Associated correction of forefoot alignment with hindfoot fusion for pes planovalgus deformity.

Background: The present study aimed to investigate changes in hallux alignment after corrective surgery for adult-acquired flatfoot deformity (AAFD).

Patients And Methods: The present study retrospectively investigated the changes of hallux alignment in 37 feet (33 patients) which were treated with double or triple arthrodesis of the hindfoot for AAFD between 2015 and 2021 and could be followed up to one year postoperatively.

Results: Hallux valgus (HV) angle significantly decreased by a mean 4.

Systemic inflammatory responses after orthopedic surgery in patients with rheumatoid arthritis treated with tofacitinib.

Objective: To investigate the acute phase response to surgical stress in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treated with tofacitinib, a Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor.

Methods: A retrospective matched pair analysis of 34 patients treated with tofacitinib and 34 patients treated with conventional disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (csDMARDs) was performed. Patients were matched for age, sex, and type of surgery; body temperature, C-reactive protein (CRP) level, and white blood cell (WBC) count, neutrophil count, and lymphocyte count were compared between the tofacitinib and csDMARDs groups within 2 weeks after orthopedic surgery.

Clinical Outcomes After First Metatarsophalangeal Joint Arthrodesis by Flat Cut Joint Preparation With Individual Adjustment for Sagittal Alignment.

Sagittal misalignment is a major cause of patient dissatisfaction and re-operation after first metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joint arthrodesis. The stereotypical application of the fixed angle would be undesirable, especially in cases of flat or cavus foot. We retrospectively reviewed 31 cases (27 patients) in which first MTP joint arthrodesis was performed using the flat cut joint preparation technique with reference to the plantar clearance beneath the pulp of the toe while simulating weightbearing by pushing a board against the sole.

Comparison between suture and staple fixations as internal fixation techniques for Akin osteotomy.

Background: Suture and staple fixations are commonly used methods for Akin osteotomy; however, there has been a paucity of studies comparing these methods without bias.

Patients And Methods: We retrospectively compared the outcomes of 58 Akin osteotomies performed by a single surgeon using suture fixation and 39 Akin osteotomies performed by the same surgeon using staple fixation during the same period.

Results: Bone union at the osteotomy site was achieved in all cases with no cases of complications related to the materials used.

Excision Arthroplasty With Interpositional Achilles Tendon Autograft: A Novel Approach to Talonavicular Joint Osteoarthritis Associated With Ankle Arthrodesis.

Talonavicular joint arthritis is a great concern after ankle fusion. Although arthrodesis is the gold standard treatment for this complication, it could initiate a vicious cycle of further adjacent joint arthritis. An alternative that may delay or eliminate the need for arthrodesis is excision arthroplasty; however, there are only a few reports on its application on a talonavicular joint.

Factors affecting bone union after distal shortening oblique osteotomy of the lesser metatarsals.

There have been few reports on factors affecting bone union after metatarsal osteotomies. The purpose of this study was to clarify the factors affecting bone union after distal shortening oblique osteotomy of the lesser metatarsals. Patients who underwent distal shortening oblique osteotomy of the lesser metatarsals were retrospectively investigated.

Bilateral Stress Fractures of the Talus Associated with Adult-Acquired Flatfoot Deformities.

Adult-acquired flatfoot deformity is a progressive flattening of the arch of the foot that results from posterior tibial tendon insufficiency with a predilection for middle-aged women. A lateralized force vector associated with hindfoot valgus in adult-acquired flatfoot produces lateral ankle pain due to impingement at the lateral hindfoot, which can even lead to stress fractures of the distal fibula. Here, we present the rare case of a 73-year-old woman who presented with stress fractures of the bilateral taluses and unilateral distal fibula accompanied by severe adult-acquired flatfoot deformities.

Wrist Arthrodesis in Rheumatoid Arthritis Using an LCP Metaphyseal Locking Plate versus an AO Wrist Fusion Plate.

Objectives: Although wrist arthrodesis using a plate is an established treatment with a well-documented successful union rate for severely destroyed wrists, plate-related complications are a matter of great concern.

Methods: We retrospectively compared wrist arthrodesis using an AO wrist fusion plate in nine and a locking compression plate (LCP) metaphyseal plate in seven cases of rheumatoid arthritis.

Results: The mean follow-up was 40.

Lateral collapse of the tarsal navicular in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: Implications for pes planovarus deformity.

Objectives: In patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), the talonavicular joint is commonly involved and midfoot collapse can lead to progressive flattening of the arch. Despite a general awareness of the important structural role of the talonavicular joint in rheumatoid foot disease, details of its destructive pattern have not been elucidated.

Methods: We cross-sectionally investigated 176 RA patients (342 feet) and classified their feet into the following five groups according to radiographic findings: arthritis (RA changes with normal navicular shape), Müller-Weiss Disease (MWD) (collapse of the lateral aspect of the tarsal navicular), flat (flattened navicular), ankylosis (ankylosis of the talonavicular joint), and normal.

Radiologic Patterning of Hallux Deformity in Rheumatoid Arthritis and Its Relationship to Flatfoot.

