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Purpose: The objective of this study was to evaluate whether women with knee osteoarthritis performing a rehabilitation programme consisting of low-load exercises combined with PVO exhibited the same results in changes in quadriceps strength, pain relief, and functional improvement when compared to women receiving a programme consisting of high-load exercises without PVO., Methods: Thirty-four women (mean age, 61 years) with a diagnosis of knee osteoarthritis were randomly assigned to a conventional or occlusion group. The women in the conventional group (n = 17) performed a 6-week quadriceps strengthening and stretching programme using a load around 70 % of the 1-repetition maximum (RM). The women in the occlusion group (n = 17) performed the same programme, however, only using a load around 30 % of the 1-RM, while PVO was induced. The PVO was achieved using a pressure cuff applied to the upper third of the thigh and inflated to 200 mmHg during the quadriceps exercise. An 11-point Numerical Pain Rating Scale (NPRS), the Lequesne questionnaire, the Timed-Up and Go (TUG) test, and muscle strength measurement using a hand-held dynamometer were used as outcome measures at baseline (pretreatment) and at the end of the 6-week of treatment. Pain, using the NPRS, was also assessed when performing the quadriceps exercises during the exercise sessions., Results: At baseline, demographic, strength, pain, and functional assessment data were similar between groups. Patients from both the conventional and occlusion groups had a higher level of function (Lequesne and TUG test), less pain (NPRS), and higher quadriceps strength at the 6-week evaluation when compared to baseline (all P < 0.05). However, the between-group analysis showed no differences for all outcomes variables at posttreatment (n.s.). Patients in the occlusion group experienced less anterior knee discomfort during the treatment sessions than those in the high-load exercise group (P < 0.05)., Conclusion: A rehabilitation programme that combined PVO to low-load exercise resulted in similar benefits in pain, function, and quadriceps strength than a programme using high-load conventional exercise in patients with knee osteoarthritis. However, the use of PVO combined with low-load exercise resulted in less anterior knee pain during the training sessions., Level of Evidence: I.

Microbial identification of orthopedic implant-associated infections using sonication fluid (SF) submitted to a concentration step by membrane filtration (SMF) was compared with the standard centrifugation (SC) method. Among 33 retrieved infected implants, sonication identified microorganisms in 26 (78.8%). The sensitivity of SC was higher than that of SMF (78.8% versus 30.3%; P < 0.001)., (Copyright © 2016, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.)

Unlabelled: To evaluate results obtained using the protection device technique for osteosintesis or suture of extensor mechanism lesions., Material and Methods: The authors reviewed 18 charts of patients submitted to protection device technique due to traumatic lesion of extensor mechanism that had occurred between the anterior tibial tuberosity and the apical portion of patella. Age ranged from 22 to 69 years, with a mean of 44 years. Male patients prevailed, with 67% of the cases. The most affected spot was, in 83% of the cases, the apical distal third. A protocol was created to collect data, listing the patients and the clinical history from their medical records., Results: The authors observed consolidation of the patella fracture in all 17 patients, and cicatrization of the patellar ligament in one patient. Pain was described in four patients. There were no complications related to the procedure., Conclusion: The protection device showed to be efficient when used in surgical treatment of lesions between the apical patella and the anterior tibial tuberosity, providing active and passive mobility in the early postoperative time.

Objective: To evaluate the surgical aspects that may offer good anatomic and functional results in posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) reconstruction using an autologous graft of the quadriceps tendon and double semitendinosus through a double femoral tunnel., Methods: Fourteen patients with isolated PCL lesions, instability and pain were operated on by arthroscopy and evaluated according to the International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) and Lysholm scales. Posterior knee laxity was examined with a KT1000 arthrometer., Results: The mean postoperative posterior side-to-side difference was between 0-2 mm in 57.1% of patients and between 3 and 5 mm in 35.7% of cases. The average Lysholm score was 93 points in the final follow-up. In the IKDC evaluation, 3 patients were graded A, 10 were graded B, and 1 patient was graded C., Conclusions: Double bundle arthroscopic PCL reconstruction based on the anatomical positioning of the tunnels, with double semitendinosus tendon and single quadriceps, provides a clinically evident reduction in symptoms and restores satisfactory stability, although no statistically significant difference was found due to the small sample.

