Periprosthetic joint infections (PJI) are a serious complication of arthroplasty with high morbidity. With growing bacterial resistance and limited disposability of oral antibiotics with sufficient bioavailability, the need for intravenous antibiotic application is raising. This causes long-term hospital stays and rising costs. In the course of transferring procedures into an outpatient setting as well as coping with pressures on hospital capacity, outpatient parenteral antimicrobial therapy (OPAT) can build a bridge for the treatment of such infections.In a single centre analysis, 47 cases treated with OPAT were studied in relation to pathogen, antimicrobial resistance, indication for OPAT and follow up. Furthermore, the patients received an anonymised questionnaire with 4 clusters of interest in terms of internal quality assessment on the success and evaluation of this therapeutic procedure. Special attention was paid to the descriptive analysis of patients with periprosthetic joint infections (n = 30).Between May 2021 and October 2022 out of 47 patients with OPAT, 30 cases with periprosthetic joint infections were identified. For infected hip- and knee arthroplasties, a remarkable spectrum of pathogens was found. In hip infections highly resistant strains of Staphylococcus epidermidis and Enterococci were detected. In knee infections, the pathogens were more susceptible, but however highly virulent Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococci. Difficult to treat, mixed infections were found in both locations. The indication for OPAT was based in half of the cases on the high level of antimicrobial resistance, with availability of only parenteral applicable antibiotics. Further indications were mixed infections and difficult to treat pathogens, with flucloxacillin therapy as well as OPAT as the last therapeutic option. The questionnaire showed 96% patient satisfaction in terms of organisation and acceptance of this kind of therapy. Complications or unexpected outpatient/ hospital treatments were very rare in connection with OPAT. Two thirds of patients reported completion of the treatment. In the clinical follow up (average of 5.7 months), 96.6% of cases were declared free of infection. In one patient the infection persisted.OPAT is a safe and reliable therapeutic option for outpatients to continue parenteral antimicrobial treatment in joint infections. Due to increasing pressure on hospitals in terms of costs and capacity, this therapy offers an alternative to inpatient treatment. The indication for OPAT should be set individually, risk adjusted and not generalised for all patients. The outpatient sector needs financial and structural support for comprehensive roll-out of this treatment in Germany. A further focus should be on the prevention of periprosthetic joint infections. With the knowledge of the expected pathogens and the surgical resources, the standards should be adapted. The choice of the antibiotic should be specified and the intervals of application be shortened, according to the surgical course, in order to yield high levels of agent concentration in the surgical area. Further investigations are required to test the superiority of OPAT versus the oral administration of antibiotics in long-term observations as well as to define the necessary duration of OPAT.

