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Study Design: Retrospective Database Study., Objective: Investigate utilization of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP-2) between 2004 and 2014., Summary of Background Data: The utilization, particularly off-label utilization, of BMP-2 has been controversial and debated in the literature. Given the concerns regarding cancer and potential complications, the risk benefit profile of BMP must be weighed with each surgical case. The debate regarding the costs and potential side effects of BMP-2 compared with autologous iliac crest bone harvest has continued., Methods: The National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database was queried for the use of BMP-2 (ICD-9-CM 84.52) between 2004 and 2014 across 44 states. The NIS database represents a 20% sample of discharges, weighted to provide national estimates. BMP-2 utilization rates in spine surgery fusion procedures were calculated as a fraction of the total number of thoracic, lumbar, and sacral spinal fusion surgeries performed each year., Results: Between 2004 and 2014, BMP-2 was utilized in 927,275 spinal fusion surgeries. In 2004, BMP-2 was utilized in 28.3% of all cases (N=48,613). The relative use of BMP-2 in spine fusion surgeries peaked in 2008 at 47.0% (N=112,180). Since then, it has continued to steadily decline with an endpoint of 23.6% of cases in 2014 (N=60,863)., Conclusions: Throughout the United States, the utilization of BMP-2 in thoracolumbar fusion surgeries increased from 28.3% to 47.0% between 2004 and 2008. However, from 2008 to 2014, the utilization of BMP-2 in thoracolumbar spine fusion surgeries decreased significantly from 47.0% to 23.4%. While this study provides information on the utilization of BMP-2 for the entire United States over an 11-year period, further research is needed to the determine the factors affecting these trends., Competing Interests: C.S. has stocks in Vertera Acquisition by Nuvasive and in Gilead. Z.S. has speaking/teaching arrangements with Medtronic and Stryker. A.J.P. has consulted for Globus Medical, United Healthcare and Medtronic. He has also received royalties from Globus Medical. V.M.A. had consulted for Medtronic, Stryker, Zimmer, Camber Spine, Spine Up, Johnson and Johnson and NuVasive. The remaining authors declare no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: The electronic health record (EHR) has become an integral part of modern medical practice. The balance of benefit versus burden of a required EHR remains inconclusive, with many studies identifying increasing physician burnout and less face-to-face patient contact because of increasing documentation demands. Few studies have investigated EHR burden in orthopaedic surgery practice. This study aimed to characterize and compare EHR usage patterns and time allocation within EHR between orthopaedic surgeons, other surgeons, and medicine physicians at an academic medical center., Methods: EHR usage was digitally tracked within a large academic medical center. EHR usage data were compiled for all physicians seeing outpatients from April 2018 to June 2019. The tracking metrics included time spent answering messages, typing notes, reviewing laboratories and imaging, reading notes, and placing orders. Physicians were subdivided between orthopaedic surgeons, other surgeons, and nonsurgeon/medical specialties. Statistical comparisons using a two-sample t-test were done between orthopaedic surgeon EHR usage patterns and other surgeons, in addition to orthopaedic surgeons versus nonsurgeons., Results: One thousand sixty physicians including 28 full-time orthopaedic surgeons, 134 other surgeons, and 898 nonsurgical medicine physicians met inclusion criteria. Orthopaedic surgeons saw on average 31 patients per office day compared with other surgeons at 18 patients per office day (P < 0.01) and nonsurgeons at 12 patients per office day (P < 0.01). Orthopaedic surgeons received more EHR messages while also being more efficient at answering EHR messages compared with other surgeons and nonsurgeons (P < 0.01). EHR tasks, including answering messages, placing orders, chart review, writing notes, and reviewing imaging, consumed 58% of an orthopaedic surgeon's scheduled office day with the largest contribution from required note writing., Discussion: In academic orthopaedic practice, EHR use has surpassed face-to-face patient time, consuming 58% of orthopaedic surgeons' clinical days. With the previously shown correlation between EHR burden and physician burnout, targeted interventions to increase efficiency and off-load EHR burden are necessary to sustain a successful orthopaedic practice., (Copyright © 2021 by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.)

