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Background: Delivering uninterrupted cancer treatment to patients with musculoskeletal tumors has been essential during the rapidly evolving coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, as delays in management can be detrimental. Currently, the risk of contracting COVID-19 in hospitals when admitted for surgery and the susceptibility due to adjuvant therapies and associated mortality due to COVID-19 is unknown, but knowledge of these potential risks would help treating clinicians provide appropriate cancer care.Questions/purposes: (1) What is the risk of hospital-acquired COVID-19 in patients with musculoskeletal tumors admitted for surgery during the initial period of the pandemic? (2) What is the associated mortality in patients with musculoskeletal tumors who have contracted COVID-19? (3) Are patients with musculoskeletal tumors who have had neoadjuvant therapy (chemotherapy or radiation) preoperatively at an increased risk of contracting COVID-19? (4) Is a higher American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) grade in patients with musculoskeletal tumors associated with an increased risk of contracting COVID-19 when admitted to the hospital for surgery?Methods: This retrospective, observational study analyzed patients with musculoskeletal tumors who underwent surgery in one of eight specialist centers in the United Kingdom, which included the five designated cancer centers in England, one specialist soft tissue sarcoma center, and two centers from Scotland between March 12, 2020 and May 20, 2020. A total of 347 patients were included, with a median (range) age of 53 years (10 to 94); 60% (207 of 347) were men, and the median ASA grade was II (I to IV). These patients had a median hospital stay of 8 days (0 to 53). Eighteen percent (61 of 347) of patients had received neoadjuvant therapy (8% [27] chemotherapy, 8% [28] radiation, 2% [6] chemotherapy and radiation) preoperatively. The decision to undergo surgery was made in adherence with United Kingdom National Health Service and national orthopaedic oncology guidelines, but specific data with regard to the number of patients within each category are not known. Fifty-nine percent (204 of 347) were negative in PCR testing done 48 hours before the surgical procedure; the remaining 41% (143 of 347) were treated before preoperative PCR testing was made mandatory, but these patients were asymptomatic. All patients were followed for 30 days postoperatively, and none were lost to follow-up during that period. The primary outcome of the study was contracting COVID-19 in the hospital after admission. The secondary outcome was associated mortality after contracting COVID-19 within 30 days of the surgical procedure. In addition, we assessed whether there is any association between ASA grade or neoadjuvant treatment and the chances of contracting COVID-19 in the hospital. Electronic patient record system and simple descriptive statistics were used to analyze both outcomes.Results: Four percent (12 of 347) of patients contracted COVID-19 in the hospital, and 1% (4 of 347) of patients died because of COVID-19-related complications. Patients with musculoskeletal tumors who contracted COVID-19 had increased mortality compared with patients who were asymptomatic or tested negative (odds ratio 55.33 [95% CI 10.60 to 289.01]; p < 0.001).With the numbers we had, we could not show that adjuvant therapy had any association with contracting COVID-19 while in the hospital (OR 0.94 [95% CI 0.20 to 4.38]; p = 0.93). Increased ASA grade was associated with an increased likelihood of contracting COVID-19 (OR 58 [95% CI 5 to 626]; p < 0.001).Conclusion: Our results show that surgeons must be mindful and inform patients that those with musculoskeletal tumors are at risk of contracting COVID-19 while admitted to the hospital and some may succumb to it. Hospital administrators and governmental agencies should be aware that operations on patients with lower ASA grade appear to have lower risk and should consider restructuring service delivery to ensure that procedures are performed in designated COVID-19-restricted sites. These measures may reduce the likelihood of patients contracting the virus in the hospital, although we cannot confirm a benefit from this study. Future studies should seek to identify factors influencing these outcomes and also compare surgical complications in those patients with and without COVID-19.Level Of Evidence: Level III, therapeutic study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patient-reported outcome measures are tools that allow clinicians and researchers to gauge patients' level of satisfaction and quality of life after a medical intervention. The use of patient-reported outcome measures and the clinically relevant score differentials over time as they relate to outcomes (minimum clinically important differences) has been proposed as a way to understand success and failure rates in orthopaedics. We conducted a systematic appraisal of literature in peer-reviewed journals and registry reports to measure the use that registries and other large data repositories make of minimum clinically important differences and to understand methodological approaches for such uses. Of the nineteen registry reports and 1052 articles examined, we found that only one report and two studies mentioned the use of patient-reported outcome measures and minimum clinically important differences in the context of revision rates of total knee arthroplasty and total hip arthroplasty. We conclude that although the infrastructure and efforts to routinely collect patient-reported outcome measures at registry levels do exist, there is limited use of minimum clinically important differences to understand and potentially predict clinical outcomes. We suggest advancing the global infrastructure such as the International Consortium of Orthopaedic Registries to address how research related to patient-reported outcome measures can help individual registries collaborate in the development of tools and allow aggregation of