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Background

Numerous metatarsal osteotomies have been developed for the treatment of Freiberg's disease. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcomes of modified Weil osteotomy in the treatment of Freiberg's disease.

Methods

From November 2001 to July 2008, nineteen patients (twenty feet), treated surgically for Freiberg's disease, were included in this study. The average age of the patients was 33.6 years (range, 17 to 62 years), the mean follow-up period was 71.6 months (range, 41 to 121 months). Clinical outcomes were evaluated according to visual analogue scale (VAS), American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) lesser metatarsophalangeal-interphalangeal scale, the patients' subjective satisfaction and range of motion (ROM) of metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joint. In the radiologic evaluation, initial metatarsal shortening by Freiberg's disease compared to opposite site, metatarsal shortening after modified Weil osteotomy compared with preoperative radiography and term for radiologic union were observed.

Results

VAS showed improvement from 6.2 ± 1.4 to 1.4 ± 1.5 at last follow-up (p < 0.0001). Points of AOFAS score increased from 63.3 ± 14.9 to 80.4 ± 5.6 (p < 0.0001). ROM of MTP joints also improved from 31.3 ± 10.1 to 48.3 ± 13.0 degrees at last follow-up (p < 0.0001). According to Smillie's classification system, there was no significant improvement of VAS, AOFAS score and ROM between early stages (stage I, II, and III) and late stages (stage IV and V). Out of twenty cases, nineteen (95%) were satisfied, reporting excellent or good results.

Conclusions

Modified Weil osteotomy is believed to be a useful method for the treatment of Freiberg's disease, not only in the early stages but also in the late stages. It relieves pain and improves function via shortening of metatarsals and restoration of MTP joint congruency.

We report the case of a healthy 36 year old man who suffered from foot pain lasting for weeks, without having a specific medical history relating to it. The clinical evaluation was interpreted as a transfer metatarsalgia caused by a splayfoot. The radiographs revealed no pathology except the splayfoot deformity. Due to persistent pain and swelling of the entire forefoot, after two weeks of conventional treatment, magnet resonance images (MRI) and a blood sample were taken. The laboratory investigation showed raised levels of white blood cell count and C-reactive protein. The MRI showed up oedema in the metatarsal heads II-IV, as well as soft tissue swelling of the forefoot without any signs of decomposition.

Because of this atypical inflammation of the forefoot a laboratory investigation to check for rheumatology disease was done and revealed borrelia burgdorferi infection. On the basis of these findings, antibiotic treatment was started and maintained over three weeks. The symptoms disappeared after 2 weeks, and the patient was able to resume his sports activities.

There is evidence that appropriate footwear is an important factor in the prevention of foot pain in otherwise healthy people or foot ulcers in people with diabetes and peripheral neuropathy. A standard care for reducing forefoot plantar pressure is the utilization of orthotic devices such as total contact inserts (TCI) with therapeutic footwear. Most neuropathic ulcers occur under the metatarsal heads, and foot deformity combined with high localized plantar pressure, appear to be the most significant factors contributing to these ulcers. In this study, patient-specific finite element models of the second ray of the foot were developed to study the influence of TCI design on peak plantar pressure (PPP) under the metatarsal heads. A typical full contact insert was modified based on the results of finite element analyses, by inserting 4 mm diameter cylindrical plugs of softer material in the regions of high pressure. Validation of the numerical model was addressed by comparing the numerical results obtained by the finite element method with measured pressure distribution in the region of the metatarsal heads for a shoe and TCI condition. Two subjects, one with a history of forefoot pain and one with diabetes and peripheral neuropathy, were tested in the laboratory while wearing therapeutic shoes and customized inserts. The study showed that customized inserts with softer plugs distributed throughout the regions of high plantar pressure reduced the PPP over that of the TCI alone. This supports the outcome as predicted by the numerical model, without causing edge effects as reported by other investigators using different plug designs, and provides a greater degree of flexibility for customizing orthotic devices than current practice allows.

Osteochondritis dissecans of the knee is identified with increasing frequency in the young adult patient. Left untreated, osteochondritis dissecans can lead to the development of osteoarthritis at an early age, resulting in progressive pain and disability. Treatment of osteochondritis dissecans may include nonoperative or operative intervention. Surgical treatment is indicated mainly by lesion stability, physeal closure, and clinical symptoms. Reestablishing the joint surface, maximizing the osteochondral biologic environment, achieving rigid fixation, and ensuring early motion are paramount to fragment preservation. In cases where the fragment is not amenable to preservation, the treatment may include complex reconstruction procedures, such as marrow stimulation, osteochondral autograft, fresh osteochondral allograft, and autologous chondrocyte implantation. Treatment goals include pain relief, restoration of function, and the prevention of secondary osteoarthritis.

