Faculty Bibliography

BACKGROUND:Younger age is associated with increased revision incidence following primary total hip arthroplasty, though the association between age and repeat revision following revision total hip arthroplasty (rTHA) has not been described. This study aimed to describe the incidences and indications for subsequent revision (re-revision) following rTHA based on age. METHODS:Patients undergoing aseptic rTHA from 2011 to 2021 with minimum 1-year follow-up were retrospectively reviewed. Patients were stratified into 3 groups based on age at the time of index rTHA (ie, <55 years, 55 to 74 years, and >74 years). Perioperative characteristics, complications, and re-revisions were compared between groups. RESULTS:Of 694 included rTHAs, those in the >74 age group were more likely to undergo rTHA for periprosthetic fracture (P < .001) while those in the <55 age group were more likely to undergo rTHA for metallosis/taper corrosion (P = .028). Readmissions (P = .759) and emergency department visits (P = .498) within 90 days were comparable across ages. Rates of re-revision were comparable at 90 days (P = .495), 1 year (P = .443), and 2 years (P = .204). Kaplan-Meier analysis of all-cause re-revision at latest follow-up showed a nonstatistically significant trend toward increasing re-revisions in the <55 and 55 to 74 age groups. Using logistic regressions, smoking and index rTHA for instability were independently associated with re-revision, while age at index surgery was not. CONCLUSIONS:While indications for rTHA differ across age groups, rates of 2-year re-revision are statistically comparable between groups. Further studies are warranted to understand the association between age, activity, and re-revision rates after 5 years postoperatively.

INTRODUCTION/BACKGROUND:While increased body mass index (BMI) in patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty (THA) increases surgical complexity, there is a paucity of objective studies assessing the impact of patient BMI on the cardiovascular stress experienced by surgeons during THA. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of patient BMI on surgeon cardiovascular strain during THA. METHODS:We prospectively evaluated three fellowship-trained arthroplasty surgeons performing a total of 115 THAs. A smart-vest worn by the surgeons recorded mean heart rate, stress index (correlate of sympathetic activation), respiratory rate, minute ventilation, and energy expenditure throughout the procedures. Patient demographics as well as perioperative data including surgical approach, surgery duration, number of assistants, and the timing of the surgery during the day were collected. Linear regression was utilized to assess the impact of patient characteristics and perioperative data on cardiorespiratory metrics. RESULTS:Average surgeon heart rate, energy expenditure, and stress index during surgery were 98.50 beats/min, 309.49 cal/h, and 14.10, respectively. Higher patient BMI was significantly associated with increased hourly energy expenditure (P = 0.027), mean heart rate (P = 0.037), and stress index (P = 0.027) independent of surgical approach. Respiratory rate and minute ventilation were not associated with patient BMI. The number of assistants and time of surgery during the day did not impact cardiorespiratory strain on the surgeon. CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:The physiologic burden on surgeons during primary THA significantly increases as patient BMI increases. This study suggests that healthcare systems should consider adjusting reimbursement models to account for increased surgeon workload due to obesity. Further surgeons should adopt strategies in operative planning and case scheduling to handle this added physical strain. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE/METHODS:III.