Hallux deformities other than hallux valgus, especially those in the sagittal plane, have not yet been elucidated in the feet of patients with rheumatoid arthritis. The objectives of the present study were to classify rheumatoid arthritis hallux deformity in both the horizontal and the sagittal planes and investigate its relationship with flatfoot. Using a cross-sectional study design, we assessed patients with rheumatoid arthritis (527 feet in 274 patients) using radiographs and classified the deformity patterns of the great toes using cluster analysis.

Severe pes planovalgus successfully treated in a patient with mutilating rheumatoid arthritis using a new surgical approach involving medial malleolar resection and medial displacement of the talus: A case report.

We report the case of a 56-year-old female with mutilating rheumatoid arthritis, who developed severe pes planovalgus. The foot was successfully reconstructed through a combination of osteotomies, including medial displacement of the talus accompanied by resection of the medial malleolus. This maneuver enabled a ∼1-cm medial displacement of the hindfoot while minimizing the adverse effect on forefoot rotation.

Correlation between knee and hindfoot alignment in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: The effects of subtalar joint destruction.

Objectives: Compensatory hindfoot alignment for deformities at the knee level has been demonstrated in patients with knee osteoarthritis. However, this phenomenon has not been elucidated in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between knee deformity and hindfoot alignment and the effect of subtalar joint destruction in patients with RA.

Vertebral fractures affect functional status in postmenopausal rheumatoid arthritis patients.

Functional disability is a major concern in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). This retrospective study investigated the risk factors for vertebral fractures (VFs) in postmenopausal RA patients and determined the impact of VFs on functional status. Data from a cohort of 200 postmenopausal RA patients in a single hospital registry were analyzed.

Zonal gene expression of chondrocytes in osteoarthritic cartilage.

Objective: To determine the chondrocyte metabolism in respective zones of osteoarthritic (OA) cartilage.

Methods: OA cartilage was obtained from macroscopically intact areas of 4 knee joints with end-stage OA. The cartilage was divided into 3 zones, and gene expression profiles were determined in the respective zones by a custom-designed microarray that focused on chondrocyte-related genes.

Proinflammatory role of amphiregulin, an epidermal growth factor family member whose expression is augmented in rheumatoid arthritis patients.

Background: The epidermal growth factor (EGF) and EGF receptor (EGFR) families play important roles in the hyperplastic growth of several tissues as well as tumor growth. Since synovial hyperplasia in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) resembles a tumor, involvement of the EGF/EGFR families in RA pathology has been implied. Although several reports have suggested that ErbB2 is the most important member of the EGFR family for the synovitis in RA, it remains unclear which members of the EGF family are involved.

LIGHT induces cell proliferation and inflammatory responses of rheumatoid arthritis synovial fibroblasts via lymphotoxin beta receptor.

Objective: To investigate the effects of LIGHT (lymphotoxin-like, exhibits inducible expression and competes with herpes simplex virus glycoprotein D for herpes virus entry mediator, a receptor expressed by T lymphocytes) on the proliferation and gene expression of fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLS) from patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Methods: We measured LIGHT levels in RA synovial fluids (SF) by ELISA, and compared them with those in osteoarthritis (OA) SF. Levels of LIGHT and its receptors in RA-FLS and synovium were assessed using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR).

Regional differences in chondrocyte metabolism in osteoarthritis: a detailed analysis by laser capture microdissection.

Objective: To determine the change in metabolic activity of chondrocytes in osteoarthritic (OA) cartilage, considering regional difference and degree of cartilage degeneration.

Methods: OA cartilage was obtained from knee joints with end-stage OA, at both macroscopically intact areas and areas with various degrees of cartilage degeneration. Control cartilage was obtained from age-matched donors.

Production of interleukin-6 and interleukin-8 by nurse-like cells from rheumatoid arthritis patients after stimulation with monocytes.

It has been reported that nurse-like cells (NLCs) play a critical role in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The interaction between NLCs established from RA patients (RA-NLCs), and freshly isolated blood monocytes was analyzed to further elucidate the pathogenesis of RA. RA-NLC lines were established from the synovium of RA patients.

Enlarged psoas muscle and iliopsoas bursitis associated with a rapidly destructive hip in a patient with rheumatoid arthritis.

A 39-year-old man with rheumatoid arthritis developed femoral neuropathy secondary to iliopsoas bursitis. The adjacent hip joint was severely damaged. Magnetic resonance imaging showed enlargement and inflammation of the psoas muscle at the same side of iliopsoas bursitis.

[RANKL vaccination].

A therapeutic vaccine approach, targeting RANKL, can be used to inhibit bone destruction in pathological bone loss conditions such as osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis and bone metastasis. Compared to other therapeutic recombinant protein against pathological antigen such as monoclonal antibodies, soluble receptor or other antagonists, a vaccine needs small doses of protein to induce its affect. Once the immune response is established by vaccination, it is maintained by boosting with the vaccine.

Suppression of T cell responses by chondromodulin I, a cartilage-derived angiogenesis inhibitory factor: therapeutic potential in rheumatoid arthritis.

Objective: Chondromodulin I (ChM-I), a cartilage matrix protein, promotes the growth and proteoglycan synthesis of chondrocytes. However, it also inhibits angiogenesis. Since ChM-I is expressed not only in cartilage, but also in the thymus, we investigated the modulation of T cell function by ChM-I to assess its therapeutic potential in rheumatoid arthritis (RA).