ZusammenfassungPeriprothetische Infektionen (PJI) stellen eine schwere Komplikation mit hoher Morbidität dar. Vor dem Hintergrund zunehmender bakterieller Resistenzen sowie der begrenzten Verfügbarkeit oraler Antibiotika mit entsprechend hoher Bioverfügbarkeit besteht die Notwendigkeit zur intravenösen Antibiotikagabe. Dies führt zu einer langen Hospitalisierung und hohen Kosten. Im Zuge der zunehmenden Ambulantisierung in Deutschland sowie des Kapazitätsdruckes in den Kliniken kann die ambulante parenterale Antiinfektivatherapie (APAT) hier eine Brücke schlagen.In einer monozentrischen Auswertung wurden 47 Fälle, die mit einer APAT versorgt worden, bez. ihrer gewonnenen Erreger, deren mikrobieller Resistenz, der Indikation zur APAT und zum Follow-up untersucht. Weiterhin wurden diese Patienten mit einem anonymisierten Fragebogen zu 4 Themenclustern im Sinne der klinikinternen Qualitätssicherung zu Erfolg und Bewertung dieser Therapieform befragt. Ein besonderes Augenmerk lag auf der deskriptiven Auswertung der n = 30 periprothetischen Infektionen.Zwischen Mai 2021 und Oktober 2022 wurden von den insgesamt 47 Patienten mit APAT 30 Protheseninfekte therapiert. Ein auffallend unterschiedliches Erregerspektrum wurde für Knie- und Hüftendoprothesen festgestellt. Dabei wurden im Hüftbereich vor allem hoch resistente Staphylococcus epidermidis und Enterokokken (in dieser Fallstudie Difficult-to-Treat-Erreger, DTT) nachgewiesen. Bei den Knien waren die Erreger eher sensibler, dafür aber hoch virulente Staphylococcus aureus und Streptokokken. Schwer therapierbare Mischinfektionen gab es in beiden Gruppen. Die Indikation zur APAT wurde zu 50% aufgrund der hohen Resistenzlage mit einer Verfügbarkeit von nur noch intravenös zu applizierenden Antibiotika gestellt. Weitere Indikationen waren DTT-Erreger, eine Flucloxacillin-Therapie sowie die APAT als Exit-Strategie. In der Befragung konnte eine 96%ige Patientenzufriedenheit bez. der Organisation und Akzeptanz der Therapieform nachgewiesen werden. Komplikationen oder unerwartete ambulante/stationäre Behandlungen traten im Zusammenhang mit der APAT selten auf. Knapp ⅔ der Befragten gaben subjektiv eine abgeschlossene Behandlung an. Im klinischen Follow-up, das durchschnittlich 5,7 Monate umfasste, konnten hingegen sogar 96,6% der Fälle als infektfrei deklariert werden. Bei einem Patienten persistierte der Infekt.Die APAT stellt eine sichere und zuverlässige Therapieoption zur ambulanten Fortsetzung der intravenösen Antibiotikatherapie bei Infektionen des Bewegungsapparates dar. Bei zunehmendem Kosten- und Kapazitätsdruck im stationären Sektor bietet diese Methode eine gute Alternative zur stationären Therapie. Die Indikation zur APAT sollte individuell, risikoadaptiert und nicht generell für alle Patienten gestellt werden. Der ambulante Sektor muss für die flächendeckende Etablierung der APAT finanziell und strukturell unterstützt werden. Ein weiterer Fokus sollte auf die verstärkte Prävention von PJI gelegt werden. Mit dem Wissen um das erwartbare Erregerspektrum sowie der operativen Ressourcen sollten Standards angepasst werden. Die Wahl der Antibiotika sollte spezifiziert und die Gabeintervalle nach entsprechendem OP-Verlauf verkürzt werden, um hohe Wirkstoffkonzentrationen im OP-Gebiet zu erzielen. Es sind weitere Untersuchungen notwendig, um die Überlegenheit der APAT gegenüber der oralen Gabe in der Langzeitbeobachtung zu prüfen sowie die notwendige Dauer der APAT festzulegen.

Aim: The sequence of radiotherapy and resection in patients with soft tissue sarcomas is usually discussed on an individual basis. Better understanding of potential differences of health-related quality of life (QoL) between patients undergoing adjuvant (ART) versus neoadjuvant radiotherapy (NART) is therefore helpful for clinical decision making. Methods: Adult sarcoma patients from 39 hospitals completed the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Core Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30). Differences in global QoL, physical functioning, role functioning, fatigue, pain, and insomnia between ART versus NART were investigated with multivariate regression, adjusting for age, gender, chemotherapy, grading, stage, tumor location, recurrence/distant metastasis, sarcoma type, time since last treatment, and treatment status using validated thresholds. Results: A total of 1110 patients participated. Of them, 340 had received radiotherapy (NART: n = 95, 28%; ART: n = 245, 72%). Global QoL was 59.3 on average after NART and 60.5 after ART (B-adj = 1.0, p = 0.74). Physical functioning was 65.9 compared to 70.5 (B-adj = 4.2; p = 0.16), role function 48.8 vs. 56.7 (B-adj = 7.0, p = 0.08), fatigue 47.5 vs. 45.4 (B-adj = -1.2; p = 0.71), pain 40.2 vs. 34.1 (B-adj = -6.8; p = 0.08), and insomnia 33.7 vs. 41.6 (B-adj = 5.5, p = 0.16). Among patients with NART, clinically relevant QoL impairments were less frequent 2 years after treatment compared to < 2 years thereafter (n = 6 vs. n = 4 on average). Conclusion: There is little evidence for QoL differences in most domains and overall QoL between the two irradiation groups. However, patients after NART might experience worse role functioning and pain but fewer problems with insomnia compared to patients after ART.

