Infection News

The use of tantalum cones in patients with massive bone defects who undergo septic knee revision surgery may yield excellent clinical and radiographic midterm outcomes, as well as a low complication rate, according to results published in The Journal of Arthroplasty.

PARK CITY, Utah — Use of debridement, antibiotics and implant retention may be beneficial in the treatment of infection after total joint arthroplasty, according to a presenter at the Joint Arthroplasty Mountain Meeting.

Among older men with osteomyelitis, the rate of fragility fracture at any major osteoporotic site is 78% higher compared with those without osteomyelitis, study findings showed.

There is an increased chance for unplanned reoperation in patients who underwent above-knee amputation if they had prior revascularization, multiple indications for amputation and postoperative wound complications, according to a recently published study.

Prosthetic joint infection is a rare, but devastating complication that affects about 1% to 4% of the patients who receive a primary hip or knee replacement. Treating prosthetic joint infection is expensive and regimes are protracted. The infection and the treatment have profoundly negative effects on patients and their families.

The international conference about advanced treatment of hip and knee pathology will be held 25 to 26 April 2019 in Kharkiv, Ukraine. This conference is organized by Sytenko Institute of Spine and Joint Pathology, which is the oldest research and educational institution in Ukraine and a leading institution in orthopaedic surgery that uses cutting-edge techniques and approaches.

WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — Despite two-stage exchange being the traditional treatment method in North America for infected total joints, a presenter at Orthopedics Today Hawaii noted that one-stage exchange may be easier for patients and may result in better functional outcomes.

Oral antibiotic therapy is noninferior to IV antibiotic therapy when used in the first 6 weeks of treatment for complex bone and joint infections, according to results from OVIVA, a randomized controlled trial.

Achilles tendon ruptures treated surgically had a low risk of infection and re-rupture, but these risks were greater in the presence of certain patient and surgical factors, according to study results.

I do not include metal sensitivity testing in the preoperative evaluation of patients undergoing total joint arthroplasty. Given the increased use of ceramic heads, most total hips implanted in the U.S. today are nickel-free. The issue is more about total and unicompartmental knees, most of which have a cobalt-chromium-nickel alloy femoral component. Further, there is a higher rate of “unexplained dissatisfaction” with total knee arthroplasty.