Background

Congenital brachymetatarsia, a shortened metatarsal bone, can be corrected surgically by callus distraction or one-stage lengthening using bone graft.

Questions/purposes

We asked whether one-stage metatarsal lengthening using metatarsal homologous bone graft could improve forefoot function, lead to metatarsal healing, restore metatarsal parabola, and improve cosmetic appearance.

Patients and Methods

We retrospectively reviewed 29 patients (41 feet) in whom we lengthened 50 metatarsals. Surgery consisted of a transverse proximal osteotomy of the metatarsal shaft and interposition of a metatarsal homologous bone graft (average, 13 mm long) fixed with an intramedullary Kirschner wire. Minimum followup was 3 years (mean, 5 years; range, 3–11 years).

Results

Bone union was achieved in all cases. The mean preoperative American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society score was 37 points (range, 28–53 points) and the mean postoperative score was 88 points (range, 74–96 points), with an average improvement of 51 points. Radiographically, the mean gain in length was 13 mm (range, 10–15 mm), and the mean percentage increase was 23%.

Conclusions

One-stage metatarsal lengthening using interposition of metatarsal homologous bone graft to correct congenital brachymetatarsia has low morbidity for the patient, limited complications, short recovery times, and restores forefoot anatomy.

Level of Evidence

Level IV, therapeutic study. See Guidelines for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

Background

Morton’s neuroma is a common cause of pain that radiates from between the third and fourth metatarsals and which, when symptomatic, creates sensations of burning or sharp pain and numbness on the forefoot. Many conservative and surgical interventions are employed to reduce associated pain, but not enough research has been conducted to recommend patients to any one approach as the most reliable source of pain management.

Purpose

The objective of this case report is to describe the effect of massage therapy on one woman with symptomatic Morton’s neuroma.

Participant

A physically active 25-year-old female with diagnosed symptomatic Morton’s neuroma who has not found relief with previous conservative intervention.

Intervention

Six session of massage therapy once weekly for 60–75 minutes focused on postural alignment and localized foot and leg treatment. The client also completed an at-home exercise each day. Change was monitored each week by the massage therapist reassessing posture and by the client filling out a pain survey based on a Visual Analog Scale.

Results

The client reported progressive change in the character of the pain from burning and stabbing before the first session to a dull, pulsing sensation after the third session. She also recorded a reduction in pain during exercise from a 5/10 to 0/10 (on a scale where 10 is extreme pain).

Conclusion

This study describes how massage therapy reduced pain from Morton’s neuroma for one client; however, larger randomized control studies need to be done in order to determine the short- and long-term effects of massage therapy on this painful condition.

In this study, we performed a mechanical analysis of the effect of fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF-2) on autologous osteochondral transplantation in a rabbit model. A full-thickness cartilage defect (diameter: 5 mm; depth: 5 mm) made in the right femoral condyle was treated with osteochondral transplantation using an osteochondral plug (diameter: 6 mm; depth: 5 mm) taken from the left femoral condyle. The animals were divided into three groups: Group I, the defect was filled with 0.1 ml of gelatin hydrogel containing 1 μg of FGF-2; Group II, the defect was filled with 0.1 ml of gelatin hydrogel only; Group III, the defect was left untreated. Thereafter, osteochondral plugs were transplanted and the transplanted osteochondral grafts were evaluated mechanically and histologically at postoperative weeks 1, 3, 8 and 12. The structural property of the osteochondral graft was significantly greater in Group I than in Groups II and III at postoperative week 3. Histological analysis at 3 weeks revealed a tendency towards increased subchondral bone trabeculae in Group I compared with the other groups. Autologous osteochondral grafts transplanted with gelatin hydrogel containing FGF-2 acquired adequate stiffness at an early postoperative phase.