A 53-year old male with a history of progressive visual impairment, hearing loss, peripheral neuropathy, poorly controlled diabetes mellitus, cardiomyopathy, and weight loss was referred to the rare disease center due to the suspicion of mitochondrial cytopathy. In line with mitochondrial dysfunction, lactate in CSF was increased. Genetic testing by whole-exome sequencing and mitochondrial DNA did not reveal a likely cause. The case remained unsolved until he developed pain in his right hip, where he had received total hip arthroplasty 12 years earlier. An orthopedic evaluation revealed substantial shrinkage of the head of the hip prosthesis. Due to metal-on-metal wear, debris chromium and cobalt levels in serum were massively increased and significantly improved with multisystemic impairment after exchanging the defective implant.

BACKGROUND:Limited knowledge of stem cell therapies` mechanisms of action hampers their sustainable implementation into the clinic. Specifically, the interactions of transplanted stem cells with the host vasculature and its implications for their therapeutic efficacy are not elucidated. We tested whether adhesion receptors and chemokine receptors on stem cells can be functionally modulated, and consequently if such modulation may substantially affect therapeutically relevant stem cell interactions with the host endothelium.METHODS:We investigated the effects of cationic molecule polyethylenimine (PEI) treatment with or without nanoparticles on the functions of adhesion receptors and chemokine receptors of human bone marrow-derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSC). Analyses included MSC functions in vitro, as well as homing and therapeutic efficacy in rodent models of central nervous system´s pathologies in vivo.FINDINGS:PEI treatment did not affect viability, immunomodulation or differentiation potential of MSC, but increased the CCR4 expression and functionally blocked their adhesion receptors, thus decreasing their adhesion capacity in vitro. Intravenously applied in a rat model of brain injury, the homing rate of PEI-MSC in the brain was highly increased with decreased numbers of adherent PEI-MSC in the lung vasculature. Moreover, in comparison to untreated MSC, PEI-MSC featured increased tumour directed migration in a mouse glioblastoma model, and superior therapeutic efficacy in a murine model of stroke.INTERPRETATION:Balanced stem cell adhesion and migration in different parts of the vasculature and tissues together with the local microenvironment impacts their therapeutic efficacy.FUNDING:Robert Bosch Stiftung, IZEPHA grant, EU grant 7 FP Health.

Avascular necrosis (AVN) is a severe complication of immunosuppressant therapy or chemotherapy. A beneficial AVN therapy with core decompression (CD) and intraosseous infusion of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) has been described in adult patients, but there are only few data on MSC applications in pediatric and young adult patients (PYAP). Between 2006 and 2015, 14 AVN lesions of 10 PYAP (6 females) with a median age of 16.9 years (range 8.5-25.8 years) received CD and intraosseous application of autologous MSCs. Data of these patients were analyzed regarding efficacy, safety, and feasibility of this procedure as AVN therapy and compared with a control group of 13 AVN lesions of 11 PYAP (5 females) with a median age of 17.9 years (range 13.5-27.5 years) who received CD only. During the follow-up analysis [MSC group: median 3.1 (1.6-5.8) years after CD; CD group: median 2.0 (1.5-8.5) years after CD], relative lesion sizes (as assessed by magnetic resonance imaging) compared with the initial lesion volume, were significantly lower (P < 0.05) in the MSC group (volume reduction to a median of 18.5%) when compared with the CD group (58.0%). One lesion in the MSC group comprised a complete remission. Size progression was not observed in either group. Clinical improvement (pain, mobility) was not significantly different between the two groups. None of the patients experienced treatment-related adverse effects. CD and additional MSC application was regarded safe, effective, feasible, and superior in reducing the lesion size when compared with CD only. Prospective, randomized clinical trials are needed to further evaluate these findings.

