint in osteoarthritis.

Purpose: The thumb carpometacarpal (CMC) joint is a primary location for osteoarthritis (OA) in the body; however, articular cartilage thickness distribution during progression of OA in the joint has not been reported previously. Determining the cartilage wear patterns within the joint is important in understanding the etiology and treatment of thumb CMC joint OA. This study used cadaveric specimens to investigate the wear patters of the articular surfaces of the trapezium and thumb metacarpal.