The current study evaluated whether 3-D fluoroscopic imaging is capable of adequate visualisation, reduction and effective guidance of implant placement during a minimally-invasive screw-fixation (MISF) procedure in the treatment of proximal phalanx fractures. A comparison with conventional intraoperative 2-D imaging was performed in a cadaveric model. Conventional 2-D and 3-D imaging series were performed following the creation of proximal phalanx fractures, reduction and fixation, pre- and post-operatively. For both imaging modalities, attention was paid to A) correct reduction, B) screw-placement and, if present, C) intra-articular offset of fracture edges.The results revealed no related overall advantage of the 3-D imaging system over normal 2-D fluoroscopy at the proximal phalanx region. The authors conclude that, given the cost of 3-D imaging technology, as well as the increased time required for image acquisition, its routine use in the treatment of phalanx fracture cases is not justifiable at present.

The etiology of Dupuytren’s disease is controversial and thus the disease can only be treated when it presents with symptoms to warrant intervention. Surgical treatment is the method of choice to preserve hand dexterity and function. It is advisable to perform surgery at an early stage of disease progression, but various surgical techniques have been advocated. A partial fasciectomy is recommend by many authors, whereas a total aponeurectomy, where all palmar tissue is removed, might reduce the risk of recurrent disease due to the widespread removal of aponeurosis. The total aponeurectomy is performed less frequently due to the potential complications of this technique. In order to achieve an objective comparison of both surgical options we performed a literature meta-analysis, involving a comparison of surgical indications, results and complications following partial and total aponeurectomy, which are described in detail within this review article.

Many surgical techniques have been advocated to treat Dupuytren’s contracture. Partial fasciectomy is often performed to treat the whole spectrum of Dupuytren’s disease.

Motiviert zu aktiven Übungen mit Betätigung der Muskelpumpe können Patienten das Risiko einer venösen Thrombose verringern. Dies gilt als eine Basismaßnahme der Thromboseprophylaxe. Ziel unserer Studie war neben der technischen Optimierung, die Prüfung der Akzeptanz und der Wirkung eines von uns entwickelten Trainingsgerätes zum Zweck der Beschleunigung des venösen Rückflusses. Eingesetzt wurde das Gerät bei unseren stationären Patienten in der Orthopädie und Traumatologie.

Background. Despite the broad use of low molecular weight heparin, deep vein thrombosis is still a relevant risk for immobilized patients in orthopedic surgery. Patients can reduce this risk by active training exercises with a muscle pump. The aim of this study was to test the acceptance and effect of a self-developed training device to accelerate venous return as well as a technical optimization. The device was installed for in-patients in orthopedic and traumatology departments.Patients and methods. A simple pillow-like device was developed, which can be positioned against the foot end of the patient's bed (Phlebostep (TM)). The device gives a sound-based feedback to the patient while pushing actively against it with complete ankle flexion. A digital integrated counter device allows direct feedback to the physician and nursing staff at any time. Initial testing including duplex sonography for venous flow measurements were done on 10 orthopedic in-patients. Prior testing on 7 healthy volunteers was carried out to define the effect of various amounts of pressure on the Phlebostep on the venous blood flow. Additionally, a questionnaire on the general acceptance and user-friendliness was filled out by 84 patients who had used the Phlebostep.Results. The optimal pressure force was defined as 35 mmHg for further measurements. The venous flow measurements in the 10 postoperative patients revealed an increased venous blood flow in the affected leg by an average of 99.9%. Analysis of the questionnaire from the 84 patients showed a high degree of acceptance.Conclusion. In addition to the technical feasibility, this study showed that use of the Phlebostep resulted on average in a doubling of venous return. The increase of venous flow offers an additional effective device for thrombosis prophylaxis through patient's own active movements and is clearly superior to the use of devices such as antithrombosis stockings alone. The Phlebostep found a high degree of acceptance with the patients.

INTRODUCTION:Arthrodesis of the distal interphalangeal joint (DIPJ) is an accepted operative procedure to treat osteoarthritis, instability and joint deformity. There is a wide spectrum of recommended operative techniques including cerclage wires, headless screws, bio-resorbable pins and lag screws. Lag screw fixation remains one of the most accepted methods of fixation; however, problems can occur in particular subsidence of the screw head leading to loss of compression and prominence of the screw head in the finger tip necessitating removal. We describe here a new technique of DIPJ arthrodesis that avoids these problems.METHODS AND PATIENTS:The technique is described here in detail, and clinical results are given for 18 joints (17 patients) followed-up at a mean 24 months (range 6-44).RESULTS:Mean post-operative DASH score was 15. There were no cases of non-union; only four complications were seen, one case of nail growth disturbance and one of early screw breakage necessitating revision. Two infections necessitated early hardware removal although both arthodesis were united.CONCLUSION:The technique is simple and reliable giving consistent clinical results.