data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The pathogenesis of tendinopathy is complex and incompletely understood. Although significant advances have been made in terms of understanding the pathological changes in both the extracellular matrix and the cells involved, relatively little is known about the role of neuronal regulation in tendinopathy. The frequent mismatch between tendon pathology and pain may be explained, in part, by differences in the peripheral neuronal phenotype of patients. Questions/purposes: The primary purpose of this review was to determine whether evidence exists of changes in the peripheral neuronal phenotype in painful human tendinopathy and, if so, to identify the associated histological and molecular changes. The secondary purpose was to determine if any changes in the peripheral neuronal phenotype reported correlate with pain symptoms. Methods: We conducted a systematic review of the scientific literature using the PRISMA and Cochrane guidelines. The Medline and Embase databases were searched using specific search criteria. Only studies analyzing the peripheral tissue of patients with the clinical diagnosis of tendinopathy were included. Inclusion was agreed on by two independent researchers on review of abstracts or full text. Results: Overall in the 27 included studies, there was clear evidence of changes in the peripheral neuronal phenotype in painful human tendinopathy. The excitatory glutaminergic system was significantly upregulated in seven studies, there was a significant increase in sensory neuropeptide expression in four studies, and there were significant changes in the molecular morphology of tenocytes, blood vessels, and nerves. In rotator cuff tendinopathy, substance P has been shown to correlate with pain and the neural density in the subacromial bursa has been shown to correlate with rest pain. Conclusions: The peripheral neuronal phenotype is an important factor in the pathogenesis of painful human tendinopathy. Further research in this area specifically correlating tissue changes to clinical scores has great potential in further developing our understanding of the disease process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There is an evolving interest in shoulder ultrasound performed by orthopaedic surgeons as part of routine clinical assessment of the rotator cuff in a so-called one-stop clinic. This study investigated the accuracy of ultrasound assessment of rotator cuff integrity performed by orthopaedic surgeons without prior experience of ultrasound who were following our proposed learning protocol. Methods: We studied four surgeons without previous experience with shoulder ultrasound and monitored their ability to evaluate rotator cuff integrity using ultrasound compared with findings at arthroscopy. The surgeons attended a formal training course and were taught a protocol to identify and size full-thickness tears of the rotator cuff. The surgeons performed preoperative scans on the day that patients underwent shoulder arthroscopy. This allowed the surgeons to receive same-day feedback with comparison of arthroscopic images and ultrasound images. Results: One hundred and fifty-nine shoulders were scanned by the surgeons in the study. In the initial training period, surgeons who performed >100 scans demonstrated a sensitivity of 94% and a specificity of 88% (a positive predictive value of 79% and a negative predictive value of 97%) for the identification of a full-thickness tear and agreed with intraoperative sizing of the defect in 84% of the scans. In the later training period, the predictive values showed a sensitivity of 90% and a specificity of 97% (a positive predictive value of 95% and a negative predictive value of 94%) for the identification of a full-thickness tear and agreement with intraoperative sizing for 95% of the scans. Conclusions: The predictive values obtained in this study for the evaluation of rotator cuff integrity were comparable with published results from experienced radiologists. This study demonstrates the capacity of our proposed learning protocol to train surgeons without previous ultrasound experience to reliably evaluate rotator cuff integrity using ultrasound within fifty to 100 scans. Level of Evidence: Diagnostic Level I. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are considered the most robust design for evaluating health care interventions. However, it is difficult to acquire funding for RCTs, and they are complex to set up. Threats to their successful conduct and impact on clinical practice, particularly in surgical trials, include problems with recruitment, notably in terms of clinical equipoise and patient acceptability. Historically, RCTs are less common in surgical specialties, and their contribution to the orthopaedic literature remains small. Orthopaedic networks, such as orthopaedic associations, specialist societies, travel fellowships, and clinical research networks, provide an opportunity to meet the challenges of promoting RCTs in orthopaedic clinical practice. This can include identifying important research questions to help prioritize funding; educating and training surgeons in the design and practice of RCTs; helping to promote and coordinate RCTs; and disseminating the findings of RCTs. Orthopaedic trial networks should be encouraged to promote a research culture in which RCTs are feasible and to ensure that scarce resources utilized to support their funding are used most efficiently and to best effect. In particular, the use of networks is encouraged to support the conduct of RCTs in achieving patient recruitment, which is crucial in providing the evidence base to inform orthopaedic practice. Furthermore, to improve generalizability, acceptance of study findings and communication between orthopaedic surgeons, as well as international collaboration in trials, should be part of the strategy for the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To examine CD4 cell responses to combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) in patients enrolled in the Australian HIV Observational Database who