Immediate Postoperative Weightbearing Following Arthroscopic Bone Marrow Stimulation for Talar Osteochondral Lesions: A Matched Cohort Study

Background:Bone marrow stimulation (BMS) is the most frequently performed surgical procedure for osteochondral lesions of the talus (OLTs). After the surgical intervention, one of the first goals of rehabilitation is to resume weightbearing. This study aims to compare clinical and radiologic outcomes between immediate weightbearing and delayed weightbearing, which represent unrestricted weightbearing and weightbearing starting at 6 weeks postoperatively.Methods:All patients who underwent BMS for their OLT between July 2019 and September 2022 in our clinic were screened for eligibility. Patients were retrospectively included with prospective collected data and were matched into 2 groups, the immediate weightbearing group or the delayed weightbearing group. The following variables were used for matching: age, gender, side, lesion size (volume and surface measured on CT scans), primary or nonprimary lesion, body mass index (BMI) and the numeric rating scale (NRS) of pain during walking. The primary outcome of this study is the comparison of the change in NRS of pain during walking between baseline and 12 months postoperatively, between both groups. Secondary outcomes consist of change in the NRS of pain during running, NRS pain during stairclimbing, NRS pain during rest, 36-Item Short Form Health Survey, Foot and Ankle Outcome Score, return to work, return to sport, and radiologic outcomes between both groups at 12 months.Results:After matching, 13 patients per group were included. Both groups showed improvement in NRS pain during walking from baseline to 12 months postoperatively. The difference in change scores between immediate and delayed weightbearing was not statistically significant (P = .57, 95% CI −3.25 to 1.86). A higher proportion of patients in the immediate weightbearing group exceeded the minimal clinically important difference threshold of 2 points compared with the delayed group (OR = 1.9, 95% CI 0.30-11.7), although this was not statistically significant. No significant between-group differences were observed in secondary clinical or radiologic outcomes, nor in return-to-work or return-to-sport rates.Conclusion:This matched cohort study found no statistically significant difference in clinical or radiologic outcomes at 12 months between immediate and delayed weightbearing following arthroscopic BMS for talar osteochondral lesions. Although early weightbearing may be feasible and well tolerated, the small sample size and wide CIs limit the strength of conclusions. These findings should be considered hypothesis-generating and underscore the need for larger, prospective trials.

Osteochondral lesions of the talar dome in the athlete: what evidence leads to which treatment

Osteochondral lesions of the talus is one of the challenging diseases in sports medicine. Conservative treatment is often used in pediatric patients. Surgical options are often applied for adult populations whose symptoms may persist with conservative treatment. The current surgical options include arthroscopic subchondral bone marrow stimulation, autologous chondrocyte implantation, autologous osteochondral transplantation, allograft cartilage transplantation or particulated juvenile cartilage allograft transplantation. Arthroscopic bone marrow stimulation (especially microfracture) is the first-line treatment for smaller noncystic lesions. The short- and medium-term of clinical results is good; however, there is a lack of long-term evidence. Autologous osteochondral transplantation applied for lesions with greater area or for cystic lesions. It has showed good short- to medium-term results. However, the subchondral cysts and donor site complication often occurred after surgery. Recent developments have reported the clinical effectiveness of the biological adjuncts such as platelet-rich plasma and concentrated bone marrow aspirate. The purpose of this article is to review the treatment of osteochondral lesions of the talus so that more efficiently treatment strategies can be used by clinicians. Key words: Talus; Cartilage; Injuries; Treatment

Ocular Adverse Events after Coronavirus Disease 2019 mRNA Vaccination: Matched Cohort and Self-Controlled Case Series Studies Using a Large Database

Arthroscopic Bone Marrow Stimulation and Concentrated Bone Marrow Aspirate for Osteochondral Lesions of the Talus: A Case-Control Study of Functional and Magnetic Resonance Observation of Cartilage Repair Tissue Outcomes

