Rehabilitation of the lower-extremity war-injured at the center for the intrepid.

The Center for the Intrepid (CFI) is a unique facility among the three amputee care centers that comprise the Armed Forces Amputee Care Program. The mission of the CFI is threefold: (1) to provide the best possible patient care to the severely war-wounded, (2) to educate providers in the most advanced methods of rehabilitation for the severely wounded, and (3) to perform research to improve the care of these war-wounded patients. The center's program is based on three critical factors: (1) concentration of similarly injured patients as a cohort, (2) a multidisciplinary approach to patient care, and (3) the concentration of subspecialty skills that ensures the best possible care at an institutional level.

Clinical usefulness and safety of routine intraoperative angiography for patients and personnel.

Objective: The routine use of intraoperative angiography (IA) is still surrounded by controversy. We prospectively performed IAs in consecutive patients undergoing surgery for aneurysms, arteriovenous malformations, and dural arteriovenous fistulae. We calculated the percentage of identified residual pathologies, the cases requiring further surgical intervention, and the complication rates associated with the procedure.

Heterotopic ossification following traumatic and combat-related amputations. Prevalence, risk factors, and preliminary results of excision.

Background: Although infrequently reported in amputees previously, heterotopic ossification has proven to be a common and problematic clinical entity in our recent experience in the treatment of traumatic and combat-related amputations related to Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. The purpose of the present study was to report the prevalence of and risk factors for heterotopic ossification following trauma-related amputation as well as the preliminary results of operative excision.

Methods: We identified 330 patients with a total of 373 traumatic and combat-related amputations who had been managed at our centers between September 11, 2001 and November 30, 2005.

Heterotopic ossification in the residual limbs of traumatic and combat-related amputees.

Reports on the occurrence and treatment of heterotopic ossification in amputees are rare. Heterotopic ossification in the residual limbs of amputees may cause pain and skin breakdown and complicate or prevent optimal prosthetic fitting and utilization. Basic science research has shed light on the cellular and molecular basis for this disease process, but many questions remain unanswered.

The United States Armed Forces Amputee Patient Care Program.

United States military amputees are treated at either Walter Reed Army Medical Center (Washington, DC) or Brooke Army Medical Center (Fort Sam Houston, TX). At each center, a multidisciplinary team from more than a dozen specialties works together to address the psychological, social, vocational, and spiritual needs of our soldiers, marines, sailors, and airmen, as well as their physical rehabilitation. Excellent outcomes are being achieved with the current practices of the Armed Forces Amputee Care Program, but a great deal of evidence-based research must be done to determine the optimal time to close the wound, the etiology of heterotopic ossification in blast injury, the factors determining optimal socket design, and the best sequence and timing for introduction of different prosthetic technologies in the rehabilitation process.

Deep venous thrombosis in children and adolescents.

Object: The objective of this retrospective review was to identify patients on the pediatric neurosurgical ward with deep venous thrombosis (DVT) to develop diagnostic and treatment-related guidelines.

Methods: The authors performed a retrospective chart review of all cases of DVT presenting to the Children's Hospital between March 1986 and February 1997. Of 32 patients identified, 14 were followed by the neurosurgical service.

Intradural cranial congenital dermal sinuses: diagnosis and management.

Objective: The congenital dermal sinus (CDS) is a benign tumor-like entity that has unique anatomical and clinical features. We retrospectively examined our data to determine factors associated with adverse outcomes for cranial-based dermal sinuses.

Methods: We retrospectively examined our data obtained from patients presenting between 1975 and 2002.

Gel-based surgical preparation resulting in an operating room fire during a neurosurgical procedure: case report.

Despite general reports of fires in the operating room, those during neurosurgical procedures are rare. The most significant contributor to perioperative fires is excess oxygenation. The consideration of novel gel-based surgical preparation solutions as potential fuel sources should be included in the literature.

Avulsion of the common hamstring tendon origin in an active duty airman.

Hamstring injuries are common in active athletic populations, such as military service members. Ruptures of the hamstring origin from the ischial tuberosity are rare injuries and missed if not considered in the differential diagnosis of ischial pain. Unlike other hamstring injuries, complete hamstring avulsions must be treated surgically.