The 23-hour total joint

Maureen Leahy

Performing total hips in an ambulatory surgery center What if you could offer joint replacement patients surgery that gets them walking within hours instead of days and doesn’t require costly overnight stays in a hospital? Advances in surgical technique, implant technology, and improved anesthesia and pain protocols are enabling some surgeons to perform reconstructive surgeries in ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs).

Second Look— Clinical News and Views

If you missed these Headline News Now items the first time around, AAOS Now gives you a second chance to review them. Headline News Now—the AAOS thrice-weekly, online update of news of interest to orthopaedic surgeons—brings you the latest on clinical, socioeconomic, and political issues, as well as important announcements from AAOS.

Meetings and Course Listings

Listed below are upcoming continuing medical education (CME) courses and orthopaedic meetings (September through January). For more information about AAOS-sponsored courses, contact the AAOS customer service department at (800) 626-6726 or visit the CME course section of the AAOS Web site. For more information about other CME courses or orthopaedic meetings listed, contact the source provided.

A “worrisome” trend in SLAP repair

Peter Pollack

Young surgeons have high rates of surgery American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery (ABOS) Part II candidates may be performing superior labral tear anterior to posterior (SLAP) repairs at greater rates than they should, leading to poor outcomes and increased complication rates, according to data presented by Stephen C. Weber, MD, at the annual meeting of the Arthroscopy Association of North America. “SLAP lesions are rare injuries,” explained Dr. Weber. “Stephen J.

Who hurts more—and why?

Jennie McKee

Sex and gender may affect pain prevalence and mechanisms “Evidence in the literature suggests that both sex and gender affect clinical pain,” said Linda LeResche, ScD, of the University of Washington. According to Dr. LeResche, certain conditions are more prevalent in women than men, and pain mechanisms may be different between the sexes. Dr.

Graft selection doesn’t affect return to sports

Peter Pollack

Matched case study finds similar outcomes “Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries are increasingly common,” stated Eric Kropf, MD, at the annual meeting of the Arthroscopy Association of North America. “Historically, young athletes have been treated with bone-patellar tendon-bone autografts. Hamstring autograft is finding increased acceptance, but whether either graft consistently returns athletes to pre-injury levels of play is unclear.” Dr.

Prevalence and prescreening for S aureus

Mary Ann Porucznik

Studies examine rates of colonization, effectiveness of detection, eradication Increasing rates of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and methicillin-sensitive S aureus (MSSA) are causing concern among orthopaedic healthcare providers. S aureus is often responsible for hospital-acquired infections, including surgical site infections, and the cost of treating patients infected with resistant strains is substantial.

ACL injury prevention: Does it work?

Study calls for more research on ACL, knee injury prevention programs How effective are prevention programs for knee injuries in young athletes? According to a study presented at the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine (AOSSM) annual meeting, better designed research studies are needed before it can be concluded that specialized training programs can prevent injuries to the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and the knee.

Examining differences in diabetic foot amputation

Jennie McKee

Research finds more amputations in males and higher mortality in women “Diabetes has tremendous economic, societal, and personal costs,” said Monica Peek, MD, MPH, “most of which result from microvascular and macrovascular complications, such as retinopathy, nephropathy, and lower extremity amputations (LEA).” According to Dr. Peek, studies of avoidable hospitalizations for diabetes-related LEA have found consistent patterns of differences between the sexes.

What’s your Diagnosis?

In this feature, AAOS Now publishes a series of images, challenging readers to diagnose the condition depicted. These images appeared in the July 2010 issue and were submitted by Stephen A. Albanese, MD, and Timothy A. Damron, MD. The patient is a 13-year old girl with a 7-month history of right shoulder pain. The bone scan (not pictured) showed increased uptake in the right proximal humerus. According to Michael H. McGuire, MD, the correct answer is “Chondroblastoma of the proximal humerus.

Devascularizing spinal metastases

Maureen Leahy

Preoperative embolization minimizes blood loss, improves visualization As cancer patients live longer, the incidence of spinal metastases is likely to increase. These lesions can be painful and are often hypervascular, making surgical treatment to control the pain or preserve function a challenge. Preoperative embolization has been effective in devascularizing spinal metastases and reducing bleeding complications during surgery by improving visualization.