PurposeAlthough bone marrow stimulation (BMS) as a treatment for osteochondral lesions of the talus (OCLT) shows high rates of sport resumption at short-term follow-up, it is unclear whether the sports activity is still possible at longer follow-up. The purpose of this study was, therefore, to evaluate sports activity after arthroscopic BMS at long-term follow-up.MethodsSixty patients included in a previously published randomized-controlled trial were analyzed in the present study. All patients had undergone arthroscopic debridement and BMS for OCLT. Return to sports, level, and type were assessed in the first year post-operative and at final follow-up. Secondary outcome measures were assessed by standardized questionnaires with use of numeric rating scales for pain and satisfaction and the Foot and Ankle Outcome Score (FAOS).ResultsThe mean follow-up was 6.4 years (SD ± 1.1 years). The mean level of activity measured with the AAS was 6.2 pre-injury and 3.4 post-injury. It increased to 5.2 at 1 year after surgery and was 5.8 at final follow-up. At final follow-up, 54 patients (90%) participated in 16 different sports. Thirty-three patients (53%) indicated they returned to play sport at their pre-injury level. Twenty patients (33%) were not able to obtain their pre-injury level of sport because of ankle problems and eight other patients (13%) because of other reasons. Mean NRS for pain during rest was 2.7 pre-operative, 1.1 at 1 year, and 1.0 at final follow-up. Mean NRS during activity changed from 7.9 to 3.7 to 4.4, respectively. The FAOS scores improved at 1 year follow-up, but all subscores significantly decreased at final follow-up.ConclusionAt long-term follow-up (mean 6.4 years) after BMS for OCLT, 90% of patients still participate in sports activities, of whom 53% at pre-injury level. The AAS of the patients participating in sports remains similar pre-injury and post-operatively at final follow-up. A decrease over time in clinical outcomes was, however, seen when the follow-up scores at 1 year post-operatively were compared with the final follow-up.Level of evidenceLevel II.

Risk of acute myocardial infarction and ischaemic stroke following COVID-19 in Sweden: a self-controlled case series and matched cohort study

Pediatric Health and System Impacts of Mass Incarceration, 2009–2020: A Matched Cohort Study

IntroductionDespite increasing numbers of working‐age cancer survivors, evidence on their future work‐related circumstances is limited. This study examined their future sick leave, disability pension, and unemployment benefits compared to matched cancer‐free individuals.MethodsA matched cohort study was conducted using nationwide Swedish registers. In total, 94,411 individuals aged 25 to 59 years when diagnosed with incident cancer in 2001–2012 and who returned to work after cancer were compared with their matched cancer‐free individuals (N = 354,814). Follow‐up started from the year before cancer diagnosis and continued up to 14 years. Generalized estimating equations were used to calculate incidence rate ratios (IRR) and odds ratios for the difference between cancer survivors and matched cancer‐free individuals.ResultsCompared with cancer‐free individuals, cancer survivors had six times higher sick‐leave days per year after cancer (IRR 6.25 [95% CI, 5.97–6.54] for men; IRR, 5.51 [5.39–5.64] for women). This higher number of sick‐leave days declined over time but a two‐fold difference persisted. An approximate 1.5 times higher risk of receiving disability pension remained during follow‐up. The unemployment days tended to be lower for cancer survivors (IRR, 0.84 [0.75–0.94] for men; IRR, 0.91 [0.86–0.96] for women). Risk of sick leave and disability pension was higher among those with leukemia, colorectal, and breast cancer than skin and genitourinary cancers.ConclusionsCancer survivors who returned to work experienced a high and persisting sick leave and disability pension for over a decade. Prolonged receipt of a high amount of benefits may have long‐term adverse impacts on financial circumstances; more knowledge to promote the environment that encourages returning to and remaining in work is needed.

Following return of spontaneous circulation after cardiac arrest, hypoxic ischemic brain injury is the primary cause of mortality and disability. Goal-directed care using invasive multimodal neuromonitoring has emerged as a possible resuscitation strategy. We evaluated whether goal-directed care was associated with improved neurologic outcome in hypoxic ischemic brain injury patients after cardiac arrest. Retrospective, single-center, matched observational cohort study. Quaternary academic medical center. Adult patients admitted to the ICU following return of spontaneous circulation postcardiac arrest with clinical evidence of hypoxic ischemic brain injury defined as greater than or equal to 10 minutes of cardiac arrest with an unconfounded postresuscitation Glasgow Coma Scale of less than or equal to 8. We compared patients who underwent goal-directed care using invasive neuromonitoring with those treated with standard of care (using both total and matched groups). Goal-directed care patients were matched 1:1 to standard of care patients using propensity scores and exact matching. The primary outcome was a 6-month favorable neurologic outcome (Cerebral Performance Category of 1 or 2). We included 65 patients, of whom 21 received goal-directed care and 44 patients received standard of care. The median age was 50 (interquartile range, 35-61), 48 (74%) were male, and seven (11%) had shockable rhythms. Favorable neurologic outcome at 6 months was significantly greater in the goal-directed care group (n = 9/21 [43%]) compared with the matched (n = 2/21 [10%], p = 0.016) and total (n = 8/44 [18%], p = 0.034) standard of care groups. Goal-directed care group patients had higher mean arterial pressure (p < 0.001 vs total; p = 0.0060 vs matched) and lower temperature (p = 0.007 vs total; p = 0.041 vs matched). In this preliminary study of patients with hypoxic ischemic brain injury postcardiac arrest, goal-directed care guided by invasive neuromonitoring was associated with a 6-month favorable neurologic outcome (Cerebral Performance Category 1 or 2) versus standard of care. Significant work is required to confirm this finding in a prospectively designed study.

