Symptomatic spinal epidural lipomatosis with severe obesity at a young age.

Symptomatic spinal epidural lipomatosis is a rare disorder characterized by overgrowth of fat in the extradural space. Most patients have an underlying endocrine disorder, such as Cushing's syndrome, or have taken exogenous steroids chronically. Although less common, obesity alone is thought to be a cause of spinal epidural lipomatosis, representing <25% of reported cases.

The relationship between anemia at admission and outcome in patients older than 60 years with hip fracture.

Background: We have reported that the functional outcome in elderly with hip fracture is related to age at admission, dementia, and anemia. In this study, we examined the relationship between hemoglobin level at admission and walking ability, as well as survival outcome at discharge.

Materials And Methods: We studied 394 patients aged 60 years or older treated at our hospital for hip fracture since 1997.

Resorption of thoracic disc herniation. Report of 2 cases.

The authors describe 2 cases of thoracic disc herniation, resulting in acute myelopathy without bladder dysfunction or progressive muscular weakness; the herniated disc apparently resorbed without surgical intervention. Thoracic disc herniations are less frequent than cervical or lumbar disc herniations and are usually associated with severe neurological deficits. In these 2 cases, the herniated discs exhibited marked decreases in size, corresponding to a favorable clinical outcome within a few months after the initiation of conservative treatment with prostaglandin E(1) and/or steroids in conjunction with physical therapy.

Comparison of the prognosis among different age groups in elderly patients with hip fracture.

Background: The outcome of treatment of hip fractures in different age groups in the elderly population is largely unknown. Hence, we stratified elderly patients with hip fracture into age groups and compared the prognosis in various age groups.

Materials And Methods: Among 459 patients with hip fracture treated at our hospital from 1997, 430 patients aged 65 years or above at the time of injury were studied.

A simple scoring system to predict ambulation prognosis after hip fracture in the elderly.

Introduction: We conducted a study on elderly patients with hip fracture to examine whether it is possible to predict the ambulation status of these patients upon hospital discharge.

Material And Methods: One hundred and eighty six patients with femoral neck or trochanteric fracture, who were ambulant prior to fracture, were studied. Thirteen factors that may affect walking ability were selected and subjected to multivariate analysis.

Prospective analysis of clinical evaluation and self-assessment by patients after decompression surgery for degenerative lumbar canal stenosis.

Background Context: Objective measures including neurological findings, radiographic evaluation, and the Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) score are commonly used for the evaluation of surgical outcomes. Because many surgeries are performed primarily to improve quality of life, a patient's subjective evaluations are also important for accurately assessing surgical outcomes. Currently available instruments for assessing quality of life include the Short-Form 36 (F-36), the Oswestry disability index (ODI), and the visual analog scale (VAS) clinical pain scale.

Pseudogout attack induced during etidronate disodium therapy.

We report the first case of pseudogout attack in the distal interphalangeal (DIP) joints during etidronate disodium therapy. A 64-year-old woman had intermittent administration of etidronate disodium (Didronel; Sumitomo, Osaka, Japan) alone because of osteoporosis. Each cycle consisted of a daily dose of 200 mg for 2 weeks, repeating every 12 weeks.

Arthroscopic surgery for septic arthritis of the hip joint in 4 adults.

PURPOSE: Arthroscopic surgery for septic coxarthritis has not become a well-established technique despite its minimally invasive nature. The authors performed arthroscopic surgery and intraoperative high-volume irrigation on 4 adult patients with septic coxarthritis. This minimally invasive procedure was successful in treating these patients, and there was no recurrence of arthritis or other complications.