Background: Use of large clinical and administrative databases for orthopaedic research has increased exponentially. Each database represents unique patient populations and varies in their methodology of data acquisition, which makes it possible that similar research questions posed to different databases might result in answers that differ in important ways., Questions/purposes: (1) What are the differences in reported demographics, comorbidities, and complications for patients undergoing primary TKA among four databases commonly used in orthopaedic research? (2) How does the difference in reported complication rates vary depending on whether only inpatient data or 30-day postoperative data are analyzed?, Methods: Patients who underwent primary TKA during 2010 to 2012 were identified within the National Surgical Quality Improvement Programs (NSQIP), the Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS), the Medicare Standard Analytic Files (MED), and the Humana Administrative Claims database (HAC). NSQIP is a clinical registry that captures both inpatient and outpatient events up to 30 days after surgery using clinical reviewers and strict definitions for each variable. The other databases are administrative claims databases with their comorbidity and adverse event data defined by diagnosis and procedure codes used for reimbursement. NIS is limited to inpatient data only, whereas HAC and MED also have outpatient data. The number of patients undergoing primary TKA from each database was 48,248 in HAC, 783,546 in MED, 393,050 in NIS, and 43,220 in NSQIP. NSQIP definitions for comorbidities and surgical complications were matched to corresponding International Classification of Diseases, 9 Revision/Current Procedural Terminology codes and these coding algorithms were used to query NIS, MED, and HAC. Age, sex, comorbidities, and inpatient versus 30-day postoperative complications were compared across the four databases. Given the large sample sizes, statistical significance was often detected for small, clinically unimportant differences; thus, the focus of comparisons was whether the difference reached an absolute difference of twofold to signify an important clinical difference., Results: Although there was a higher proportion of males in NIS and NSQIP and patients in NIS were younger, the difference was slight and well below our predefined threshold for a clinically important difference. There was variation in the prevalence of comorbidities and rates of postoperative complications among databases. The prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and coagulopathy in HAC and MED was more than twice that in NIS and NSQIP (relative risk [RR] for COPD: MED versus NIS 3.1, MED versus NSQIP 4.5, HAC versus NIS 3.6, HAC versus NSQIP 5.3; RR for coagulopathy: MED versus NIS 3.9, MED versus NSQIP 3.1, HAC versus NIS 3.3, HAC versus NSQIP 2.7; p < 0.001 for all comparisons). NSQIP had more than twice the obesity as NIS (RR 0.35). Rates of stroke within 30 days of TKA had more than a twofold difference among all databases (p < 0.001). HAC had more than twice the rates of 30-day complications at all endpoints compared with NSQIP and more than twice the 30-day infections as MED. A comparison of inpatient and 30-day complications rates demonstrated more than twice the amount of wound infections and deep vein thromboses is captured when data are analyzed out to 30 days after TKA (p < 0.001 for all comparisons)., Conclusions: When evaluating research utilizing large databases, one must pay particular attention to the type of database used (administrative claims, clinical registry, or other kinds of databases), time period included, definitions utilized for specific variables, and the population captured to ensure it is best suited for the specific research question. Furthermore, with the advent of bundled payments, policymakers must meticulously consider the data sources used to ensure the data analytics match historical sources., Level of Evidence: Level III, therapeutic study.