The usual mechanism for syringe contamination is spread of micro-organisms along the inside of the barrel. Two or more full strokes of the plunger will inevitably transport a contaminant from the inside wall into the sterile compartment. We modified syringes by replacing the plunger with a modified version that has an additional central O-ring seal. Conventional and modified syringes were tested for their susceptibility to contamination using standard microbiological and radioisotope methods, and the flow-rate stability of the modified syringe design was assessed in a model with commercially available infusion pumps. Although conventional syringes consistently became contaminated with the second full excursion of the plunger, no contamination was observed in modified syringes, even after 100 aspiration/injection cycles. With respect to flow-rate stability, the new syringe design complies with DIN (German Institute for Standardization) standards.

OBJECTIVES We sought to compare the short- and long-term clinical effects of atrial synchronous pre-excitation of one (univentricular) or both ventricles (biventricular), that provide cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT).BACKGROUND In patients with heart failure (HF) who have a ventricular conduction delay, CRT improves systolic hemodynamic function. The clinical benefit of CRT is still being investigated.METHODS Forty-one patients were randomized to four weeks of first treatment with biventricular or univentricular stimulation, followed by four weeks without treatment, and then four weeks of a second treatment with the opposite stimulation. The best CRT stimulation was continued for nine months. Cardiac resynchronization therapy was optimized by hemodynamic testing at implantation. The primary end points were exercise capacity measures. Data were analyzed by two-way repeated-measures analysis of variance.RESULTS The left ventricle was selected for univentricular pacing in 36 patients. The clinical effects of univentricular and biventricular CRT were not significantly different. The results of each method were pooled to assess sequential treatment effects. Oxygen uptake during bicycle exercise increased from 9.48 to 10.4 ml/kg/min at the anaerobic threshold (p = 0.03) and from 12.5 to 14/3 ml/kg/min at peak exercise (p < 0.001) with the first treatment, and from 10.0 to 10.7 ml/kg/min at the anaerobic threshold (p = 0.2) and from 13.4 to 15.2 ml/kg/mm at peak exercise (p = 0.002) with the second treatment. The 6-min walk distance increased from 342 in at baseline to 386 m after the first treatment (p < 0.001) and to 416 In after the second treatment (p = 0.03). All improvements persisted after 12 months of therapy.CONCLUSIONS Cardiac resynchronization therapy produces a long-term improvement in the clinical symptoms of patients with HF who have a ventricular conduction delay. The differences between optimized biventricular and univentricular therapy appear to be small for short-term treatment.

In the past, the application of continuous traction used to be the alternative to open surgical removal of impacted pacemaker leads. Today's state-of-the-art methods for lead extraction follow the principles of traction (by locking stylets) and countertraction (by outer sheaths). Technical advances with respect to outer sheath design - including the use of lasers or bipolar electrocautery - led to a higher success rate, particularly as far as the removal of endocardial defibrillator leads is concerned.    From 1997 to 1999, we treated 31 patients (pts) who required lead extraction more than 6 months after lead implantation. In 16 pts pacemaker leads and in 15 pts endocardial defibrillator leads had to be removed. All but one infected lead could be extracted using the "Cook-Byrd-Method" described here. Incompletely extracted leads were more common in the patient group without infection. This may be the result of different levels of "aggressiveness" when removing leads in infected and non-infected cases, and a reflection of the different risks.    We report on the technical principles of lead removal. Published methods and results are reviewed and compared. The laser sheath, recently favored by some authors, are not necessarily quicker, better and safer. New electrosurgical dissection sheaths seem to be promising in one study with just a small sample size. The results of the EXCL study (Electrosurgical Extraction of Cardiac Leads) will provide us with new data. Complete lead removal is mandatory, especially in systemically infected pacemaker systems, while it remains most important to prevent harm to the individual patient. The "aggressiveness" of each procedure should be related to the potential risk. However, the costs associated with each method may not be neglected.