commenced cART at CD4 cell counts >350 cells per microliter.CD4 cell counts were modelled using random effects, repeated measurement models in 432 HIV-infected adults from Australian HIV Observational Database who commenced their first cART regimen and had a baseline CD4 count >350 cells per microliter. Using published AIDS and/or death incidence rates combined with the data summarized by time and predicted CD4 cell count, we calculated the expected reduction in risk of an event for different starting baseline CD4 strata.Mean CD4 counts increased above 500 cells per microliter in all baseline CD4 strata by 12 months (means of 596, 717, and 881 cells/μL in baseline CD4 strata 351-500, 501-650, and >650 cells/μL, respectively) and after 72 months since initiating cART, mean CD4 cell counts (by increasing baseline CD4 strata) were 689, 746, 742 cells per microliter. The expected reduction in risk of mortality for baseline CD4 counts >650 cells per microliter relative to 351-500 cells per microliter was approximately 8%, an absolute risk reduction 0.33 per 1000 treated patient-years.Patients starting cART at high CD4 cell counts (>650 cells/μL) tend to maintain this immunological level over 6 years of follow-up. Patients starting from 351 to 500 CD4 cells per microliter achieve levels of >650 cells per microliter after approximately 3 years of cART. Initiating cART with a baseline CD4 count 501-650 or >650 cells per microliter relative to 351-500 cells per microliter indicated a minimal reduction in risk of AIDS incidence and/or death. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the role of two genes, ANKH and TNAP, in patients with cuff tear arthropathy. These genes encode proteins which regulate the extracellular concentration of inorganic pyrophosphate, fluctuations of which can lead to calcium crystal formation. Variants were detected by direct sequencing of DNA and their frequencies compared with healthy controls. The effect of variants on protein function was further studied by in vitro approaches. Variant genotypes were observed more frequently in the cases when compared with controls in ANKH (45% and 20%) and TNAP (32% and 9%). Variants in ANKH altered inorganic pyrophosphate (PPi) concentrations in transfected human chondrocytes. There was a higher mean serum concentration of TNAP detected in female patients compared with normal ranges. Cuff tear arthropathy is associated with variants in ANKH and TNAP that alter extracellular inorganic pyrophosphate concentrations causing calcium crystal deposition. This supports a theory that genetic variants predispose patients to primary crystal deposition which when combined with a massive rotator cuff tear leads to the development of arthritis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As the English-language literature on prosthetic elbow arthroplasty contains only two comparative studies of implants in contemporary use, to our knowledge, comparisons of prosthetic performance is difficult. An improved knowledge of comparative outcomes would be valuable in guiding implant selection.Methods: We identified three groups of consecutive patients who had undergone prosthetic elbow arthroplasty with the Souter-Strathclyde, Kudo, or Coonrad-Morrey implant for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. There were thirty-three elbows in each group. All procedures were done by or under the supervision of one surgeon. Surviving patients in whom the elbow had not been revised were followed for a mean of sixty-one months after treatment with the Souter-Strathclyde implant, sixty-seven months after treatment with the Kudo implant, and sixty-eight months after treatment with the Coonrad-Morrey implant. Clinical function was assessed on the basis of pain relief and the range of flexion. Survivorship was assessed with use of a life-table method, with revision surgery and radiographic signs of loosening as the end points.Results: The groups were comparable in terms of age, sex, and mean duration of follow-up. All three implant procedures relieved pain. Sustained improvement in the range of flexion was comparable among the three groups, with no implant procedure dramatically changing the fixed flexion deformity and all three improving maximum flexion. Revision surgery was needed because of infection, dislocation, and aseptic loosening. Survival of the Coonrad-Morrey implant was better than that of the other two implants. The five-year survival rates, with revision and radiographic signs of loosening as the end points, were 85% and 81% for the Souter-Strathclyde implant, 93% and 82% for the Kudo implant, and 90% and 86% for the Coonrad-Morrey implant. While radiographic evidence of loosening of the Coonrad-Morrey implants was less common, we noted focal osteolysis adjacent to 16% of these ulnar components and half of these cases progressed to frank loosening.Conclusions: The clinical function of these implants was similar in terms of pain relief and range of motion. We believe that component linkage with the Coonrad-Morrey implant prevents dislocation without increasing the risk of loosening. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the cardiovascular risk factors in HIV-infected patients. Diabetes mellitus and insulin resistance; Estimating cardiovascular risk; Treating cardiovascular risk.

Describes an objective lipodystrophy severity grading scale derived from the lipodystrophy case definition score (LCDS). LDCD score as the best objective measure of lipodystrophy severity; Data showing that the LDCD score and its derived lipodystrophy grading scale merit prospective evaluation.

The article presents a study on the efficiency of the combination of corticosteroid injection plus exercise and manual therapy compared to manual therapy alone. It states that the combined treatment of corticosteroid injection plus exercise and manual therapy were allocated to 232 patients with unilateral shoulder pain. The results reveal that the patients who were introduced to the combined treatment had shown greater improvement compared with the exercise-alone group at one and six weeks.