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study., Objective: To demonstrate a correlation between radiculopathy symptoms, foraminal morphology, and curve types., Summary of Background Data: Patients with degenerative scoliosis frequently present with foraminal stenosis and radiculopathy, the origin of which is not well understood., Methods: A total of 48 patients (384 foraminas) were included: 14 with low back pain (B); 16 with femoral nerve pain (F); and 18 with sciatic nerve pain (S). The symptomatic foramen of groups F and S were compared with asymptomatic foramina. Alignment was measured from standardized radiographs; 3D-CT reconstructions were used to measure foraminal height and area. Data are presented as mean±SD. The χ, t test, and Pearson coefficients were calculated; as well as interobserver and intraobserver reproducibility (Cohen κ)., Results: Seventeen of the 18 patients with sciatic nerve pain (S) presented foraminal stenosis (<40 mm) at the concavity of the fractional curve distal to the main lumbar structural curve. The symptomatic foramina were significantly smaller in height (7.8±2.5 vs. 12.1±3.1 mm, P<0.0001) and area (30.1±14.3 vs. 57.6±28.7 mm, P<0.0001) compared with asymptomatic foramen; 7/7 patients with femoral nerve pain (F) and lumbar structural curves (apex L3 or lower) had foraminal stenosis at the concavity of the fractional curve. Eight of the 9 patients with femoral nerve pain (F) and thoracic, thoracolumbar, or lumbar (apex L2 or higher) curves, presented foraminal stenosis in the concavity of the caudal fractional curve. The symptomatic foraminal spaces were significantly smaller in height (9.2±3.2 vs. 12.1±3.1 mm, P<0.0001) and area (30.1±15.2 vs. 57.6±28.7 mm, P<0.0001). Foraminal height correlated with foraminal area (r=0.68-0.85; P<0.0001). Interobserver agreement was between 0.6092 and 0.8679., Conclusions: A correlation between curve types and symptomatic foraminal stenosis exists. Adult scoliosis patients with sciatic nerve pain typically present with foraminal stenosis at the concavity of the caudal fractional curve. Similarly, patients with femoral nerve pain present with foraminal stenosis at the concavity of the caudal fractional curve when the main structural curve is thoracic, thoracolumbar, or lumbar (apex L2 or higher).

Background: Infection after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) can result in disastrous consequences. Previous research regarding injections and risk of TKA infection have produced conflicting results and in general have been limited by small cohort size., Questions/purposes: The purpose of this study was to evaluate if intraarticular injection before TKA increases the risk of postoperative infection and to identify if time between injection and TKA affect the risk of TKA infection., Methods: The Humana data set was reviewed from 2007 to 2014 for all patients who received a knee injection before TKA. Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes and laterality modifiers were used to identify patients who underwent knee injection followed by ipsilateral TKA. Postoperative infection within 6 months of TKA was identified using International Classification of Diseases, 9 th Revision/CPT codes that represent two infectious endpoints: any postoperative surgical site infection (encompasses all severities of infection) and operative intervention for TKA infection (surrogate for deep TKA infection). The injection cohort was stratified into 12 subgroups by monthly intervals out to 12 months corresponding to the number of months that had elapsed between injection and TKA. Risk of postoperative infection was compared between the injection and no injection cohorts. In total, 29,603 TKAs (35%) had an injection in the ipsilateral knee before the TKA procedure and 54,081 TKA cases (65%) did not. The PearlDiver database does not currently support line-by-line output of patient data, and so we were unable to perform a multivariate analysis to determine whether other important factors may have varied between the study groups that might have had a differential influence on the risk of infection between those groups. However, the Charlson Comorbidity index was no different between the injection and no injection cohorts (2.9 for both) suggesting similar comorbidity profiles between the groups., Results: The proportion of TKAs developing any postoperative infection was higher among TKAs that received an injection before TKA than in those that did not (4.4% versus 3.6%; odds ratio [OR], 1.23; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.15-1.33; p < 0.001). Likewise, the proportion of TKAs developing infection resulting in return to the operating room after TKA was also higher among TKAs that received an injection before TKA than those that did not (1.49% versus 1.04%; OR, 1.4; 95% CI, 1.3-1.63; p < 0.001). Month-by-month analysis of time between injection and TKA revealed the odds of any postoperative infection remained higher for the injection cohort out to a duration of 6 months between injection and TKA (ORs ranged 1.23 to 1.46 when 1-6 months between injection and TKA; p < 0.05 for all) as did the odds of operative intervention for TKA infection when injection occurred within 7 months of TKA (OR ranged from 1.38 to 1.88 when 1-7 months between injection and TKA; p < 0.05 for all). When the duration between injection and TKA was longer than 6 or 7 months, the ORs were no longer elevated at these endpoints, respectively., Conclusions: Injection before TKA was associated with a higher risk of postoperative infection and appears to be time-dependent with closer proximity between injection and TKA having increased odds of infection. Further research is needed to better evaluate the risk injection before TKA poses for TKA infection; a more definitive relationship could be established with a multivariate analysis to control for other known risk factors for TKA infection., Level of Evidence: Level III, therapeutic study.