Autologous platelet-rich plasma (PRP) may enhance wound healing through the formation of a platelet plug that provides both hemostasis and the secretion of biologically active proteins, including growth factors such as platelet-derived growth factor, transforming growth factor (TGF)-β, TGF-β2, and epidermal growth factor. The release of these growth factors into the wound may create an environment more conducive to tissue repair and could accelerate postoperative wound healing. To our knowledge, there are no reports of combining the use of PRP with curative diabetic foot surgery. This article provides a summary of the literature regarding PRP and wound healing and presents a case of a 49-year-old man with diabetes and a three-month history of a deep, nonhealing plantar hallux wound in which PRP was combined with a first metatarsophalangeal joint arthroplasty. Through the use of the PRP and bioengineered tissue to supplement curative diabetic foot surgery, the patient healed uneventfully at seven weeks.

The increased risk of symptomatic progression towards osteoarthritis after chondral damage has led to the development of multiple treatment options for cartilage repair. These procedures have evolved from arthroscopic lavage and debridement, to marrow stimulation techniques, and more recently, to osteochondral autograft and allograft transplants, and autogenous chondrocyte implantation. The success of mosaicplasty procedures in the knee has led to its application to other surfaces, including the talus, tibial plateau, patella, and humeral capitellum. In this report, we present two cases of a chondral defect to the femoral head after a traumatic hip dislocation, treated with an osteochondral autograft (OATS) from the ipsilateral knee, and the inferior femoral head, respectively, combined with a surgical dislocation of the hip. At greater than 1 year and greater than 5 years of follow-up, MRI studies have demonstrated good autograft incorporation with maintenance of articular surface conformity, and both patients clinically continue to have no pain and full active range of motion of their respective hips. In our opinion, treatment of osteochondral defects in the femoral head surface using a surgical dislocation combined with an OATS procedure is a promising approach, as full exposure of the femoral head can be obtained while preserving its vasculature, thus enabling adequate restoration of the articular cartilage surface.

Objective:

To present the case of a collegiate athlete with an atraumatic osteochondral fracture influenced by the presence of osteoarthritis.

Background:

Osteochondral fractures are fairly common occurrences in athletes, although it can be difficult to recognize such an injury in the absence of a traumatic event. Osteoarthritis is 1 condition that can increase an athlete's susceptibility to an atraumatic osteochondral fracture. However, because of the atraumatic nature of the injury, the possibility of an osteochondral fracture may be overlooked.

Differential Diagnosis:

Meniscal damage, osteochondritis dissecans, patellofemoral disorders.

Treatment:

The osteochondral fragment was surgically removed, and fibrous growth was encouraged by drilling and laser smoothing.

Uniqueness:

Osteochondral fractures are usually associated with some type of traumatic mechanism, such as a rotational and compressive force. Also, osteoarthritis is not common in young collegiate athletes. However, this 20-year-old volleyball player had no apparent injury and lacked the usual signs and symptoms (eg, locking, giving way, crepitus, loss of range of motion) associated with an osteochondral fracture. The athlete's susceptibility to an osteochondral fracture was increased by the presence of osteoarthritis.

Conclusions:

The athletic trainer should consider the possibility of an osteochondral fracture in an athlete with persistent effusion and pain in the absence of a traumatic mechanism of injury.

Images

We investigated quantitative changes over time in ultrasound signal intensity (an index of stiffness), signal duration (an index of surface irregularity), and interval between signals (an index of thickness) of plug cartilage in an animal model of autologous osteochondral grafting. A full-thickness osteochondral plug was surgically removed and replaced in male Japanese white rabbits (n = 22). Specimens obtained at day 0 and weeks 2, 4, 8, 12 and 24 postoperatively were assessed using an ultrasound system and by macroscopic and histological evaluation (modified Mankin's score). Histology revealed that the plug sank until 2 weeks postoperatively, and that newly formed cartilage-like tissue covered the plug, but at 24 weeks the tissue detached. The plug itself survived well throughout the period of observation. Although the signal intensity at the plug site was same as that in the sham operated contralateral knee at day 0, from 2 to 24 weeks postoperatively it was less than that in the sham knee. At 8 weeks, this difference was significant (P < 0.05). Modified Mankin's score revealed early degenerative changes at the site, but macroscopic examination did not. Signal intensity correlated significantly with score (both at day 0 and at the five postoperative time points [P < 0.05, r = -0.91] and as a whole [P < 0.05, r = -0.36]). Signal intensity also significantly correlated with the individual subscores for 'cartilage structure' (P < 0.05, r = -0.32) and 'cartilage cells' (P < 0.05, r = -0.30) from the modified Mankin's score, but not significantly with subscores for 'staining' and 'tidemark'. Signal duration correlated significantly with total score (as a whole [P < 0.05, r = 0.34]), but not significantly with the score for cartilage structure (P = 0.0557, r = 0.29). The interval between signals reflected well the actual thickness of the plug site. The significant relationships between ultrasound signal intensity and scores suggest that early degenerative changes in plug cartilage and cartilage-like tissue, especially in the superficial layer, are detectable by high-frequency ultrasound assessment.