Sclerosing spindle cell rhabdomyosarcoma (SSRMS) is a rare rhabdomyosarcomas (RMS) subtype. Especially cases bearing a myogenic differentiation 1 (MYOD1) mutation are characterized by a high recurrence and metastasis rate, often leading to a fatal outcome. SSRMS cell lines are valuable in vitro models for studying disease mechanisms and for the preclinical evaluation of new therapeutic approaches. In this study, a cell line established from a primary SSRMS tumor of a 24-year-old female after multimodal chemotherapeutic pretreatment has been characterized in detail, including immunohistochemistry, growth characteristics, cytogenetic analysis, mutation analysis, evaluation of stem cell marker expression, differentiation potential, and tumorigenicity in mice. The cell line which was designated SRH exhibited a complex genomic profile, including several translocations and deletions. Array-comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) revealed an overall predominating loss of gene loci. The mesenchymal tumor origin was underlined by the expression of mesenchymal markers and potential to undergo adipogenic and osteogenic differentiation. Despite myogenic marker expression, terminal myogenic differentiation was inhibited, which might be elicited by the MYOD1 hotspot mutation. In vivo tumorigenicity could be confirmed after subcutaneous injection into NOD/SCID/γcnull mice. Summarized, the SRH cell line is the first adult SSRMS cell line available for preclinical research on this rare RMS subtype.

Rhabdomyosarcomas (RMS) are the most prevalent soft tissue sarcomas affecting children and adolescents. Despite intensive treatment consisting of multimodal chemotherapy and surgery RMS patients diagnosed with metastatic disease expect long term survival rates of only 20%. Often multidrug resistance arises upon initial response emphasizing the need for new therapeutic drugs to improve treatment efficiency. Previously, we demonstrated the efficacy of the FDA approved drug arsenic trioxide (ATO) specifically inhibiting viability and clonal growth as well as inducing cell death in human RMS cell lines of different subtypes. In this study, we combined low dose ATO with lithium chloride (LiCl), which is approved as mood stabilizer for the treatment of bipolar disorder, but also inhibits growth and survival of different cancer cell types in pre-clinical research. Indeed, we could show additive effects of LiCl and ATO on viability reduction, decrease of colony formation as well as cell death induction. In the course of this, LiCl induced inhibitory glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β) serine 9 phosphorylation, whereas glioma associated oncogene family 1 (GLI1) protein expression was particularly reduced by combined ATO and LiCl treatment in RD and RH-30 cell lines, showing high rates of apoptotic cell death. These results imply that combination of ATO with LiCl or another drug targeting GSK-3 is a promising strategy to enforce the treatment efficiency in resistant and recurrent RMS.