Intramedullary stems are often required in patients undergoing revision total knee arthroplasty (rTKA) to achieve stable fixation. Significant bone loss may require the addition of a metal cone to maximize fixation and osteointegration. The purpose of this study was to investigate clinical outcomes in rTKA using different fixation techniques. We conducted a single-institution retrospective review of all patients who received a tibial and femoral stem during rTKA between August 2011 and July 2021. Patients were separated into three cohorts based on fixation construct: press-fit stem with an offset coupler (OS), fully cemented straight (CS) stem, and press-fit straight (PFS) stem. A subanalysis of patients who received tibial cone augmentation was also conducted. A total of 358 patients who underwent rTKA were included in this study, of which 102 (28.5%) had a minimum 2-year follow-up and 25 (7.0%) had a minimum 5-year follow-up. In the primary analysis, 194 patients were included in the OS cohort, 72 in the CS cohort, and 92 in the PFS cohort. When stem type alone was considered, there was no significant difference in rerevision rate (p = 0.431) between cohorts. Subanalysis of patients who received augmentation with a tibial cone demonstrated that OS implants led to significantly higher rates of rerevision compared with the other two stem types (OS: 18.2% vs. CS: 2.1% vs. PFS: 11.1%; p = 0.037). The findings of the present analysis demonstrate that CS and cones in rTKA may provide more reliable long-term outcomes compared with press-fit stems with OS. LEVEL III EVIDENCE:  Retrospective Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND:Isolated acetabular component revision is an effective treatment for revision total hip arthroplasty patients who have well-fixed femoral implants. We aimed to evaluate the modes of acetabular failure following primary total hip arthroplasty and to identify factors associated with increased morbidities and postoperative outcomes. METHODS:We conducted a retrospective analysis and identified 318 isolated aseptic acetabular revisions. We separated patients by ≤90 days, 91 days to 2 years, and >2 years for acetabular revisions and compared demographics, reasons for revision, 90-day readmissions, rerevisions, and postrevision infections. Revisions ≤90 days, 91 days to 2 years, and >2 years accounted for 10.7, 19.2, and 70.1% of revisions, respectively. Revisions ≤90 days, 91 days to 2 years, and >2 years had their primary total hip arthroplasty at a mean age of 66, 63, and 55 years (P < .001), respectively. RESULTS:Revisions within 90 days were mainly indicated for dislocation/instability (58.8%) or periprosthetic fracture (23.5%) while revisions over 2 years were indicated for polyethylene wear/osteolysis (37.2%). Patients with revisions past 90 days were more likely to require rerevision compared to patients with revisions within 90 days (P < .001). There were no differences in readmissions (P = .28) or infection rates (P = .37). CONCLUSIONS:Acetabular revisions within 90 days were more commonly indicated for instability and periprosthetic fracture, while those over 2 years were indicated for polyethylene wear. Revisions past 90 days were more likely to require subsequent rerevisions without increased 90-day readmissions or infections. LEVEL III EVIDENCE/METHODS:Retrospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND:As the popularity of unicondylar knee arthroplasty (UKA) and patellofemoral arthroplasty (PFA) have expanded, more patients who have limited arthritis are undergoing partial knee arthroplasty. No studies have evaluated if any regional differences in the United States (U.S.) exist between partial versus total knee arthroplasty (TKA). The purpose of this study was to utilize the American Joint Replacement Registry to evaluate regional differences in UKA, PFA, and TKA. METHODS:The American Joint Replacement Registry was queried for all TKA, PFA, and UKA procedures between 2012 and 2021. Surgical volume was compared between the Midwest (MW), Northeast (NE), South, and West (W) regions. Trends were compared using multivariate logistic regression analyses and least squared mean logistic regression models. RESULTS:Since 2012, there has been a steady increase in the amount of UKAs performed across the U.S., except during the COVID-19 pandemic when numbers decreased. Logistic regression analyses demonstrated a higher likelihood of receiving a UKA compared to TKA in the NE compared to other regions, and higher likelihood of receiving a PFA in the NE and W compared to other regions over the study period. Other factors that increased the likelihood of having a UKA nationally were men, the procedure being performed at a teaching hospital, and having surgery in urban areas. Patients were more likely to have a PFA in the NE compared to the S and MW, and higher odds in the South and W compared to the MW, with rates of PFA consistently lower in the MW compared to other regions. CONCLUSIONS:Patients were more likely to have a UKA in the NE compared to other regions of the country. Patients had higher odds of having a PFA in the NE and W regions relative to the MW. Men had higher odds of having either UKA or PFA than women across the nation.

BACKGROUND:Sleep impairment following total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is common and may decrease patient satisfaction and recovery. Standardized postoperative recommendations for sleep disturbances have not been established. We aimed to assess whether melatonin use could promote healthy sleep and reduce sleep disturbance in the acute period following TKA. METHODS:Patients undergoing primary, elective TKA between July 19, 2021 and January 4, 2024 were prospectively enrolled and randomized to receive either 5 mg of melatonin nightly or placebo for 14 days postoperatively. Participants recorded their nightly pain on the visual analog scale, the number of hours slept, and the number of nighttime awakenings in a sleep diary starting the night of surgery (postoperative day [POD] 0). Sleep disturbance was assessed preoperatively and on POD 14 using the patient-reported outcome measurement information system sleep disturbance form. Epworth Sleepiness Scores were collected on POD 14 to assess sleep quality. RESULTS:Of the 138 patients enrolled, 128 patients successfully completed the study protocol, with 64 patients in each group. Melatonin patients trended towards more hours of sleep on POD 2 (placebo: 5.0 ± 2.4, melatonin: 5.8 ± 2.0, P = 0.084), POD 3 (placebo: 5.6 ± 2.2, melatonin: 6.3 ± 2.0, P = 0.075), and averaged over POD 1 to 3 (placebo: 4.9 ± 2.0, melatonin: 5.6 ± 1.8, P = 0.073), though no differences were observed on POD 4 or after. Fewer nighttime awakenings in the melatonin group were observed on POD 1 (placebo: 4.4 ± 3.9, melatonin: 3.6 ± 2.4, P = 0.197), although this was not statistically significant. Preoperative and postoperative Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System Sleep Disturbance (PROMIS-SD) score increases were comparable for both groups (placebo: 4.0 ± 8.4, melatonin: 4.6 ± 8.2, P = 0.894). The melatonin (65.4%) and placebo (65%) groups demonstrated similar rates of increased sleep disturbance. CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:Melatonin may promote longer sleep in the immediate postoperative period after TKA, though these benefits wane after POD 3. Disturbances in sleep should be expected for most patients, though melatonin may have an attenuating effect. Melatonin is safe and can be considered for TKA patients experiencing early sleep disturbances postoperatively.