Diabetic foot infections are a high risk for lower extremity amputation in patients with dense peripheral neuropathy and/or peripheral vascular disease. When they present with concomitant osteomyelitis, it poses a great challenge to the surgical and medical teams with continuing debates regarding the treatment strategy. A cohort prospective study conducted between October 2005 and October 2010 included 330 diabetic patients with osteomyelitis mainly involving the forefoot (study group) and 1,808 patients without foot osteomyelitis (control group). Diagnosis of osteomyelitis was based on probing to bone test with bone cultures for microbiological studies and/or repeated plain radiographic findings. Surgical treatment included debridement, sequestrectomy, resections of metatarsal and digital bones, or toe amputation. Antibiotics were started as empirical and modified according to the final culture and sensitivities for all patients. Patients were followed for at least 1 year after wound healing. The mean age of the study group was 56.7 years (SD = 11.4) compared to the control group of 56.3 years (SD = 12.1), while the male to female ratio was 3:1. At initial presentation, 82.1% (n=271) of the study group had an ulcer penetrating the bone or joint level. The most common pathogens were Staphylococcus aureus (33.3%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (32.2%), and Escherichia coli (22.2%) with an almost similar pattern in the control group. In the study group, wound healing occurred in less than 6 months in 73% of patients compared to 89.9% in the control group. In the study group, 52 patients (15.8%) had a major lower extremity amputation versus 61 in the control group (3.4%) (P=0.001). During the postoperative follow-up visits, 12.1% of patients in each group developed wound recurrence. In conclusion, combined surgical and medical treatment for diabetic foot osteomyelitis can achieve acceptable limb salvage rate and also reduce the duration of time to healing along with the duration of antibiotic treatment and wound recurrence rate.

Large symptomatic osteochondral defects in a young active population represent a therapeutic challenge for orthopedic surgeons, since standard interventions such as debridement, microfracture and autologous osteochondral transfer are not suitable for the treatment of these larger lesions. Fresh osteochondral allograft transplantation provides a surgical option for these challenging defects, both as a primary procedure and for salvage of prior failed treatment attempts. This article reviews the basic science, indications, technique, and evidence for osteochondral allograft transplantation in the knee.

STUDY DESIGN

Case report.

BACKGROUND

No head-to-head comparisons of different orthoses for patients with stage II posterior tibial tendon dysfunction (PTTD) have been performed to date. Additionally, the cost of orthoses varies considerably, thus choosing an effective orthosis that is affordable to the patient is largely a trial-and-error process.

CASE DESCRIPTION

A 77-year-old woman was seen with complaints of abnormal foot posture (“my foot is out”), minimal medial foot and ankle pain, and a 3-year history of conservatively managed stage II PTTD. The patient was not able to complete 1 single-limb heel rise on the involved side, while she could complete 3 on the uninvolved side. Ankle strength testing revealed a mild to moderate loss of plantar flexor strength (20%–31% deficit on the involved side), combined with a 22% deficit in isometric ankle inversion and forefoot adduction strength. To assist this patient in managing her flatfoot posture and PTTD, 3 orthoses were considered: an off-the-shelf ankle-foot orthosis (AFO), a custom solid AFO, and a custom articulated AFO. The patient’s chief complaint was partly cosmetic (“my foot is out”). As decreasing flatfoot kinematics may unload the tibialis posterior muscle, thus prevent the progression of foot deformity, the primary goal of orthotic intervention was to improve flatfoot kinematics. Given the difficulties in clinical approaches to evaluating flatfoot kinematics, a quantitative gait analysis, using a multisegment foot model, was used.

OUTCOMES

In the frontal plane, all 3 orthoses were associated with small changes toward hindfoot inversion. In the sagittal plane, between 2.7° and 6.1°, greater forefoot plantar flexion (raising the medial longitudinal arch) occurred. There were no differences among the orthoses on hindfoot inversion and forefoot plantar flexion. In the transverse plane, the off-the-shelf design was associated with forefoot abduction, the custom solid orthosis was associated with no change, and the custom articulated orthosis was associated with forefoot adduction.