Zusammenfassung Hintergrund Die Indikationsstellung zur Operation bezieht ihre Legitimation zum Eingriff in die körperliche Unversehrtheit eines Patienten im Wesentlichen aus dem zu erwartenden Behandlungserfolg. Um die Wahrscheinlichkeit und das Ausmaß eines Operationserfolgs bereits präoperativ abzuschätzen, muss der Chirurg in kurzer Zeit eine Fülle an Parametern evaluieren, die über die rein technische Dimension des Eingriffs hinausgehen. Trotz höchster Versorgungsstandards zeigt die postoperative patientenseitige Zufriedenheit eine immense Streubreite bei für den Arzt technisch zufriedenstellendem Ergebnis. Ziel der folgenden Studie war es, zu untersuchen, mit welcher Präzision individuelle postoperative Zufriedenheit und Schmerzangabe von Patienten bei elektiven muskuloskeletalen Eingriffen vorhergesagt werden können, und ob diese Vorhersagepräzision abhängig ist vom ärztlichen Ausbildungsstand. Zudem sollte evaluiert werden, ob bei einem hoch standardisierten Eingriff, wie dem endoprothetischen Gelenkersatz, eine höhere Präzision möglich ist als im restlichen Operationsgut. Material und Methoden Die Ärzte der Klinik gaben präoperativ eine Einschätzung über die erwartete Zufriedenheit (Skala 0 – 10) und Schmerzstärke (NRS) der Patienten für den Zeitpunkt 6 Monate postoperativ ab. Zu diesem Zeitpunkt erfolgte dann die Erhebung dieser Parameter bei den Patienten. Die ärztliche Beurteilung erfolgte im Rahmen der präoperativen Visite am Vortag zur Operation. Unterschiedlich erfahrene Kollegen konnten so zeitgleich dieselben Patienten einschätzen. Verglichen wurden die Angaben von Ober- und Fachärzten mit denen der Assistenzärzte in Gegenüberstellung zu den Angaben der Patienten. Ergebnisse Insgesamt wurden 194 Einschätzungen ausgewertet. Durch die Operation konnte eine deutliche Schmerzbesserung erzielt werden (Median NRS prä-OP 6,25, post-OP 2,5, p < 0,001). Die ärztliche Einschätzung für die postoperativen Schmerzen lag über das gesamte Kollektiv im Median bei NRS2 und somit etwas optimistischer als von den Patienten selbst angegeben. Auf die individuelle Einschätzung bezogen lag jedoch sowohl für Schmerz als auch Zufriedenheit die mediane absolute Abweichung bei 2 Skalenwerten. Dies bedeutet, dass sich nur die Hälfte der Einschätzungen in dem Bereich der Skala finden, der um den zutreffenden Wert herum die Hälfte der Skala abdeckt. Bei dem Vergleich der Einschätzungspräzision zeigte sich zwischen Ober-/Fachärzten und Assistenzärzten kein signifikanter Unterschied. Eine höhere Vorhersagepräzision gelang auch bei primären Endoprothetikpatienten nicht. Schlussfolgerung Auch wenn sich die ärztliche Einschätzung insgesamt mit den Patientenangaben annähernd deckt, so sind auf den Einzelfall bezogen starke Abweichungen zu verzeichnen, die auch in einem hoch standardisierten Kollektiv, wie dem der primären Endoprothetik, bestehen. Eine Zunahme der Einschätzungsqualität mit fortschreitendem ärztlichem Ausbildungsstand war nicht festzustellen. Hier lassen die Daten die Vermutung zu, dass über die technische Dimension hinaus andere Faktoren ebenfalls von entscheidender Bedeutung sind, wie z. B. die präoperative Erwartungshaltung des Patienten. Anspruch eines jeden Operateurs muss es daher sein, eine realistische Erwartung an die Operation mit dem Patienten gemeinsam zu entwickeln und sich dabei der eigenen Grenzen bez. der Vorhersagepräzision des Erfolgs bewusst zu sein.

Background The indication for surgery is justified by an expected improvement for the patient. To evaluate the probability and extent of individual postoperative patient benefit, the surgeon needs to elaborate numerous parameters of potential relevance for the outcome beyond his key competence, that is the technical dimension of the operation. Despite the highest medical standards, individual postoperative satisfaction with surgery is highly variable, even in cases with a technically good result. The aim of the present study was to investigate the individual predictability of postoperative pain and satisfaction in patients with elective musculoskeletal surgery. Moreover, it was analysed whether the quality of the prediction of the outcome depends on professional experience and if a better prediction can be obtained in such a highly standardised procedure as primary total arthroplasty. Patients/Material and Methods In our hospital on the day before surgery, patients with their medical history are presented to the head of department and a short clinical examination is performed as well as a joint analysis of radiographic images. During this grand round, doctors gave a written preoperative estimation of both expected postoperative satisfaction and pain at 6 months after surgery on a scale from 0 - 10. At 6 months postoperatively, patients were asked to give their actual level for these two parameters. Preoperative estimations were obtained from both senior and resident physicians and compared with the values actually reported by the patient. Results A total of 194 physicians' predictions of 63 patients were analysed. Preoperative pain levels were reduced markedly by surgery from a median NRS of 6.25 to 2.5 (p < 0.001). Median prediction for postoperative pain was 2 (IQR 2), which is only slightly more optimistic than reported. On an individual level, the discrepancy between prediction and actual outcome was, however, considerable - with a median absolute difference of 2 (IQR 3) values on the scale. This means that only 50% of all predictions were close enough to the actual value to be at least in the correct half of the entire scale. When looking at prediction precision as a function of professional experience, no difference could be observed between senior and junior doctors (p = 0.738 for postoperative pain and p = 0.370 for satisfaction with surgery). Even in primary arthroplasty patients (n = 17), precision of outcome prediction for pain was no better that in the remaining collective (p = 0.634). With respect to postoperative satisfaction, precision of prediction was even worse (p = 0.042), as satisfaction was slightly underestimated by the physicians in the primary arthroplasty group, by a median of 1. Conclusion While general prediction showed almost perfect agreement with actual postoperative values, individual predictability showed highly variable results. Even in such a standardised collective as primary arthroplasty, this scattering of deviation was observed. Since professional experience did not lead to improved results, it can be speculated that, beside the technical dimension of surgery, other factors such as patient expectation are of crucial relevance for postoperative outcome. To further improve outcome and patient satisfaction with surgery we therefore recommend developing an individualised and realistic prognosis together with each patient, but bearing in mind own limits of outcome prediction.