Background: A patient who dies during the followup period of a study about total hip arthroplasty (THA) cannot subsequently undergo a revision. The presence of competing events (such as deaths, in a study on implant durability) violates an assumption of the commonly used Kaplan-Meier (KM) survivorship approach. In that setting, KM-based estimates of revision frequencies will be high relative to alternative approaches that account for competing events such as cumulative incidence methods. However, the degree to which this difference is clinically relevant, and the degree to which it affects different ages of patient cohorts, has been poorly characterized in orthopaedic clinical research., Questions/purposes: The purpose of this study was to compare KM with cumulative incidence survivorship estimators to evaluate the degree to which the competing event of death influences the reporting of implant survivorship at long-term followup after THA in patients both younger than and older than 50 years of age., Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 758 cemented THAs from a prospectively maintained single-surgeon registry, who were followed for a minimum of 20 years or until death. Revision rates were compared between those younger than or older than age 50 years using both KM and cumulative incidence methods. Patient survivorship was calculated using KM methods. A total of 21% (23 of 109) of the cohort who were younger than 50 years at the time of THA died during the 20-year followup period compared with 72% (467 of 649) who were older than 50 years at the time of surgery (p < 0.001)., Results: In the cumulative incidence analysis, 19% of the younger than age 50 years cohort underwent a revision for aseptic causes within 20 years as compared with 5% in the older than age 50 years cohort (p < 0.001). The KM method overestimated the risk of revision (23% versus 8.3%, p < 0.001), which represents a 21% and 66% relative increase for the younger than/older than age 50 years groups, respectively., Conclusions: The KM method overestimated the risk of revision compared with the cumulative incidence method, and the difference was particularly notable in the elderly cohort. Future long-term followup studies on elderly cohorts should report results using survivorship curves that take into account the competing risk of patient death. We observed a high attrition rate as a result of patient deaths, and this emphasizes a need for future studies to enroll younger patients to ensure adequate study numbers at final followup., Level of Evidence: Level III, therapeutic study.

Background: Total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA) is an effective treatment for end-stage glenohumeral joint pathology with good long-term results. Previous descriptions of morbidity and blood transfusion in TSA are limited by preoperative risk factors and postoperative complications considered and single-center studies., Questions/purposes: The purpose of this study was to define in a group of patients undergoing TSA (1) the type and incidence of complications; (2) the frequency of and risk factors for both minor and major complications; and (3) the risk factors for bleeding resulting in transfusion., Methods: We retrospectively queried the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database using Current Procedural Terminology billing codes and identified 1922 cases of TSA performed between 2006 and 2011. Postoperative outcomes were divided into one of four categories: any complication, major morbidity (systemic life-threatening event or a substantial threat to a vital organ) or mortality, minor morbidity (localized to the operative upper extremity or not posing a major systemic threat to the patient), or bleeding resulting in transfusion. Univariate and multivariate analyses were then used to identify risk factors for complications., Results: There were a total of 155 complications (8% of the 1922 patients identified). The most common complication was bleeding resulting in transfusion (82 patients [4.26%]) followed by urinary tract infections (27 patients [1.40%]), return to the operating room (14 patients [0.73%]), pneumonia (10 patients [0.52%]), and peripheral nerve injury (nine patients [0.47%]). The incidence of major morbidity was 2% (44 patients), which included five patients (0.26%) who died; the incidence of any minor morbidity was 7% (136 patients). After controlling for likely confounding variables, we found steroid use (odds ratio [OR], 3; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2-6), hematocrit < 38% (OR, 2; 95% CI, 1-3), American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Class 4 (OR, 3; 95% CI, 1-7), and operating time > 2 hours (OR, 2; 95% CI, 1-3) as independent predictors of complication and congestive heart failure (OR, 12; 95% CI, 1-106) as an independent risk factor for major morbidity or mortality. Hematocrit < 38% (OR, 3; 95% CI, 2-6), resident involvement (OR, 3; 95% CI, 2-5), steroid use (OR, 3; 95% CI, 1-6), and ASA Class 3 versus 1 or 2 (OR, 2; 95% CI, 1-5) were independent risk factors for bleeding resulting in transfusion., Conclusions: Short-term morbidity after TSA is higher than previously reported. The prevalence of complications within 30 days of surgery and our outlined risk factors should guide surgeon-driven preoperative patient evaluation, management, and counseling. Surgeons who perform TSA should be aware operative time > 2 hours is associated with increased complications. Patients with preoperative hematocrit < 38%, history of steroid use, ASA Class > 2, and patients with congestive heart failure should receive medical optimization before TSA., Level of Evidence: Level III, therapeutic study.

Background: Long-term evaluation of knee arthroplasty should provide relevant information concerning the durability and performance of the implant and the procedure. Because most arthroplasties are performed in older patients, most long-term followup studies have been performed in elderly cohorts and have had low patient survivorship to final followup; the degree to which attrition from patient deaths over time in these studies might influence their results has been poorly characterized., Questions/purposes: The purpose of this study was to examine the results at 20-year followup of two prospectively followed knee arthroplasty cohorts to determine the following: (1) Are there relevant differences among the two implant cohorts in terms of revision for aseptic causes (osteolysis, or loosening)? (2) How does patient death over the long followup interval influence the comparison, and do the comparisons remain valid despite the high attrition rates?, Methods: Two knee arthroplasty cohorts from a single orthopaedic practice were evaluated: a modular tibial tray (101 knees) and a rotating platform (119 knees) design. All patients were followed for a minimum of 20 years or until death (mean, 14.1 years; SD 5.0 years). Average age at surgery for both cohorts was >70 years. The indications for the two cohorts were identical (functionally limiting knee pain) and was surgeon-specific (each surgeon performed all surgeries in that cohort). Revision rates through a competing risks analysis for implants and survivorship curves for patients were evaluated., Results: Both of these elderly cohorts showed excellent implant survivorship at 20 years followup with only small differences in revision rates (6% revision versus 0% revision for the modular tibial tray and rotating platform, respectively). However, attrition from patient deaths was substantial and overall patient survivorship to 20-year followup was only 26%. Patient survivorship was significantly higher in patients<65 years of age in both cohorts (54% versus 15%, p<0.001 modular tray cohort, and 52% versus 26%, p=0.002 rotating platform cohort). Furthermore, in the modular tray cohort, patients<65 years had significantly higher revision rates (15% versus 3%, p=0.0019)., Conclusions: These two cohorts demonstrate the durability of knee arthroplasty in older patients (the vast majority older than 65 years). Unfortunately, few patients lived to 20-year followup, thus introducing bias into the analysis. These data may be useful as a reference for the design of future prospective studies, and consideration should be given to enrolling younger patients to have robust numbers of living patients at long-term followup., Level of Evidence: Level III, therapeutic study. See Guidelines for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