DISCUSSION

Based on gait analysis, the higher-cost custom articulated orthosis was chosen as optimal for the patient. This custom articulated orthosis was associated with the greatest change in flatfoot deformity, assessed using gait analysis. The patient felt it produced the greatest correction in foot deformity. Reducing flatfoot deformity while allowing ankle movement may limit progression of stage II PTTD.

The objective of this study was to determine the clinical outcome of combined bone grafting and matrix-supported autologous chondrocyte transplantation in patients with osteochondritis dissecans of the knee. Between January 2003 and March 2005, 21 patients (mean age 29.33 years) with symptomatic osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) of the medial or lateral condyle (grade III or IV) of the knee underwent reconstruction of the joint surface by autologous bone grafts and matrix-supported autologous chondrocyte transplantation. Patients were followed up at three, six, 12 and 36 months to determine outcomes by clinical evaluation based on Lysholm score, IKDC and ICRS score. Clinical results showed a significant improvement of Lysholm-score and IKDC score. With respect to clinical assessment, 18 of 21 patients showed good or excellent results 36 months postoperatively. Our study suggests that treatment of OCD with autologous bone grafts and matrix-supported autologous chondrocytes is a possible alternative to osteochondral cylinder transfer or conventional ACT.

Osteochondral transplantation is a successful treatment for full-thickness cartilage defects, which without treatment would lead to early osteoarthritis. Restoration of surface congruency and stability of the reconstruction may be jeopardized by early mobilization. To investigate the biomechanical effectiveness of osteochondral transplantation, we performed a standardized osteochondral transplantation in eight intact human cadaver knees, using three cylindrical plugs on a full-thickness cartilage defect, bottomed on one condyle, unbottomed on the contralateral condyle. Surface pressure measurements with Tekscan pressure transducers were performed after five conditions. In the presence of a defect the border contact pressure of the articular cartilage defect significantly increased to 192% as compared to the initially intact joint surface. This was partially restored with osteochondral transplantation (mosaicplasty), as the rim stress subsequently decreased to 135% of the preoperative value. Following weight bearing motion two out of eight unbottomed mosaicplasties showed subsidence of the plugs according to Tekscan measurements. This study demonstrates that a three-plug mosaicplasty is effective in restoring the increased border contact pressure of a cartilage defect, which may postpone the development of early osteoarthritis. Unbottomed mosaicplasties may be more susceptible for subsidence below flush level after (unintended) weight bearing motion.

Introduction

Gout is a common inflammatory arthritis caused by articular precipitation of monosodium urate crystals. It usually affects the first metatarsophalangeal joint of the foot and less commonly other joints, such as wrists, elbows, knees and ankles.

Case presentation

We report the case of a 75-year-old Caucasian man with tophaceous multiarticular gout, soft-tissue involvement and ulcerated tophi on the first metatarsophalangeal joint of the left foot, on the first interphalangeal joint of the right foot and on the left thumb.

Conclusion

Ulcers due to tophaceous gout are currently uncommon considering the positive effect of pharmaceutical treatment in controlling hyperuricemia. Surgical treatment is seldom required for gout and is usually reserved for cases of recurrent attacks with deformities, severe pain, infection and joint destruction.

34-year-old man with chronic renal and pancreas failure in complicated diabetic disease received a kidney-pancreas transplantation. On the 32nd postoperative day, an acute kidney rejection occurred and resolved with OKT3 therapy. The patient also presented refractory urinary infection by E. Fecalis and M. Morganii, and a focal bronchopneumonia in the right-basal lobe resolved with elective chemotherapy. During the 50th post-operative day, an intense soft tissue inflammation localized in the first left metatarsal-phalangeal articulation occurred (Figure 1) followed by an abscess with a cutaneous fistula and extension to the almost totality of foot area. The radiological exam revealed a small osteo-lacunar image localized in the proximal phalanx head of the first finger foot. From the cultural examination of the purulent material, N. Asteroides was identified. An amoxicillin-based treatment was started and continued for three months, with the complete resolution of infection This case is reported for its rarity in our casuistry, and for its difficult differential diagnosis with other potentially serious infections.

