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Background The COVID-19 pandemic has had a severe impact on the practices of adult reconstruction surgeons, primarily due to the elective nature of hip and knee arthroplasty. Methods To capture the impact of COVID-19 on its members, the American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons sent 6 surveys over a span of 7 months from late March until September of 2020 querying its members regarding the effects of COVID on the health and well-being of their personal, financial, and clinical practice. Results Ninety-two percent of surgeons reported a cessation of elective inpatient cases during the height of the crisis. The reduction was greatest for surgeries performed in hospital-based sites of care. Ninety-one percent reported a drop in clinic volume. At the final surveys, these numbers where 7% and 59%, respectively. In addition, there was a widespread increase in the use of telemedicine during this period. Only a small number of orthopedic practices permanently closed because of COVID-19; 68% of surgeons, however, sought federal funding to offset their loss of revenue because of the restrictions placed on elective surgeries. Finally, once elective surgeries were reinstated, most surgeons reported no restrictions with surgical cases and that they believed they were adapting to the challenges of COVID successfully. Conclusions The impact of COVID-19 in 2020 on the practice of arthroplasty resulted in nearly universal loss of volume and significant financial stress. Recovery has been consistent but incomplete for most practices. Continued monitoring of the members of American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons will be needed in 2021 to measure the strength of the demonstrated adaptive recovery of 2020.

Orthopaedic surgeons account for the largest proportion of opioid prescriptions in the United States among surgical specialties. In total joint arthroplasty, increased opioid use has been associated with poorer clinical and functional outcomes. Despite an abundance of literature on opioid mitigation strategies, most fail to provide personalized prescriptions. Typically, most protocols prescribe the same opioid regimen regardless of patient factors or the extent of the planned procedure. We present a simple opioid stratification pathway that can be used by physicians and office staff as they prepare patients for arthroplasty. We have found this to be easy to implement, effective, and sustainable at a tertiary academic institution and allows for iterative improvements over time.

Intraprosthetic fracture of a femoral component is a rare but devastating complication after total hip arthroplasty (THA). We present the case of a 68-year-old man who presented with acute hip pain approximately 8 years after a left THA with a modern cementless, titanium femoral component. Radiographs revealed a fracture of the midportion of the neck of the stem, below the level of the trunnion. The patient underwent an isolated 1-component revision THA with a modular exchange. To our knowledge, this is the only reported case of a catastrophic failure fracture of this particular prosthesis.

Purpose: Cytochrome P450 2D6 (CYP2D6) genotype-guided opioid prescribing is limited. The purpose of this type 2 hybrid implementation-effectiveness trial was to evaluate the feasibility of clinically implementing CYP2D6-guided post-surgical pain management and determine that such an approach did not worsen pain control. Methods: Adults undergoing total joint arthroplasty were randomized 2:1 to genotype-guided or usual pain management. For participants in the genotype-guided arm with a CYP2D6 poor (PM), intermediate (IM), or ultra-rapid metabolizer (UM) phenotype, recommendations were to avoid hydrocodone, tramadol, codeine, and oxycodone. The primary endpoints were feasibility metrics and opioid use; pain intensity was a secondary endpoint. Effectiveness outcomes were collected 2-weeks post-surgery. Results: Of 282 patients approached, 260 (92%) agreed to participate. In the genotype-guided arm, 20% had a high-risk (IM/PM/UM) phenotype, of whom 72% received an alternative opioid versus 0% of usual care participants (p

Background In an effort to minimize backside polyethylene wear and osteolysis associated with titanium tibial baseplates, many manufacturers have transitioned to cobalt chromium alloys. Recent literature has implicated thicker cobalt chromium designs as a potential source of increased stress shielding and resorption. We report the incidence of proximal tibial bone resorption in a large consecutive series of patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty, with a modern total knee design. Methods Four hundred thirty-two consecutive primary total knee arthroplasties, performed by 2 fellowship-trained arthroplasty surgeons were identified over a 24-month period. In addition to review of the medical records, analysis of preoperative and postoperative radiographs was performed. Utilizing a novel classification system, the severity of resorption was quantified and correlated with patient and implant characteristics. Results After exclusions, 339 knees were evaluated in 292 patients. Mean follow-up was 13.2 months (range 6-41). Resorption was present in 119 knees (35.1%). Average time to diagnosis of bone loss was 6.9 months (range 2-32) postoperatively. There was a statistically significant difference between resorption and nonresorption groups with regards to gender and preoperative alignment. Most cases were classified as Grade 1. During the study period, 2 patients required revision for aseptic tibial loosening. Conclusions Our findings suggest that proximal tibial resorption is common with this particular implant, particularly in men and patients with preoperative varus deformity. Although this typically occurs relatively early in postoperative period and in most cases appears to remodel and stabilize, its ultimate clinical significance and effect on implant survivorship remains unclear.

