Grateful Patients Speak to Value of Orthopaedics

Erin Lynn Ransford

Patients advocate during Research Capitol Hill Days Erin Lynn Ransford Debra Shoopman is a passionate cyclist. For 8 years, she has participated in Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI), a week-long, noncompetitive bicycle ride across the state of Iowa, totaling more than 470 miles. In July 2010, while training for RAGBRAI, Ms. Shoopman dislocated her left shoulder in a bicycle accident. Two months later, she dislocated the same shoulder as she was making her bed.

Smoking Threatens Orthopaedic Outcomes

S. Terry Canale, MD; Frank B. Kelly, MD; Kaye Daugherty

Although the prevalence of smoking has decreased dramatically in the United States during the past 50 years, this decline has not translated into a decline in the health problems associated with smoking. The deleterious effects of smoking on cardiovascular and pulmonary function are well known, as are the carcinogenic properties, and physicians in these disciplines have been at the forefront of smoking cessation efforts for their patients.

Cute Shoes Can Lead to Ugly Feet

Ruth L. Thomas, MD

Derived from the Greek word for turnip, bunions are a significant problem in modern society. Most clinicians recognize bunions from the bump on the side of the great toe joint. When the bump is associated with lateral deviation of the toe, the deformity is called hallux valgus. Hallux valgus is the most common pathologic entity affecting the great toe, occurring in 2 percent to 4 percent of the population. Hallux valgus deformity occurs at least twice as often in females as males.

Can Muscle Atrophy Be Reversed?

Jay D. Lenn

Surgical repair of small rotator cuff tears is a common procedure, and patients usually do quite well. However, repairing large, massive rotator cuff tears is more challenging and outcomes are not as predictable. Large tears have a higher rate of recurrence and lower function even after successful repair. These problems are due, in part, to injury-related remodeling of the muscle, including irreversible muscle atrophy and fatty infiltration of muscle tissue.

AAOS Seeks Award Manuscripts

2013 Kappa Delta, OREF Award deadline approaching The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) is soliciting manuscripts for the 2013 Kappa Delta Awards and the Orthopaedic Research and Education Foundation (OREF) Clinical Research Award.

ASTM Examines Best Practices for MoM Hip Devices

Katherine Sale

Although media reports have drawn attention to the adverse local tissue reactions that can develop due to the release of metal ions in individuals with metal-on-metal (MoM) hip implants, little concensus exists on how to diagnose metal sensitivity, what standards should be applied in assessing explanted devices, and whether—or what—serum metal ion levels should be used as potential revision markers.