Osteochondral defects of the femoral head are exceedingly rare, with limited treatment options. Restoration procedures for similar defects involving the knee and ankle have been well described. In this report, we present a young patient who had a symptomatic osteochondral defect of the femoral head develop secondary to trauma and underwent subsequent treatment using a fresh-stored osteochondral allograft via a trochanteric osteotomy. At the 1-year followup, the patient was symptom free with near-complete incorporation of the graft radiographically. Our observations in this case suggest osteoarticular implantation may be an appropriate alternative to consider when treating osteochondral defects of the femoral head.

Introduction

Osteochondral grafts have become popular for treating small, isolated and full-thickness cartilage lesions. It is recommended that a slightly oversized, rather than an exact-sized, osteochondral plug is transplanted to achieve a tight fit. Consequently, impacting forces are required to insert the osteochondral plug into the recipient site. However, it remains controversial whether these impacting forces affect the biomechanical condition of the grafted articular cartilage. The present study aimed to investigate the mechanical effects of osteochondral plug implantation using osmotic loading and real-time ultrasound.

Methods

A full-thickness cylindrical osteochondral defect (diameter, 3.5 mm; depth, 5 mm) was created in the lateral lower quarter of the patella. Using graft-harvesting instruments, an osteochondral plug (diameter, 3.5 mm as exact-size or 4.5 mm as oversize; depth, 5 mm) was harvested from the lateral upper quarter of the patella and transplanted into the defect. Intact patella was used as a control. The samples were monitored by real-time ultrasound during sequential changes of the bathing solution from 0.15 M to 2 M saline (shrinkage phase) and back to 0.15 M saline (swelling phase). For cartilage sample assessment, three indices were selected, namely the change in amplitude from the cartilage surface (amplitude recovery rate: ARR) and the maximum echo shifts from the cartilage surface and the cartilage-bone interface.

Results

The ARR is closely related to the cartilage surface integrity, while the echo shifts from the cartilage surface and the cartilage-bone interface are closely related to tissue deformation and NaCl diffusion, respectively. The ARR values of the oversized plugs were significantly lower than those of the control and exact-sized plugs. Regarding the maximum echo shifts from the cartilage surface and the cartilage-bone interface, no significant differences were observed among the three groups.

Conclusions

These findings demonstrated that osmotic loading and real-time ultrasound were able to assess the mechanical condition of cartilage plugs after osteochondral grafting. In particular, the ARR was able to detect damage to the superficial collagen network in a non-destructive manner. Therefore, osmotic loading and real-time ultrasound are promising as minimally invasive methods for evaluating cartilage damage in the superficial zone after trauma or impact loading for osteochondral grafting.

Osteochondral lesions of the talus are common injuries in the athletic patient. They present a challenging clinical problem as cartilage has a poor potential for healing. Current surgical treatments consist of reparative (microfracture) or replacement (autologous osteochondral graft) strategies and demonstrate good clinical outcomes at the short and medium term follow-up. Radiological findings and second-look arthroscopy however, indicate possible poor cartilage repair with evidence of fibrous infill and fissuring of the regenerative tissue following microfracture. Longer-term follow-up echoes these findings as it demonstrates a decline in clinical outcome. The nature of the cartilage repair that occurs for an osteochondral graft to become integrated with the native surround tissue is also of concern. Studies have shown evidence of poor cartilage integration, with chondrocyte death at the periphery of the graft, possibly causing cyst formation due to synovial fluid ingress. Biological adjuncts, in the form of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and bone marrow aspirate concentrate (BMAC), have been investigated with regard to their potential in improving cartilage repair in both in vitro and in vitro settings. The in vitro literature indicates that these biological adjuncts may increase chondrocyte proliferation as well as synthetic capability, while limiting the catabolic effects of an inflammatory joint environment. These findings have been extrapolated to in vitro animal models, with results showing that both PRP and BMAC improve cartilage repair. The basic science literature therefore establishes the proof of concept that biological adjuncts may improve cartilage repair when used in conjunction with reparative and replacement treatment strategies for osteochondral lesions of the talus.

Background

The design of foot and ankle orthoses is currently limited by the methods used to fabricate the devices, particularly in terms of geometric freedom and potential to include innovative new features. Additive manufacturing (AM) technologies, where objects are constructed via a series of sub-millimetre layers of a substrate material, may present the opportunity to overcome these limitations and allow novel devices to be produced that are highly personalised for the individual, both in terms of fit and functionality.

Two novel devices, a foot orthosis (FO) designed to include adjustable elements to relieve pressure at the metatarsal heads, and an ankle foot orthosis (AFO) designed to have adjustable stiffness levels in the sagittal plane, were developed and fabricated using AM. The devices were then tested on a healthy participant to determine if the intended biomechanical modes of action were achieved.