Background There is a growing body of literature on opioid mitigation strategies following total joint arthroplasty. However, these have almost exclusively been studied in populations undergoing primary procedures, with revision arthroplasty historically thought to be more resistant due to procedural variability and complexity. We report on opioid utilization for revision arthroplasty following implementation of a structured, standardized opioid reduction strategy. Methods Beginning January 2015, a comprehensive multidisciplinary pain protocol was developed and applied universally to all patients undergoing hip and knee arthroplasty, including revisions, without exclusion. We performed a retrospective review of opioid prescription trends for the revision arthroplasty subgroup between January 2014 and July 2018, with the first year serving as a baseline for comparison. Inpatient and outpatient opioid prescription data, inpatient satisfaction scores, and quality metrics were also reviewed. Results We identified 1273 revision arthroplasty cases in the study period. There was a significant reduction in average oral morphine equivalents utilized per procedure when comparing preintervention and postimplementation values. Overall, inpatient prescriptions decreased 24.1% and outpatient utilization decreased 62.4% over the study period. Significant reductions were seen in both the total hip (60.6%) and total knee (64.0%) subgroups. Although revision arthroplasty patients were prescribed 32.5% more oral morphine equivalents at baseline, at year 5 there was no significant difference in outpatient prescriptions between primary and revision subgroups. Conclusion At our institution, a standardized opioid reduction strategy has resulted in marked reduction in opioid prescriptions for revision arthroplasty patients in line with generally successful reductions for primary arthroplasty. More importantly, with this approach, revision arthroplasty patients required no more outpatient opioids than their primary counterparts. Level of Evidence Level III, Retrospective cohort study.

Background: Interest in outpatient total hip arthroplasty (THA) and total knee arthroplasty (TKA) has increased recently as part of value-based care and early recovery protocols. Outpatient pathways require significant paradigm shifts, are not used widely, and are mostly implemented at outpatient surgery centers or orthopedic specialty hospitals. In this article, we report on the outcomes of implementation of an outpatient arthroplasty protocol at a tertiary care academic medical center. Methods: We performed a retrospective review on a series of 105 consecutive patients who underwent THA or TKA following our newly implemented outpatient arthroplasty protocol. We compared these patients to a group of inpatient arthroplasty patients from the same time period. Results: Eighty-three of 105 (79%) patients were successfully discharged home on the day of surgery. Successful same-day discharge was predicted by early ambulation (P = .01), TKA over THA (P = .04), and shorter duration of surgery (P = .01). General anesthesia correlated with better early ambulation distances (P = .03) and a lower incidence of urinary retention (P = .049). The outpatient readmission and complication rates were 0.95% and 1.9%, respectively, whereas the matched inpatient rates were 3.7% and 2.9%, respectively. Conclusions: Outpatient THA and TKA in a well-selected patient is feasible in an academic multidisciplinary tertiary care hospital, with complication rates approximating inpatient surgery. The findings reported here can be used to further optimize outpatient arthroplasty protocols. Keywords: Outpatient arthroplasty, Anesthesia, Ambulation, Urinary retention, Rapid recovery

Tranexamic acid (TXA) can reduce blood loss and decrease transfusion rates after total knee arthroplasty (TKA). The purpose of our study was to evaluate the efficacy of TXA in a homogenous, consecutive cohort of patients undergoing simultaneous bilateral primary TKA. This was a retrospective study of 50 consecutive patients who underwent bilateral simultaneous primary TKA between 2011 and 2015. Of these, 20 patients received TXA and 30 patients did not receive TXA and served as the control group. Primary outcome measurements were intraoperative estimated blood loss, hemoglobin (Hb) and Hematocrit (Hct) levels on postoperative day (POD) 1 and POD2, and blood transfusion rates. Secondary outcomes included length of stay (LOS), knee flexion/extension range of motion (ROM), and postoperative complications. There was no difference between groups for preoperative Hb and Hct (all p > 0.05). The TXA group demonstrate higher Hb levels at POD1 (11.7 in TXA vs. 10.4 controls; p