Radiographic assessment of the thickness lost from polyethylene tibial inserts that had been sterilized differently.

Background: Archived serial radiographs of knee replacements provide indirect evidence of the clinical performance of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene tibial bearings. Our purpose was to determine the loss of thickness in polyethylene tibial inserts that were of the same design but had been sterilized differently.

Methods: Four hundred and sixteen knees with an Anatomic Modular Knee primary total knee replacement had five to eighteen years of follow-up and a posterior cruciate ligament-retaining polyethylene tibial insert that had been sterilized with either gamma radiation in air (from 1987 to 1993) or gamma radiation in an inert gas (from 1993 to 1995), or by means of a nonirradiation gas-plasma method (from 1995 to 2001).

Pronator quadratus space and compartment syndrome after low-energy fracture of the distal radius: a case report.

Acute compartment syndrome following fracture of the distal radius occurs in less than 1% of cases, but if the diagnosis is delayed, the potential consequences may be devastating. The majority of the cases involve high-energy injuries in young patients, and increasing pain "out of proportion to the injury sustained" is a constant finding and constitutes the hallmark of the diagnosis. This case report describes a rare presentation of an acute compartment syndrome in the forearm and wrist after fracture of the distal radius that developed in the absence of acute pain symptoms, in an older individual, and in the context of a low-energy injury.

Ultrasound in the diagnosis of a median neuropathy in the forearm: case report.

Background: Electrodiagnostic studies are traditionally used in the diagnosis of focal neuropathies, however they lack anatomical information regarding the nerve and its surrounding structures. The purpose of this case is to show that high-resolution ultrasound used as an adjunct to electrodiagnostic studies may complement this lack of information and give insight to the cause.

Case Presentation: A 60-year-old male patient sustained a forearm traction injury resulting in progressive weakness and functional loss in the first three digits of the right hand.

A randomized prospective evaluation of outcomes after total hip arthroplasty using cross-linked marathon and non-cross-linked Enduron polyethylene liners.

Cross-linked liners were introduced with the promise that they would substantially reduce polyethylene wear. In 1999, our institution initiated a prospective study to compare the outcome of total hip arthroplasty patients who were randomized to non-cross-linked Enduron liners with that of total hip arthroplasty patients who were randomized to Marathon polyethylene liners that had been cross-linked with 5 Mrad (50 kGy) of gamma-irradiation and heat-treated to eliminate free radicals. At a mean follow-up of 5.

Osteolysis after total knee arthroplasty: influence of tibial baseplate surface finish and sterilization of polyethylene insert. Findings at five to ten years postoperatively.

Background: Debris displaced from the articular and backside surfaces of the polyethylene inserts of modular tibial components is considered a chief cause of osteolysis at the sites of total knee arthroplasties. One design of total knee replacement featured changes, over time, in the proximal surface roughness of the tibial baseplate and the method of sterilization of the polyethylene insert. We hypothesized that polishing the baseplate surface and sterilizing the insert with means other than gamma radiation in air had reduced the prevalence of osteolysis.

The effect of total hip arthroplasty cup design on polyethylene wear rate.

Using 743 total hip arthroplasties that included 6 hemispheric porous-coated cup designs, this study used a multiple linear regression to identify those factors that influenced polyethylene wear rates. Wear rates for each hip were based on serial head penetration measurement made with computer-assisted techniques. Implant factors associated with an increased wear rate included terminal sterilization with a non-cross-linking chemical surface treatment, a 4-mm lateralized liner, a cobalt-chrome femoral head, and a longer shelf life for liners gamma-irradiated in air.