Objective To explore the effectiveness of conservative dressing change method in treating skin necrosis after open reduction with internal fixation (ORIF) of calcaneal fracture. Methods Between November 2007 and June 2010, 21 cases of skin necrosis after ORIF of calcaneal fracture were treated, including 18 cases of Sanders type II and 3 cases ofSanders type III. There were 20 males and 1 female with an average age of 33.1 years (range, 23-60 years). All fractures were close fractures and were treated by ORIF with plate. Skin necrosis occurred at 3-5 days (mean, 4 days) after internal fixation. The interval of internal fixation and conservative dressing change was 3-10 days (mean, 6 days). Of 21 cases, 10 cases had superfacial skin necrosis with a size range of 1-10 cm in length and 0.5-1.5 cm in width, and 11 cases had deep skin necrosis with a size range of 1-8 cm in length and 0.5-1.5 cm in width. The conservative dressing change method was performed. Alcohol (75%) was used at the edge of the zone of skin necrosis, whereas sal ine in the central of the wound every 2-3 days. The necrosed tissue in the wound was reserved as more as possible. No patient was given antibiotic. Results Scab formed and subcrust heal ing was observed after 6-30 days (mean, 16 days) in 20 patients, 1 patient failed for discontinue treatment. No case had deep infection or osteomyl itis. The mean treatment time was 7.8 days (range, 6-14 days) in 10 cases of superfacial skin necrosis, and was 23.1 days (range, 14-30 days) in 10 cases of deep skin necrosis. All cases were followed up 92 days on average (range, 54-123 days). The scar was usually dark red and hard, protruding from the normal skin. No patient had difficulty in weight bearing or walking. Conclusion Skin necrosis after ORIF of calcaneal fracture can be cured by the conservative dressing change method, and this conservative method is effective and economic.
ObjectiveTo compare the effectiveness of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction between the ligament advanced reinforcement system (LARS) and bone-patellar tendon-bone (BPTB) autograft. MethodsBetween July 2007 and July 2011, 50 cases (50 knees) of ACL injury were treated with LARS in 24 cases (LARS group) and with BPTB in 26 cases (BPTB group), respectively. There was no significant difference in age, gender, time from injury to surgery, and injury reason between BPTB group and LARS group (P gt; 0.05). The postoperative rehabilitation protocol was performed in 2 groups. ResultsAll incisions healed at the first stage. All patients were followed up 2-3 years. The results of Lachman test, anterior drawer test, and pivot shift test were negative. Screw loosening in femur and tibia occurred in 1 case of each group respectively, anterior knee pain in 2 cases of BPTB group and in 1 case of LARS group. The Lysholm and Tegner scores were significantly higher in LARS group than in BPTB group at 2 and 6 months after operation (P lt; 0.05); but no significant difference was found between 2 groups at 12 and 24 months (P gt; 0.05). The IKDC scores showed no significant difference between 2 groups at different time points after operation (P gt; 0.05). During follow up, KT-1000 arthrometer and knee stability showed significant differences in antedisplacements of the tibia between 2 groups at all time points after operation (P lt; 0.05). ConclusionLARS has less trauma and earlier functional recovery than BPTB autograft for ACL reconstruction, but the long-term effectiveness is similar.
Objective To evaluate the early effectiveness of a new minimally invasive plate in the treatment of varus-type ankle arthritis. Methods A clinical data of 15 patients with varus-type ankle arthritis who met the selection criteria between March 2021 and October 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. All the patients were treated with medial open-wedge supramalleolar osteotomy and fibular osteotomy. The osteotomies were fixed with the new minimally invasive plate. There were 7 males and 8 females with an average age of 49.8 years (range, 16-71 years). The causes of ankle arthritis included post-fracture deformity in 1 case, sprain in 8 cases, and acquired clubfoot in 1 case; and 5 cases were without obvious factors. The disease duration ranged from 1 to 12 years, with an average of 4.1 years. Comparisons were made between pre-operation and the last follow-up in the Takakura staging, the American Orthopedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) ankle-hindfoot score, foot function index (FFI), visual analogue scale (VAS) score, tibial anterior surface angle (TAS), tibial lateral surface angle (TLS), and talar tilt (TT). Results All incisions healed by first intention. All patients were followed up 7-18 months (mean, 12.8 months). At last follow-up, the AOFAS ankle-hindfoot score, FFI, VAS score, and Takakura staging significantly improved when compared with the preoperative ones (P<0.05). X-ray films showed that the osteotomy healed at 3 months after operation. At last follow-up, TAS significantly increased and TT decreased when compared with the preoperative ones (P<0.05), and the difference in TLS between pre- and post-operation was not significant (P>0.05). Complications included 1 case of intraoperative screw breakage and 2 cases of nerve injury of the affected foot. None of the patients complained of significant discomfort at the plate placement during follow-up, and no loosening of the internal fixator occurred. Eleven patients were very satisfied with the effeectiveness, while 4 were relatively satisfied. Conclusion The new minimally invasive plate for the varus-type ankle arthritis has good early effectiveness in relieving ankle pain, correcting deformity, improving limb alignment and ankle function, and reducing the incidence of postoperative incisional complications.
Objective To explore the effect of antihypertensive therapy for hypertension patients from plateau area. Method A retrospective analysis of medical records for Tibetan patients with hypertension from October to December 2013 in Hospital of Chengdu Office of People’s Government of Tibetan Autonomous Region. Results The study recruited 165 patients. The rate of treatment, control, and compliance of hypertension patients were 86.7% (143/165), 23.8% (34/143), 43.4% (62/143), respectively. The main characteristics of hypertension treatment were higher proportions of single-drug therapy (81.1%, 116/143); among those the Tibetan drug (24.1%), calcium channel blockers (21.6%), diuretics (19.0%), and traditional compound preparation (18.1%) were most commonly used in the antihypertensive therapy. Conclusions The rate of treatment was high, but the rate of control and compliance were low in Tibetan patients with hypertension. It was necessary to carry out hypertension education to patients and strengthen the training of doctors at the plateau.
ObjectiveTo define the patient characteristics and perioperative management, and to define the mortality and its risk factors after arterial switch operation (ASO).MethodsWe conducted a bidirectional cohort study with 571 consecutive patients undergoing ASO from 1997 to 2016 in our hospital. We enrolled patients who underwent ASO before 2012 retrospectively and after 2012 prospectively and followed up all the patients prospectively. Demographic characteristics, clinical information and mortality of these patients were summarized. Joinpoint regression analysis was used to identify the time trend of the overall mortality. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to evaluate the mid- and long-term survival rate after ASO. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to explore the potential factors associated with mortality. The cumulative incidence of complications after ASO was predicted using competing risk models.ResultsSeveral aspects of patients’ characteristics and perioperative management in our center differed from those in the developed countries. The overall mortality and in-hospital mortality after ASO was 16.3% and 15.1%, respectively. The overall cumulative survival rate at 5, 10 and 15 years after ASO was 83.3%, 82.8% and 82.8%, respectively. A significant decrease of overall mortality from 1997 to 2016 was observed. Independent risk factors of mortality included earlier ASO (1997-2006), single or intramural coronary anatomy and longer cardiopulmonary bypass time. Ten years after ASO, re-intervention, arrhythmia, pulmonary and anastomotic stenosis were the most common complications with a cumulative incidence over 10%.ConclusionSignificant improvements in the results of the ASO were observed and the postoperative mortality rate is close to reports from developed countries. Nonetheless, we have identified the need for further improvement in the early and late postoperative periods after ASO. Pulmonary stenosis, anastomotic stenosis and arrhythmia should be paid attention to during the long-term follow-up after ASO.