Editor's Note If all total knee replacements were performed at high-volume hospitals, it could save the US healthcare system between $2.5 and $4 billion annually by 2030, finds a study presented March 4 at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. In this study of nearly 90,000…

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Editor's Note Hypothermia is associated with an increased risk for surgical site infections (SSIs) in patients having surgery to repair a hip fracture, finds this study presented March 2 at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. Of 1,525 patients analyzed: hypothermia occurred in 13.2% of cases…

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Editor's Note Readmissions after total hip and knee replacements are associated with nurse staffing levels and poor nurse work environments, finds this study from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, Philadelphia. The study analyzed data on more than 112,000 Medicare patients in nearly 500 hospitals. Adjusting for patient and…

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Editor's Note Implementing bundled payments for Medicare patients having total joint replacements resulted in improved quality of care and outcomes and reduced costs, finds this study presented March 2 at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. As a pilot site for Medicare’s Bundled Payment for Care…

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Editor's Note The risk of developing a surgical site infection (SSI) increased significantly in patients who had a total hip within 3 months of receiving a steroid injection in the hip joint, finds this study presented March 2 at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. Analyzing…

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Editor's Note An old drug, tranexamic acid (TXA), which has been used in heart surgery, to treat hemophilia, and to stop excessive uterine bleeding is now being used to reduce the need for blood transfusions during total joint replacements. Researchers from the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City…

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Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on February 18 issued a final order to require the filing of a premarket approval (PMA) application for two types of metal-on-metal total hip replacement devices: hip joint metal/metal semi-constrained, with a cemented acetabular component hip joint metal/metal semi-constrained, with an uncemented…

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Editor's Note Total joint patients benefited from preoperative one-on-one educations sessions provided by a physical therapist and access to a custom web portal, in this study presented February 20 at the annual meeting of the American Physical Therapy Association. Researchers from the Hospital for Special Surgery, New York City, followed…

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Editor's Note Bariatric surgery before total knee replacement (TKR) is cost-effective in improving outcomes in obese patients, this study finds. Researchers used a computer software program to compare the cost utility of two treatment protocols for patients who were morbidly obese and had advanced knee osteoarthritis. The model predicted that…

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Editor's Note About 7 million Americans are living with a total hip or knee replacement, including 620,000 who have had both, this study finds. In 2010, the prevalence of total hip and total knee replacement was 0.83% and 1.52%, respectively. Prevalence was higher in women and increased with age, reaching…

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