Objectives: To identify and compare the rate of success of therapeutic modalities applied in surgeries for the treatment of infections associated with total knee arthroplasty (TKA), and to evaluate the functional outcome and pain in different therapeutic modalities by means of quality of life scores., Methods: We evaluated all patients who developed periprosthetic infection after TKA for primary or secondary osteoarthritis, in the period from January 1(st), 2008 to December 31(st), 2010., Results: In the study period, 29 patients with TKA had infection, and 12 of these underwent debridement and retention of the prosthesis (D+R), seven received two-stage and six one-stage exchange arthroplasties, and four patients were treated with suppressive antibiotic therapy because they could not undergo another surgical procedure., Conclusion: The D+R, one-stage revision and two-stage revision success rates were 75%, 83.3%, and 100%, respectively. The best results of quality of life (QoL) and function occur in patients undergoing D+R. In contrast, the worst QoL and functional results were obtained in patients treated with two-stage revision arthroplasty. Level of Evidence II, Prognostic Studies - Investigating the Effect of a Patient Characteristic on the Outcome of Disease.

Background: In the field of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction, there is still no consensus regarding the proper fixation method and position of the tunnels. The primary objective of this paper was to describe a new fixation device, the Endo Tunnel Device (ETD®), for both techniques (transtibial and transportal), as well as the associated difficulties and the intraoperative and postoperative intercurrences. The secondary objective was to describe a preliminary clinical evaluation (6 months of follow-up) comparing these techniques., Methods: This was a prospective, randomized study involving 80 patients with ACL reconstructions using the ETD® for femoral fixation. Forty patients underwent the transtibial technique, and 40 patients underwent the transportal technique. Patients were evaluated by radiography, physical examination, the KT1000 arthrometer, and Lysholm and the International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) scores., Results: There were more intraoperative intercurrences in the transportal group (soft tissue device fixation, short femoral tunnel, and short graft inside the tunnel). The IKDC scores were significantly better in the transportal group., Conclusions: The ETD® was demonstrated to be a safe femoral fixation device in this trial; its use in both the transtibial and transportal techniques is technically simple and is associated with few intra- or postoperative complications.

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the results obtained from posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) reconstruction with the double femoral tunnel technique, using quadriceps tendon and semitendinous autograft, in patients with isolated PCL tears or PCL tears associated with other ligament lesions, 2 years after surgery., Methods: The study included 14 patients with isolated PCL lesions and 20 with combined ligament lesions, who underwent PCL reconstruction using the double femoral tunnel technique and were evaluated 24 months after surgery using the International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) and Lysholm scores, a KT-1000 arthrometer, and the graduation of the posterior drawer test., Results: Knees were considered normal ("A") or nearly normal ("B") in 92.9% of patients with isolated lesions and in 95.0% of patients with combined tears, according to the IKDC score. Good or excellent results were obtained in 100% of patients in both groups according to the Lysholm score. Absence or outstanding reduction of posterior tibial translation was seen in 92.9% of patients with isolated lesions and in 100% of patients with combined ligament tears, in the posterior drawer evaluation., Conclusion: The PCL double femoral tunnel reconstruction technique using autografts was effective in restoring posterior knee stability, in isolated and/or combined PCL tears, showing remarkable clinical improvement in all patients., Level of Evidence: 2C., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Varus deformity of the knee is a determining factor in the development of osteoarthrosis of the medial compartment. Open wedge osteotomy corrects the deformity and has quickly become popular due to the fact that the surgical technique can be easily reproduced, it spares loss of bone tissue in the metaphysiary region, and it does not require muscle dissection, reducing the risk of lesion of the fibular nerve. The objective of this study was to evaluate the characteristics of a new fixation implant (Anthony-K plate - France Bloc S.A, CE n0499, ISO 9001, EN 46001), in terms of its clinical improvement, correction of the deformity, and slope alteration. Twenty adult patients with varus deformity were evaluated, and submitted to open wedge high tibial osteotomy using the Anthony plate, between October 2004 and November 2006. The varus deformity was corrected in all cases, and there was a significant increase in the Lysholm score. Correlation analysis has shown that the greater the preoperative varus deformity, the larger the opening wedge used. Also, the greater the initial posterior tibial slope, the larger the final posterior tibial slope (p=0.0168). There were no complications. The Anthony plate can be considered an alternative in the treatment of medial osteoarthrosis of the varus knee, enabling the correction of the deformity and improvement of the clinical picture. It occurs an increase in posterior tibial slope, similar to that observed with other fixation materials. More studies with the Anthony plate are necessary, after these encouraging results.