Stem cell therapies can promote neural repair and regeneration, yet controversy regarding optimal cell source and mechanism of action has slowed clinical translation, potentially due to undefined cellular heterogeneity. Single cell resolution is needed to identify clinically relevant subpopulations with the highest therapeutic relevance. We combine single cell microfluidic analysis with advanced computational modeling to study for the first time two common sources for cell-based therapies, human NSCs and MSCs. This methodology has the potential to logically inform cell source decisions for any clinical application.

Ewing sarcomas (ES) are rare mesenchymal tumours, most commonly diagnosed in children and adolescents. Arsenic trioxide (ATO) has been shown to efficiently and selectively target leukaemic blasts as well as solid tumour cells. Since multidrug resistance often occurs in recurrent and metastatic ES, we tested potential additive effects of ATO in combination with the cytostatic drugs etoposide and doxorubicin. The Ewing sarcoma cell lines A673, RD-ES and SK-N-MC as well as mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) for control were treated with ATO, etoposide and doxorubicin in single and combined application. Viability and proliferation (MTS assay, colony formation, 3D spheroid culture) as well as cell death induction (western blot analysis, flow cytometry) were analysed. In the MTS viability assays ATO treatment significantly reduced the metabolic activity of all three ES cell lines (A673, RD-ES and SK-N-MC) examined. Moreover, all ES cell lines were sensitive to etoposide, whereas MSC remained unaffected by the drug concentrations used. With the exception of ATO in RD-ES cells, all drugs induced apoptosis in the ES cell lines, indicated by caspase-3 and PARP cleavage. Combination of the agents potentiated the reduction of viability as well as the inhibitory effect on clonal growth. In addition, cell death induction was obviously enhanced in RD-ES and SK-N-MC cells by a combination of ATO and etoposide compared to single application. Summarised, the combination of low dose, physiologically easily tolerable ATO with commonly used etoposide and doxorubicin concentrations efficiently and selectively suppressed viability and colony formation in ES cell lines, whereas a combination of ATO and etoposide was favourable for cell death induction. In addition to an increase of the effectiveness of the cytostatic drugs and prevention of potential drug resistance, this approach may also reduce toxicity effects, since the individual doses can be reduced.

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) hold great promise to model diseases, where the disease affected cell type is difficult to access. A major obstacle for the development of disease models is the lack of well characterized control iPSCs from old people not affected by such a disease. Furthermore, gene-editing approaches often require iPSCs from healthy donors, where pathogenic mutations can be inserted if patient material is not available. Here, we report the generation of an iPSC line (16423 #6) from a 77-year-old woman, who did not display any disease symptoms at the time, when the skin biopsy was taken.