Little information is available on the relative tolerability of ceftaroline versus other cephalosporins in clinical practice. We sought to compare adverse drug reactions (ADRs) associated with ceftaroline with those associated with ceftriaxone in hospitalized patients. This was a retrospective, single-center matched cohort (according to age, indication, and duration) study of patients treated with ceftaroline or ceftriaxone at the VA St Louis Health Care System between 29 October 2010 and 28 March 2017, to compare rates of ADRs between the agents. Patients included received ≥2 doses of either medication to treat osteomyelitis, acute bacterial skin and skin structure infection, blood stream infection, pneumonia, infective endocarditis, septic arthritis, prosthetic joint infection, or empyema. The primary and secondary outcomes were the composite of any ADR during therapy and any ADR leading to premature discontinuation of therapy. The ADRs evaluated included rash, neutropenia, acute kidney injury, eosinophilia, thrombocytopenia, transaminitis, and hyperbilirubinemia. After matching, 50 patients per group were included and analyzed. An ADR occurred in 20% (10 of 50) of patients treated with ceftriaxone and 16% (8 of 50) of those treated with ceftaroline (P = .60). Two percent (1 of 50) of those treated with ceftriaxone and 16% (8 of 50) treated with ceftaroline had therapy discontinued owing to an ADR (P = .03). The most common ADR was eosinophilia (3 of 50) in the ceftriaxone group and rash (5 of 50) in the ceftaroline group. Ceftaroline therapy was identified as an independent risk factor for an ADR requiring premature discontinuation (odds ratio, 10.2; 95% confidence interval, 1.19-87.8; P = .03). Although there was no difference in the rates of ADRs between patients in the ceftriaxone and ceftaroline groups, significantly more ceftaroline-treated patients required premature discontinuation.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is associated with a range of serious comorbidities. This study was undertaken to investigate whether people with OSA are more likely to develop gout, in the short and long term, compared to those without OSA. A matched retrospective cohort study was undertaken using the UK Clinical Practice Research Datalink. Individuals age ≥18 years who received a diagnosis of OSA between 1990 and 2010 were identified and matched on age, sex, and practice with up to 4 individuals without OSA; follow-up was until the end of 2015. Hazard ratios (HRs) were estimated using Cox regression adjusted for general health, lifestyle, and comorbidity characteristics. The risk of developing gout was assessed at different time points, and the body mass index (BMI) category-specific results were presented. The study sample included 15,879 patients with OSA and 63,296 without. The median follow-up was 5.8 years. We found that 4.9% of patients with OSA and 2.6% of patients without the disorder developed gout. The incidence rate per 1,000 person-years was 7.83 (95% confidence interval [95% CI] 7.29-8.40) and 4.03 (95% CI 3.84-4.23) among those with and without OSA, respectively. The adjusted HR was 1.42 (95% CI 1.29-1.56). The risk of developing gout among OSA patients compared to those without was highest 1-2 years after the index date (HR 1.64 [95% CI 1.30-2.06]). This finding persisted among those who were overweight and obese. For those with normal BMI, the highest significant HR (2.02 [95% CI 1.13-3.62]) was observed at 2-5 years after the index date. In this study, patients with OSA continued to be at higher risk of developing gout beyond the first year following the diagnosis. Our results further indicate that peak incidences of gout vary according to BMI.

BackgroundOutpatient anesthesia clinics are well established in North America, Europe and Australia, but few economic evaluations have been published. The Perioperative Systems in Hong Kong are best described as a hybrid model of the new and old systems of surgical care. In this matched cohort study, we compared the costs and effects of an outpatient anesthesia clinic (OPAC) with the conventional system of admitting patients to the ward a day before surgery for their pre-anesthesia consultation. A second objective of the study was to determine the patient’s median Willingness To Pay (WTP) value for an OPAC.MethodsA total of 352 patients were matched (1:1) on their elective surgical procedure to either the clinic group or to the conventional group. The primary outcome was quality of recovery score and overall perioperative treatment cost (US$). To detect a difference in the joint cost-effect relationship between groups, a cost-effectiveness acceptability curve (CEAC) was drawn. A modified Poisson regression model was used to examine the factors associated with patients willing to pay more than the median WTP value for an OPAC.ResultsThe quality of recovery scores on the first day after surgery between the clinic and conventional groups were similar (mean difference, -0.1; 95% confidence interval (CI), -0.6 to 0.3; P = 0.57). Although the preoperative costs were less in the clinic group (mean difference, -$463, 95% CI, -$648 to -$278 per patient; P <0.001), the total perioperative cost was similar between groups (mean difference, -$172; 95% CI, -$684 to $340 per patient; P = 0.51). The CEAC showed that we could not be 95% confident that the clinic was cost-effective. Compared to the conventional group, clinic patients were three times more likely to prefer OPAC care (relative risk (RR) 2.75, 95% CI, 2.13 to 3.55; P <0.001) and pay more than the median WTP (US$13) for a clinic consultation (RR 3.27, 95% CI, 2.32 to 4.64; P <0.001).ConclusionsThere is uncertainty about the cost-effectiveness of an OPAC in the Hong Kong setting. Most clinic patients were willing to pay a small amount for an anesthesia clinic consultation.

