STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective case review. PURPOSE: To assess the clinical and radiographic outcomes and identify the predictive factors associated with poor clinical outcomes after lumbar spinous process-splitting laminectomy (LSPSL) for lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS). OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE: LSPSL is an effective surgical treatment for LSS. Special care should be taken in patients with degenerative lumbar scoliosis (DLS). METHODS: A consecutive retrospective case review of patients undergoing LSPSL for LSS with a minimum 2-year follow-up was performed. Mild DLS and mild degenerative spondylolisthesis (DS) were included in the study. The Japanese Orthopedic Association (JOA) score and recovery rate were reviewed. Poor clinical outcome was defined as a recovery rate <50% using Hirabayashi's method. RESULTS: A total of 52 patients (mean age, 72 years) met the inclusion criteria and had a mean follow-up of 2.6 years (range, 2-4.5 years). The preoperative diagnosis was LSS in 19, DS in 19, and DLS in 14 cases. The mean JOA score significantly increased from 14.6 to 23.2 at the final follow-up. The overall mean recovery rate was 60.1%. Thirteen patients (25%) were assigned to the poor outcome group. A higher rate of pre-existing DLS was observed in the poor outcome (poor) group (good, 15%; poor, 62%; p=0.003) than in the good outcome (good) group. None of the patient factors examined were associated with a poor outcome. A progression of slippage > or =5 mm was found in 8 of 24 patients (33%) in the DS group. A progression of curvature > or =5degrees was found in 5 of 14 patients (36%) in the DLS group. The progression of scoliosis and slippage did not influence the clinical outcome. CONCLUSIONS: The clinical and radiographic outcomes of LSPSL for LSS were favorable. Pre-existing DLS was significantly associated with poor clinical outcome.
Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Diagnosis ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Laminectomy* ; Orthopedics ; Retrospective Studies ; Scoliosis ; Spinal Stenosis* ; Spondylolisthesis

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of concomitant arthroscopic lateral release (LR) in open wedge high tibial osteotomy (OWHTO) by comparing the pre- and postoperative radiological parameters of patellar position and orientation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was comprised of 19 knees undergoing OWHTO and concomitant LR and 18 knees undergoing OWHTO alone. Radiological parameters for patellar position and orientation included the Caton-Deschamps index (CDI), Blackburne-Peel index (BPI), patellar tilting angle (PTA), patellar lateral shift (PLS), and patellofemoral distance (PFD), which were evaluated in the preoperative period and at one year after surgery. RESULTS: Patellar height was significantly reduced after surgery as indicated by the decrease in BPI (p=0.03) in the OWHTO/LR group, and decrease in CDI (p=0.03) and BPI (p=0.04) in the OWHTO alone group. PTA and PLS were significantly reduced after the combined OWHTO/LR procedure (p=0.04 and p=0.04, respectively). By contrast, no significant changes were detected when isolated OWHTO was performed. CONCLUSIONS: OWHTO induced a postoperative decrease in patellar height in both groups. Regarding the change in patellofemoral alignment, concomitant LR in OWHTO significantly decreased lateral patellar tilt and shift, while no significant difference in those parameters were noted in the OWHTO alone knees.
Arthroscopy ; Knee ; Osteotomy ; Preoperative Period

STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective case review. PURPOSE: To assess the incidence and effect of teriparatide (TP) on subsequent vertebral fractures following a long-instrumented fusion surgery for osteoporotic vertebral fractures (OVFs). OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE: TP treatment may be a useful strategy for patients with OVFs treated with a long-instrumented surgery. METHODS: Overall, 47 patients who underwent long-instrumented fusion surgery (≥3 levels) for OVFs with neurological deficits between 2010 and 2013 were enrolled. The mean age of the subjects was 76 years; the study population comprised 20 males and 27 females. The mean follow-up duration was 23 months. The average of fused vertebrae was 4.9. TP was used for 19 patients who comprised the TP group. The incidence of subsequent VFs was estimated with Kaplan–Meier analyses and compared between the TP and non-TP groups using the log-rank test. Risk factors were evaluated using a Cox proportional hazards model. RESULTS: A total of 38% (18/47 cases) of the subjects were identified with subsequent VFs. There were no significant differences in the age, sex, fused levels, presence of prevalent fractures, and correction loss of the two groups. The occurrence of subsequent VFs was lower in the TP group than in the non-TP group (16% vs. 54%, p=0.014). The log-rank test revealed that the TP treatment significantly reduced the risk of subsequent VFs (p=0.048). A Cox proportional hazards model revealed that preoperative TP treatment is only a protective factor of subsequent VFs after instrumented fusion surgery for OVFs (hazard ratio, 0.281; p=0.047). CONCLUSIONS: In this retrospective study, pre- and postoperative TP treatment significantly reduced the incidence of subsequent VFs after instrumented fusion surgery for OVFs. A prospective randomized study is warranted to determine the efficacy of TP treatments.
Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Osteoporosis ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Prospective Studies ; Protective Factors ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Spine ; Teriparatide

Background: While cementless short stems have become popular in total hip arthroplasty (THA), Metha is a relatively recent development that differs from other short stems in its initial fixation concept of partial collum-sparing metaphyseal anchorage. The purpose of this study was to quantify the contact state between Metha and the femur. Additionally, we investigated the difference in contact points between Meta and Fitmore, which is one of the more popular curved short stems. Methods: We conducted a retrospective review of 42 hips that underwent THA using Metha and 41 hips using Fitmore. Stemto-femur contact was evaluated by density mapping using a three-dimensional digital template system to quantify the contact condition according to the modified Gruen zone. The criterion for the stem-to-bone contact boundary was defined as a computed tomography value of 543 Hounsfield. Results: Quantitative evaluation of Metha according to the modified Gruen zones showed the ratio of surface area with high cortical contact in each zone. The results were 4.6% ± 5.7% in zone 1, 0.9% ± 2.3% in zone 2, 19.1% ± 12.9% in zone 3, 1.4% ± 3.2% in zone 5, 29.6% ± 16.4% in zone 6, and 25.1% ± 17.7% in zones 7. Evaluation of Fitmore for the same zones was as follows: 1.6% ± 2.4%, 18.5% ± 16.9%, 20.8% ± 17.4%, 12.7% ± 12.8%, 3.7% ± 5.8%, and 13.3% ± 10.3%. Comparing the two groups, the contact area was significantly greater for Metha in zones 1, 6 and 7 and Fitmore in zones 2 and 5 (p < 0.05). Conclusions It is possible for Metha to achieve metaphyseal anchoring by contacting the cortical bone at the proximal femur, thus avoiding proximal offloading. To the best of our knowledge, no previous studies have quantitatively reported stem-to-cortical bone contact conditions in curved short stems.