Results

The adjustable, pressure relieving FO was found to be able to significantly reduce pressure under the targeted metatarsal heads. The AFO was shown to have distinct effects on ankle kinematics which could be varied by adjusting the stiffness level of the device.

Conclusions

The results presented here demonstrate the potential design freedom made available by AM, and suggest that it may allow novel personalised orthotic devices to be produced which are beyond the current state of the art.

Background:

Pes cavus is a progressive and ugly deformity of the foot. Although initially the deformity is painless, with time, painful callosities develop under metatarsal heads and arthritis supervenes later in feet. Mild deformities can be treated with corrective shoes, or foot exercises. However, in others, operative treatment is imperative. Soft tissue operations are largely unsatisfactory and temporary. Bony operations give permanent correction. We present our series of 18 patients of pes cavus in the adolescent age group, treated by Japas' V-osteotomy of the tarsus.

Materials and Methods:

18 patients of paralytic pes cavus deformity were treated by Japas osteotomy, between March 1995 and 2005, at our institute. The age of the patients ranged from 8.6 to 15 years (mean 11.3); 10 were boys and 8 girls. All cases had unilateral involvement, and all, but one, were post-polio cases.

Result:

The mean follow-up is 5.4 years. Of the 18 patients, 14 had excellent or good corrections; 4 had poor correction/complications. However, those patients could be salvaged by triple arthordesis or Dwyer's calcaneal osteotomy.

Conclusion:

Japas' osteotomy is a satisfactory option for correction of pes cavus deformity in adolescents. In patients who have rigid hind foot equinus or varus, however, the results are compromised.

Introduction

Osteochondritis dissecans of the lateral femoral condyle is relatively rare, and it is reported to often be combined with a discoid lateral meniscus. Given the potential for healing, conservative management is indicated for stable osteochondritis dissecans in patients who are skeletally immature. However, patients with osteochondritis dissecans of the lateral femoral condyle combined with a discoid lateral meniscus often have persistent symptoms despite conservative management.

Case presentation

We present the case of a seven-year-old Korean girl who had osteochondritis dissecans of the lateral femoral condyle combined with a discoid lateral meniscus, which healed after meniscoplasty for the symptomatic lateral discoid meniscus without surgical intervention for the osteochondritis dissecans. In addition, healing of the osteochondritis dissecans lesion was confirmed by an MRI scan five months after the operation.

Conclusions

Meniscoplasty can be recommended for symptomatic stable juvenile osteochondritis dissecans of the lateral femoral condyle combined with a discoid lateral meniscus when conservative treatment fails.

Purpose

The aim of this study was to evaluate subsidence tendency, surface congruency, chondrocyte survival and plug incorporation after osteochondral transplantation in an animal model. The potential benefit of precise seating of the transplanted osteochondral plug on the recipient subchondral host bone (‘bottoming’) on these parameters was assessed in particular.

Methods

In 18 goats, two osteochondral autografts were harvested from the trochlea of the ipsilateral knee joint and inserted press-fit in a standardized articular cartilage defect in the medial femoral condyle. In half of the goats, the transplanted plugs were matched exactly to the depth of the recipient hole (bottomed plugs; n = 9), whereas in the other half of the goats, a gap of 2 mm was left between the plugs and the recipient bottom (unbottomed plugs; n = 9). After 6 weeks, all transplants were evaluated on gross morphology, subsidence, histology, and chondrocyte vitality.

Results

The macroscopic morphology scored significantly higher for surface congruency in bottomed plugs as compared to unbottomed reconstructions (P = 0.04). However, no differences in histological subsidence scoring between bottomed and unbottomed plugs were found. The transplanted articular cartilage of both bottomed and unbottomed plugs was vital. Only at the edges some matrix destaining, chondrocyte death and cluster formation was observed. At the subchondral bone level, active remodeling occurred, whereas integration at the cartilaginous surface of the osteochondral plugs failed to occur. Subchondral cysts were found in both groups.

Conclusions

In this animal model, subsidence tendency was significantly lower after ‘bottomed’ versus ‘unbottomed’ osteochondral transplants on gross appearance, whereas for histological scoring no significant differences were encountered. Since the clinical outcome may be negatively influenced by subsidence, the use of ‘bottomed’ grafts is recommended for osteochondral transplantation in patients.