March 15, 2021 | Today’s News

Study Investigates Whether Pregnancy Concerns Deter Women from Becoming Orthopaedic Surgeons

A study published in the March 1 issue of the Journal of the AAOS ® investigated whether pregnancy and childbearing concerns deter women from becoming orthopaedic surgeons. In total, 801 female surgeons were surveyed. Most respondents (94 percent) expressed interest in having children, and 60 percent were parents. Six percent reported voluntary childlessness, and 18 percent reported their work as a barrier to having children. Fifty-three percent of respondents with children intentionally delayed pregnancy because of their career, with 52 percent only conceiving after completing training. Pregnancy complications were reported in 24 percent of respondents, and 38 percent reported miscarriages.

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Study: Ramp Lesions Increase Risk of Bone Bruising During ACL Reconstruction

A study published online in Knee Surgery, Sports Traumatology, Arthroscopy evaluated bone bruise patterns in patients with or without medial meniscus ramp lesions during ACL reconstruction. Fifty-six patients were included (with ramp lesions, n = 28; without lesions, n = 28). Patients with ramp lesions were 6.1 times more likely to present with posteromedial tibial plateau bone bruises compared to those without lesions. Bruising in the medial and lateral tibiofemoral compartments was 4.5 times more likely in patients with lesions compared to those without. In contrast, bone bruising of only the lateral compartments was more likely in patients without ramp lesions.

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A systematic review published online in Injury compared the mortality risk for hip fracture surgery performed in-hours versus out-of-hours and weekday to weekend procedures. Thirteen studies were included, comprising 177,090 patients. American Society of Anesthesiology physical status classification ≥ 3 and male gender were similar between groups. Thirty-day and inpatient mortality were similar across all procedures, regardless of when they were performed. Length of stay also did not differ based on when the procedure occurred.

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A study published online in Arthroscopy calculated payments to orthopaedic sports medicine surgeons reported by the Open Payments Database between 2014 and 2019. In total, 1,941,772 payments were made to 12,816 surgeons, with an overall upward trend in median payment across all U.S. geographic regions. The five highest-compensated surgeons received a median total payment of $9,210,974, or 458 percent of all industry contributions, mostly due to royalties and licenses (98.7 percent). Overall, 89.4 percent of the total orthopaedic sports medicine surgeons received a total annual payment of less than $10,000. Less than one percent of surgeons (0.3 percent) received more than $500,000.

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Congress Introduces Bill to Extend Sequester, Prevent Medicare Cuts

Last week, Representatives John Yarmuth (D-Ky.), Richard Neal (D-Mass.), Frank Pallone (D-N.J.), and David Scott (D-Ga.) introduced legislation that would prevent automatic spending cuts triggered by the recently signed American Rescue Plan, including a 2 percent Medicare sequester reduction. Components include extending the temporary Medicare sequester moratorium until the end of 2021; ensuring benefits under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act are calculated as income similarly under Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program; and preventing certain hospitals from receiving a reduction to their Medicare Disproportionate Share Hospital payments. The new legislation would also adjust the grandfathering deadline for Medicare rural health clinical payment charges in the Consolidated Appropriations Act to Dec. 31. Voting is anticipated before the March 29 Congressional recess. The bill would also be considered under the reconciliation process and would need 60 votes to pass in the Senate.

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3D-printed Custom Implants Are Not for All Patients

The decision to use a custom implant should not be taken lightly. Although many three-dimensional (3D)-printed implant successes have been reported, the use of this technology is in its infancy, and long-term efficacy data are not yet available. In the conclusion of a two-part series on 3D-printing techniques, this article discusses the process for identifying a patient in need of a custom implant, as well as the design steps to bring the custom implant to fruition.

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Meet the New AAOS Board of Directors

AAOS is pleased to announce Daniel K. Guy, MD, FAAOS, as the 89th president of the Academy. A comprehensive online media kit was created to house news of the new 2021–2022 leadership team and package information about the 2020 Year in Review. The kit also includes links to the 2021 Kappa Delta and Orthopaedic Research Education Foundation Clinical Research Awards winner announcements as well.

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