Category: Arthroscopy Introduction/Purpose: The arthroscopic bone marrow stimulation (ABMS) technique is the first-line procedure for the treatment of osteochondral lesions of the talus (OLT). Recently, T2 mapping was used to evaluate repair cartilage tissue, but the prognostic factors for T2 values after ABMS have never been clarified. Some patients have OLT with sclerotic changes in the subchondral bone, and several articles have suggested that the subchondral bone condition affects the condition of the articular cartilage. Furthermore, subchondral bone sclerosis (SBC) was found to be associated with an inferior outcome after ABMS.The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between subchondral bone sclerotic changes and repair tissue T2 values on MRI after ABMS. Methods: Twenty ankles in 20 patients treated with ABMS for OLT were evaluated. The patients included 7 males and 13 females (age, 30.52±21.44 years, lesion length 10.4±3.0mm, lesion area 55.7±26.5mm2). Repair tissue was assessed using a 3T MRI unit, and T2 maps were calculated at the one-year post-ABMS follow up. The patients were divided into two groups; with SBC and without SBC on pre-ABMS CT images. We investigated the relationship between T2 values and SBC. Clinical results were measured using the Japanese Society for Surgery of the Foot (JSSF) Ankle-Hindfoot Scale. Results: No significant mean differences were found in T2 values or JSSF scores between the with SBC and without SBC groups post-ABMS (T2 values; 48.2±3.3ms vs. 50.1±2.9ms, P=0.7 / JSSF scale score; 89.4±5.8 points vs. 93.3±8.2 points, P=0.25). Lesion length was correlated with the T2 values of repair tissue (Length; r=0.3 P=0.01). Age and BMI were not significantly correlated with T2 values of the repair tissue. Conclusion: The presence of SBC prior to ABMS did not affect the T2 values of repair tissue after ABMS. However, we believe that lesion size affected the condition of the repair tissue.

BackgroundProton Pump Inhibitors (PPI) are among the most commonly used drugs to treat acid-related gastrointestinal disorders in the USA. Although PPI use has been linked to acute interstitial nephritis, the side effects of post-hospitalization acute kidney injury (AKI) and the progression of kidney disease still are controversial. We conducted a matched cohort study to examine the associations between PPI use and the side effects, especially in post-hospitalization AKI.MethodsWe investigated 340 participants from the multicenter, prospective, matched-cohort ASSESS-AKI study, which enrolled participants from December 2009 to February 2015. After the baseline index hospitalization, follow-up visits were conducted every six months, and included a collection of self-reported PPI use by participants. Post-hospitalization AKI was defined as the percentage increase from the nadir to peak inpatient SCr value was ≥ 50% and/or absolute increase ≥ 0.3 mg/dL in peak inpatient serum creatinine compared with baseline outpatient serum creatinine. We applied a zero-inflated negative binomial regression model to test the relationship between PPI use and post-hospitalization AKI. Stratified Cox proportional hazards regression models also were conducted to examine the association between PPI use and the risk of progression of kidney disease.ResultsAfter controlling for demographic variables, baseline co-morbidities and drug use histories, there was no statistically significant association between PPI use and risk of post-hospitalization AKI (risk ratio [RR], 0.91; 95% CI, 0.38 to 1.45). Stratified by AKI status at baseline, no significant relationships were confirmed between PPI use and the risk of recurrent AKI (RR, 0.85; 95% CI, 0.11 to 1.56) or incidence of AKI (RR, 1.01; 95% CI, 0.27 to 1.76). Similar non-significant results also were observed in the association between PPI use and the risk of progression of kidney diseases (Hazard Ratio [HR], 1.49; 95% CI, 0.51 to 4.36).ConclusionPPI use after the index hospitalization was not a significant risk factor for post-hospitalization AKI and progression of kidney diseases, regardless of the AKI status of participants at baseline.