Today’s Top Story
Study: Early administration of alendronate may help prevent bone loss after THA.
Findings published online in The Journal of Arthroplasty suggest that early administration of alendronate may help prevent bone loss in the calcar region following total hip arthroplasty (THA). The research team conducted a prospective study of 60 consecutive patients with hip osteoarthritis who had undergone primary cementless THA and who were randomly assigned to receive alendronate (n = 20) or alfacalcidol (n = 18), or serve as controls (n = 22). The researchers found that all groups showed a significant decrease in the bone mineral density (BMD) of the calcar at the current follow-up compared to the values at both 1 week and 1 year postoperative. The research team noted that, at most recent follow-up, BMD values were significantly higher in the alendronate group than in the alfacalcidol and control groups. Read the abstract…
Other News
Study: What is the relationship between rotator cuff tear area and postoperative pain?
A study published in the April issue of The American Journal of Sports Medicine examines the relationship between rotator cuff tear area and postoperative pain in patients who undergo arthroscopic rotator cuff repair. The researchers reviewed information on 1,624 patients who underwent arthroscopic rotator cuff repair, and found that intraoperative rotator cuff tear areas did not correlate with pain scores preoperatively or at 1 week following surgery. However, they noted that a smaller tear area was associated with more frequent and severe pain during overhead activities, at rest, and during sleep, as well as a poorer perceived overall shoulder condition at 6-week, 3-month, and 6-month follow-ups. Overall, patients who were younger, had partial-thickness tears, and had occupational injuries experienced more pain postoperatively. The researchers noted that the retear rate was 7 percent in tears <2 cm2, but reached 44 percent in tears >8 cm2. Read the abstract…
Study: Dabigatran linked to reduced risk of osteoporotic fracture compared to warfarin for adults with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation.
According to a study published in the March 21 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association, use of dabigatran may be associated with a lower risk of osteoporotic fracture compared to warfarin for adults with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) who receive anticoagulation. The authors conducted a retrospective cohort study of 51,496 patients newly diagnosed with NVAF, 3,268 of whom were new users of dabigatran and 4,884 of whom were new users of warfarin. At final follow-up (range, 2 to 6 years), the authors found that 32 dabigatran users (1 percent) and 72 warfarin users (1.5 percent) had experienced osteoporotic fracture. A Poisson regression analysis found that dabigatran use was associated with a significantly lower risk of osteoporotic fracture compared with warfarin. Read the abstract…
Study: On-site inspections associated with reduced patient mortality.
Data from a study published in the March 20 issue of the journal JAMA Internal Medicine suggest that patients admitted to hospitals under survey by The Joint Commission (TJC) may be at reduced risk of mortality compared to those admitted during nonsurvey periods. The researchers reviewed information on 244,787 admissions during a survey week and 1,462,339 admissions during a nonsurvey week. They noted a significant, reversible decrease in 30-day mortality for admissions during survey weeks compared to nonsurvey weeks. They write that the observed decrease was larger than 99.5 percent of mortality changes among 1,000 random permutations of hospital survey date combinations, suggesting that observed mortality changes were not attributable to chance alone. The researchers also found that mortality reductions were largest in major teaching hospitals. They observed no significant differences in admission volume, length of stay, or secondary outcomes. Read more…
Read the abstract…
Providers should be aware of limitations in patient health literacy to improve communication and outcomes.
An article published in the March issue of the AMA Journal of Ethics argues that healthcare providers should be recognize patients’ potential lack of health literacy as a means to enhance shared decision making (SDM) and improve outcomes. The authors write that the “patient-clinician communication necessary to achieve SDM depends on many factors, not the least of which is a shared language (sometimes with the aid of a medical interpreter). However, even when a patient and clinician are speaking the same mother tongue, the use of medical jargon can pose a large and unnecessary barrier.” The article offers examples of patient encounters and offers suggestions on improving provider-patient communication. Read more…
Wait times for new patient appointments on the rise in 15 cities.
A report released by physician search firm Merritt Hawkins suggests that the time it takes to schedule a new-patient physician appointment in 15 major metropolitan areas has increased 30 percent since 2014. The research team surveyed 1,414 physician offices in 15 large metropolitan areas regarding new-patient appointment wait times in five different medical specialties, including orthopaedics. They found that that it now takes an average of 24 days to schedule a new-patient physician appointment—an increase from 18.5 days in 2014, 20.5 days in 2009, and 21 days in 2004. Read more (PDF)…
Read the complete report (PDF)…
Call for volunteers: Instructional Course Committees.
March 31 is the last day to submit your application for a position on an Instructional Course Committee. Members of Instructional Course Committees grade Instructional Course Lecture applications in May and provide input to the Central Instructional Courses Committee regarding course curricula at the AAOS Annual Meeting. The following openings are available:
- Pediatrics (one member)
- Spine (four members)
- Tumor (two members)
Applicants for these positions must be active fellows with a practice emphasis in the relevant area. Learn more and submit your application…(member login required)