Background: Increasing national expenditures and use associated with TKA have resulted in pressure to reduce costs through various reimbursement cuts. However, within the arthroplasty literature, few studies have examined the association of medical comorbidities on resource use and length of stay after joint arthroplasty., Questions/purposes: The purpose of this study was to examine the association between individual patient characteristics (including demographic factors and medical comorbidities) on resource allocation and length of stay (LOS) after TKA., Methods: We queried the 2009 Nationwide Inpatient Sample dataset for International Classification of Diseases, 9(th) Revision code, 81.54, for TKAs. An initial 621,029-patient cohort was narrowed to 516,745 after inclusion of elective TKAs on patients aged between 40 and 95 years. Using generalized linear models, we estimated the effect of comorbidities on resource use (using cost-to-charge conversions to estimate hospital costs) and the LOS controlling for patient and hospital characteristics. Across the 2009 national cohort with TKAs, 12.7% had no comorbidities, whereas 32.6% had three or more. The most common conditions included hypertension (67.8%), diabetes (20.0%), and obesity (19.8%). Mean hospital costs were USD 14,491 (95% confidence interval [CI], 14,455-14,525) and mean hospital LOS was 3.3 days (95% CI, 3.29-3.31) in this data set., Results: Patients with multiple comorbidities were associated with increased resource use and LOS. Higher marginal costs and LOS were associated with patients who had an inpatient death (USD +8017 [95% CI, 8006-8028], +2.3 [CI, 2.15-2.44] days over baseline), patients with recent weight loss (USD +4587 [95% CI, 4581-4593], +1.5 [CI, 1.45-1.61) days], minority race (USD +1037 [95% CI, 1035-1038], +0.3 [CI, 0.28-0.33] days), pulmonary-circulatory disorders (USD +3218 [95% CI, 3214-3221], +1.3 [CI, 1.25-1.34] days), and electrolyte disturbances (USD +1313 [95% CI, 1312-1314], +0.6 [CI, 0.57-0.60] days). All p values were < 0.001., Conclusion: Multiple patient comorbidities were associated with additive resource use and LOS after TKA. Current reimbursement may not adequately account for these patient characteristics. To avoid potential loss of access to care for sicker patients, payment needs to be adjusted to reflect actual resource use., Level of Evidence: Level IV, economic and decision analysis. See the Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

Background: The influence of resident involvement on short-term outcomes after orthopaedic surgery is mostly unknown., Questions/purposes: The purposes of our study were to examine the effects of resident involvement in surgical cases on short-term morbidity, mortality, operating time, hospital length of stay, and reoperation rate and to analyze these parameters by level of training., Methods: The 2005–2011 American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program data set was queried using Current Procedural Terminology codes for 66,817 cases across six orthopaedic procedural domains: 28,686 primary total joint arthroplasties (TJAs), 2412 revision TJAs, 16,832 basic and 5916 advanced arthroscopies, 8221 lower extremity traumas, and 4750 spine arthrodeses (fusions). Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression and propensity scores were used to build models of risk adjustment. We compared the morbidity and mortality rates, length of operating time, hospital length of stay, and reoperation rate for cases with or without resident involvement. For cases with resident participation, we analyzed the same parameters by training level., Results: Resident participation was associated with higher morbidity in TJAs (odds ratio [OR], 1.6; range, 1.4–1.9), lower extremity trauma (OR, 1.3; range, 1.2–1.5), and fusion (OR, 1.4; range, 1.2–1.7) after adjustment. However, resident involvement was not associated with increased mortality. Operative time was greater (all p < 0.001) with resident involvement in all procedural domains. Longer hospital length of stay was associated with resident participation in lower extremity trauma (p < 0.001) and fusion cases (p = 0.003), but resident participation did not affect length of stay in other domains. Resident involvement was associated with greater 30-day reoperation rates for cases of lower extremity trauma (p = 0.041) and fusion (p < 0.001). Level of resident training did not consistently influence surgical outcomes., Conclusions: Results of our study suggest resident involvement in surgical procedures is not associated with increased short-term major morbidity and mortality after select cases in orthopaedic surgery. Findings of longer operating times and differences in minor morbidity should lead to future initiatives to provide resident surgical skills training and improve perioperative efficiency in the academic setting., Level of Evidence: Level II, prognostic study. See the Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.