9 Patient Outcomes From A General Inpatient Rehabilitation Ward, Does Frailty or Reason for Admission Make A Difference to Patient Outcome?

Introduction With our ageing population there is increasing number of patients who experience a decline in their mobility either because of their underlying diagnosis or as a consequence of their hospital stay. There are only a limited number of inpatient rehabilitation beds and it is therefore important to identify those that would benefit the most from inpatient rehabilitation. Method We undertook a retrospective study looking at three months of discharges from an inpatient rehabilitation ward in Manchester. Patients were categorised based on diagnosis (Pubic rami fracture, other fractures, fall with no bony injury and finally medical reasons) and Clinical Frailty Score to see if either had any effect on whether patients mobility improved and to what degree. Results Patients with a reduced mobility on admission were identified and then categorised based on diagnosis. Of those patients admitted with a pubic rami fracture 66.7% improved on the ward with 33.3% of patients reaching their baseline mobility. The mobility of 85.7% of patients with other fractures improved with 42.9% reaching their baseline. Patients admitted following a fall without bony injury showed, 75% improvement with 50% reaching their baseline. Of those admitted for medical reasons 88.9% of those improved but only 22.2% reaching their baseline mobility. The lowest proportion of any category. Those admitted for medical reasons also had the longest median average stay on the rehab ward (33.5 days) followed by other fractures (33 days) then fall with no bony injury (21.5 days) and finally the shortest average stay, pubic rami fractures (20 days). Patients were also grouped occurring to their preadmission Clinical Frailty Score. With the exception of those who scored four (only a small number of patients), there was a negative correlation between an increasing frailty score and the proportion of patients whose mobility improved. However as frailty score increased the proportion of patients who improved to their baseline increased. Conclusion Our study has shown that the majority of patients benefitted from their admission regardless of diagnosis, however those admitted for medical reasons had the lowest chance of reaching their baseline mobility despite the longest admissions on the ward. Further research may be beneficial to investigate if they do better in a different rehabilitation setting.

Chronic Distal Radioulnar Instability- Diagnosis and Treatment: A Review

The distal radioulnar joint is one of the inherently unstable joint in the body, its injury is commonly missed and the patient may present later with pain and restricted movement because of joint instability. The distal radioulnar joint instability could be dorsal , volar , or bidirectional, and it could be caused by soft tissue injury or bony injury and malunion. It is fundamentall to recognize the type of injury and the cause of instability to be able to provide the proper form of treatment to get the best results.

Pediatric and Adolescent Shoulder Instability: Does Insurance Status Predict Delays in Care, Outcomes, and Complication Rate?

Background: Recurrent shoulder instability results from overuse injuries that are often associated with athletic activity. Timely diagnosis and treatment are necessary to prevent further dislocations and secondary joint damage. In pediatric and adolescent patients, insurance status is a potential barrier to accessing timely care that has not yet been explored. Purpose: To examine the effect of insurance status on access to clinical consultation, surgical intervention, and surgical outcome of pediatric and adolescent patients with recurrent shoulder instability. Study Design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: We conducted a retrospective review of pediatric and adolescent patients who were treated at a single tertiary children’s hospital for recurrent shoulder instability between 2011 and 2017. Patients were sorted into private and public insurance cohorts. Dates of injury, consultation, and surgery were recorded. Number of previous dislocations, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) results, surgical findings, and postoperative complications were also noted. Delays in care were compared between the cohorts. The presence of isolated anterior versus complex labral pathology as well as bony involvement at the time of surgery was recorded. The incidences of labral pathology and secondary bony injury were then compared between the 2 cohorts. Postoperative notes were reviewed to compare rates of repeat dislocation and repeat surgery. Results: A total of 37 patients had public insurance, while 18 patients had private insurance. Privately insured patients were evaluated nearly 5 times faster than were publicly insured patients ( P < .001), and they obtained MRI scans over 4 times faster than did publicly insured patients ( P < .001). Publicly insured patients were twice as likely to have secondary bony injuries ( P = .016). Postoperatively, a significantly greater number (24.3%) of publicly insured patients experienced redislocation versus the complete absence of redislocation in the privately insured patients ( P = .022). Conclusion: Public insurance status affected access to care and was correlated with the development of secondary bony injury and a higher rate of postoperative dislocations. Clinicians should practice with increased awareness of how public insurance status can significantly affect patient outcomes by delaying access to care—particularly if delays lead to increased patient morbidity and health care costs.

Detailed observation of axis ring fractures using computed tomography: a retrospective analysis of 202 cases

Background: There is a dearth of research observing the precise anatomical location, pattern, and frequency of the fracture lines in axis ring fractures based on large size sample database and deducing the possible injury mechanism for such fractures. The study aimed to observe the anatomical features of axis ring fractures and evaluate the probable mechanism of injury.Methods: 202 patients with axis ring fractures were identified. According to the involvement of anatomical structures, the axis ring injuries were classified into facet joint injury and pure bony injury. The axis ring was also divided into: anterior, middle, and posterior elements. The anatomical structures involvement and fracture patterns of such fractures were observed using CT. Result: 501 anatomical structures of the axis ring were involved in 202 patients, including 288 facet joints injuries and 213 bony injuries. For facet joints injuries, the most common injuries were superior articular facet injuries, and for pure bony injuries, the most common injuries were pediculoisthmic component fractures. In regard to different element of the axis ring, the injuries of anterior element were more common than that of middle or posterior element. Most of (76.2%) axis ring fractures were asymmetrical, with different elements of the axis ring damaged on different side. Conclusion: In axis ring fractures, fracture lines could occur in any part of the ring. Facet joints injuries were more common than pure bony injuries, and the injuries of anterior element were more common than that of middle or posterior element. The probable mechanism of such injuries might be hyperextension and axial load, with an additional rotational load.

The Effect of Compression Applied Through Constrained Lateral Eccentricity on the Failure Mechanics and Flexibility of the Human Cervical Spine

In contrast to sagittal plane spine biomechanics, little is known about the response of the cervical spine to axial compression with lateral eccentricity of the applied force. This study evaluated the effect of lateral eccentricity on kinetics, kinematics, canal occlusion, injuries and flexibility of the cervical spine in translationally-constrained axial impacts. Eighteen functional spinal units were subjected to flexibility tests before and after an impact. Impact axial compression was applied at one of three lateral eccentricity levels based on percentage of vertebral body width (low = 5%, medium = 50%, high = 150%). Injuries were graded by dissection. Correlations between intrinsic specimen properties and injury scores were examined for each eccentricity group. Low lateral force eccentricity produced predominantly bone injuries, clinically recognised as compression injuries, while medium and high eccentricity produced mostly contralateral ligament and/or disc injuries, an asymmetric pattern typical of lateral loading. Mean compression force at injury decreased with increasing lateral eccentricity (low = 3098 N, medium = 2337 N and high = 683 N). Mean ipsilateral bending moments at injury were higher at medium (28.3 Nm) and high (22.9 Nm) eccentricity compared to low eccentricity specimens (0.1 Nm), p&lt;0.05. Ipsilateral bony injury was related to vertebral body area (r = -0.974, p = 0.001) and disc degeneration (r = 0.851, p = 0.032) at medium eccentricity. Facet degeneration was correlated with central bony injury at high eccentricity (r = 0.834, p = 0.036). These results deepen cervical spine biomechanics knowledge in circumstances with coronal plane loads.