BACKGROUND/UNASSIGNED:Bicruciate-stabilized (BCS) total knee arthroplasty (TKA) aims to restore normal kinematics by replicating the function of both cruciate ligaments. Conventional cruciate-retaining (CR) design in TKA has shown previous clinical success with lower complication rates. This study compared the patient-reported outcomes between the BCS and CR TKA designs. METHODS/UNASSIGNED:-tests. RESULTS/UNASSIGNED:= 0.028) than the CR cohort (n = 203). Both cohorts displayed a significant difference in delta improvements within their respective cohort when measuring FJS from 3 months to 1 year, 2 years, and 3 years after surgery. CONCLUSIONS/UNASSIGNED:The CR cohort performed better on average, compared to the BCS cohort in measures of KOOS, JR scores at the 2-year follow-up. The BCS cohort performed marginally better regarding FJS only at 1-year follow-up.

BACKGROUND:Large language models (LLM) have unknown implications for medical research. This study assessed whether LLM-generated abstracts are distinguishable from human-written abstracts and to compare their perceived quality. METHODS:The LLM ChatGPT was used to generate 20 arthroplasty abstracts (AI-generated) based on full-text manuscripts, which were compared to originally published abstracts (human-written). Six blinded orthopaedic surgeons rated abstracts on overall quality, communication, and confidence in the authorship source. Authorship-confidence scores were compared to a test value representing complete inability to discern authorship. RESULTS:Modestly increased confidence in human authorship was observed for human-written abstracts compared with AI-generated abstracts (p = 0.028), though AI-generated abstract authorship-confidence scores were statistically consistent with inability to discern authorship (p = 0.999). Overall abstract quality was higher for human-written abstracts (p = 0.019). CONCLUSIONS:AI-generated abstracts' absolute authorship-confidence ratings demonstrated difficulty in discerning authorship but did not achieve the perceived quality of human-written abstracts. Caution is warranted in implementing LLMs into scientific writing.

Purpose: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a known complication of hip arthroplasty for femoral neck fractures (FNF) with various prophylactic anticoagulants utilized to decrease risk. The purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy and perioperative outcomes associated with aspirin for VTE prophylaxis following arthroplasty for FNF. Methods: Medical records of 1,220 patients who underwent hip hemiarthroplasty (HHA) or total hip arthroplasty (THA) at an urban academic center from 2011 to 2022 were retrospectively reviewed. Patient characteristics and perioperative outcomes, including length of stay (LOS), VTE, 90-day hospital encounters, and discharge disposition, were collected. Outcomes for patients prescribed aspirin (n = 214) were compared to those prescribed non-aspirin VTE prophylaxis (n = 1006) using propensity score matching. Results: Patients who received aspirin had higher rates of THA (36.0 vs 26.7%; p = 0.008). There were no significant risk-adjusted differences in the incidence of VTE (0.5 vs 0.5%, p = 1.000) and 90-day readmissions (10.4 vs 12.3%, p = 0.646) between patients prescribed aspirin and non-aspirin VTE prophylaxis, respectively. Patients prescribed non-aspirin agents had higher rates of non-home discharge (73.9 vs 58.5%; p < 0.001) and longer LOS (143.5 vs 124.9 h; p = 0.005). Sub-analysis of patients prescribed aspirin and non-aspirin prophylaxis based on comorbidity scores demonstrated no difference in VTE incidence for low (0.0 vs 1.6%, p = 1.000) and high scores (0.0 vs 0.0%, p = 1.000), respectively. Conclusion: Aspirin is not associated with increased incidence of VTE after HHA or THA for FNF. Aspirin prophylaxis should be considered in hip fracture patients to mitigate bleeding risk, particularly those with low to intermediate VTE risk. Level of evidence: Level III, Retrospective study.

BACKGROUND:In patients who require bilateral total hip arthroplasty (THA) or total knee arthroplasty (TKA), staged procedures are a reasonable option for treatment of bilateral osteoarthritis. We sought to determine whether perioperative outcomes differed between first and second total joint arthroplasty (TJA). METHODS:This was a retrospective review of all patients who underwent staged, bilateral THA or TKA between January 30, 2017, and April 8, 2021. All patients who were included underwent their second procedure within 1 year of the first. Patients were separated based on whether both their procedures took place before or subsequently after an institution-wide opioid-sparing protocol that was implemented on October 1, 2018. A total of 961 patients who underwent 1,922 procedures met the inclusion criteria for this study. For THA, 388 unique patients comprised 776 procedures, while 573 unique patients comprised 1,146 TKAs. Opioid prescriptions were prospectively documented on nursing opioid administration flowsheets and converted to morphine milligram equivalents (MME) for comparison. Activity measure scores for postacute care (AM-PAC) were used as a measurement of physical therapy progression. RESULTS:Hospital stays, home discharges, perioperative opioid usages, pain scores, and AM-PAC scores were not significantly different for the second THA or TKA compared to first procedure, regardless of timing in relation to the opioid-sparing protocol. CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:Patients experienced similar outcomes following their first versus their second TJA. Limited opioid prescriptions following TJA do not negatively impact pain and functional outcomes. These protocols can safely be instituted to help mitigate the opioid epidemic. LEVEL III EVIDENCE/METHODS:Retrospective Cohort Study.