Rhabdomyosarcomas (RMS) are soft tissue tumours treated with a combination of surgery and chemotherapy. However, mortality rates remain high in case of recurrences and metastatic disease due to drug resistance and failure to undergo apoptosis. Therefore, innovative approaches targeting specific signalling pathways are urgently needed. We analysed the impact of different hedgehog (Hh) pathway inhibitors on growth and survival of six RMS cell lines using MTS assay, colony formation assay, 3D spheroid cultures, flow cytometry and western blotting. Especially the glioma-associated oncogene family (GLI) inhibitor arsenic trioxide (ATO) effectively reduced viability as well as clonal growth and induced cell death in RMS cell lines of embryonal, alveolar and sclerosing, spindle cell subtype, whereas normal skeletal muscle cells were hardly compromised by ATO. Combination of ATO with itraconazole potentiated the reduction of colony formation and spheroid size. These results show that ATO is a promising substance for treatment of relapsed and refractory RMS by directly targeting GLI transcription factors. The combination with itraconazole or other chemotherapeutic drugs has the opportunity to enforce the treatment efficiency of resistant and recurrent RMS.

ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to investigate whether total knee arthroplasty (TKA) impairs the ability to perform an emergency stop.DesignAn automatic transmission brake simulator was developed to evaluate total brake response time. A prospective repeated-measures design was used. Forty patients (20 left/20 right) were measured 8 days and 6, 12, and 52 wks after surgery.ResultsEight days postoperative total brake response time increased significantly by 30% in right TKA and insignificantly by 2% in left TKA. Brake force significantly decreased by 35% in right TKA and by 25% in left TKA during this period. Baseline values were reached at week 12 in right TKA; the impairment of outcome measures, however, was no longer significant at week 6 compared with preoperative values. Total brake response time and brake force in left TKA fell below baseline values at weeks 6 and 12. Brake force in left TKA was the only outcome measure significantly impaired 8 days postoperatively.ConclusionThis study highlights that categorical statements cannot be provided. This study's findings on automatic transmission driving suggest that right TKA patients may resume driving 6 wks postoperatively. Fitness to drive in left TKA is not fully recovered 8 days postoperatively. If testing is not available, patients should refrain from driving until they return from rehabilitation.

The objective of this study was to investigate whether total knee arthroplasty (TKA) impairs the ability to perform an emergency stop.An automatic transmission brake simulator was developed to evaluate total brake response time. A prospective repeated-measures design was used. Forty patients (20 left/20 right) were measured 8 days and 6, 12, and 52 wks after surgery.Eight days postoperative total brake response time increased significantly by 30% in right TKA and insignificantly by 2% in left TKA. Brake force significantly decreased by 35% in right TKA and by 25% in left TKA during this period. Baseline values were reached at week 12 in right TKA; the impairment of outcome measures, however, was no longer significant at week 6 compared with preoperative values. Total brake response time and brake force in left TKA fell below baseline values at weeks 6 and 12. Brake force in left TKA was the only outcome measure significantly impaired 8 days postoperatively.This study highlights that categorical statements cannot be provided. This study's findings on automatic transmission driving suggest that right TKA patients may resume driving 6 wks postoperatively. Fitness to drive in left TKA is not fully recovered 8 days postoperatively. If testing is not available, patients should refrain from driving until they return from rehabilitation.

Extremity soft tissue and bone sarcomas represent a rare group of bone and connective tissue cancers. In literature, there is little information about psycho-emotional status and impact on quality of life after the diagnosis and treatment of this kind of tumors. The aim of this survey was to define the profile of the patients at risk and their need for psychooncological care. Our self-created questionnaire consists of 71 items related to the individual emotional, mental and physical situation after the diagnosis of soft tissue and bone sarcoma. Sixty-six patients, surgically treated at our department, were included. Only 37.5% of the patients considered themselves to be completely emotional stable. Psychooncological treatment was accepted mostly by female patients, by patients with higher education level and by married patients. Emotional stability and confidence in future were associated with a strong familiar background, with numerous consultations of psychooncological service and also to gender and physical condition. Current quality of life was strongly correlated to physical condition. Thanks to our questionnaire, we disclosed few risk factors for negative emotional outcome after therapy, such as higher age, social isolation, female gender and poor physical status.