Nach wie vor ist die Letalität des plötzlichen Herztodes, beim Vorliegen von Kammerflimmern oder pulsloser ventrikulärer Tachykardie, erschreckend hoch. Neue technische Möglichkeiten und das Verständnis neuzeitlicher notfallmedizinischer Möglichkeiten und Hilfeleistung ermöglichen ein optimiertes Behandlungskonzept für Notfallpatienten. Da allein die rasche kardiale Defibrillation die definitive Interventionsmöglichkeit zur Terminierung von Kammerflimmern oder pulsloser ventrikulärer Tachykardie darstellt, sollte die Anwendung der modernen externen Defibrillationstechnik nicht erst durchgeführt werden, wenn der Notarzt oder das qualifizierte Notfallteam beim Patienten eintrifft. Auch nichtärztliches Personal und trainierte Laien können (und dürfen!) diese lebensrettende Maßnahmen mittels halbautomatischen Defibrillatoren durchführen. Diese Möglichkeiten sollten zu Überlegungen und Empfehlungen der Fachverbände eingehen, die zu neuen Rettungskonzepten führen.

In polygenetic disorders, such as ischemic heart disease, the investigation of gene-gene interactions rather than determination of single gene effects is crucial to better understand the contribution of genetic factors. The 825T allele of the G-protein ss(3)-subunit gene (GNB3) associated with enhanced G-protein signaling is a candidate to interact with the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) deletion/insertion (D/I) polymorphism to increase the risk for myocardial infarction (MI). The ACE D:/I variant affects the renin-angiotensin system hormones that activate G-protein-coupled receptors. Genotyping at the ACE and GNB3 loci was performed on 585 patients with coronary artery disease with (n=270) or without (n=315) previous MI. Logistic regression analysis demonstrated a significant interaction between the ACE D: allele and the GNB3 825T allele (P<0.001). The odds ratio for MI, associated with the 825T allele, was not increased in the presence of the ACE II genotype (OR 0.5; P=0.09) but was significantly higher in 825T allele carriers with the ACE DI genotype (OR 1.9; P=0.01) and further increased in individuals with the ACE DD genotype (OR 2.4; P=0.02). The highest odds ratio was found in homozygous 825T allele carriers with the ACE DD genotype (OR 7.5; P=0.006). Our data suggest a significant interaction of the GNB3 825T allele with the ACE D allele in MI. These hypothesis-generating data may justify larger prospective studies.

Die Rate an Zusatzeingriffen beim Defibrillatoraustausch liegt bei 21,5% (20 von 93 Patienten). Der implantierende Arzt muß also in mehr als einem Fünftel aller Patienten, die zum Austausch anstehen mit einem Zusatzeingriff rechnen und die Patienten entsprechend aufklären. Es ist zu erwarten, daß Sondenprobleme zunehmen, je länger die Sonden implantiert sind.

Reporting the case of a short-range severe thoracic shotgun injury the differentiated management of this trauma is discussed. Indication for operative exploration under emergency conditions is hemorrhagic shock, perforation of esophagus/stomach and pericardial tamponade. Even under a toxicological point of view there is no indication for emergency revisions.

Durch die Einführung der minimalinvasiven Koronarchirurgie ist das methodische Spektrum zur Behandlung der koronaren Herzerkrankung erneut differenzierter geworden. Die Möglichkeiten des minimalen Zugangs durch Teilsternotomie oder durch interkostale anteriore Minithorakotomie können mit videoskopischen Methoden und mit sog. Port-access-Verfahren kombiniert werden. Neben der normalen atrio-aortalen Kanülierung für den Anschluß der Herz-Lungen-Maschine sind jugular- und femoro-femorale Anschlüsse an die Herz-Lungen-Maschine möglich. Sogar die intravasale endoluminale Ballonokklusion der Aorta ascendens und die Applikation von kardioplegischer Lösung über den Okklusionskatheter in den Aortenbulbus können in die Überlegung einbezogen werden.

The introduction of minimally invasive coronary artery bypass surgery has expanded the technical armementarium for operative treatment of coronary artery disease. Minimal access surgery using partial sternotomy or anterior intercostal minimal thoracotomy can be combined with video-scopic techniques or port-access-methods. Either atrio-aortal cannulation, femoro-femoral or jugular-femoral connections to the pump are possible for extracorporal circulation (ECC). Even endoluminar occlusion of the aorta and application of cardioplegia into the aortic root can be considered and applied, Extracorporal circulation has developed into a safe standardized method. As far as pathophysiology is concerned, the decision to use ECC or not is of much more importance than the grade of invasiveness. Fundamentally we therefore need to distinguish between minimally invasive methods with and without ECC. Video-assisted coronary surgery in hearts under hypothermia and fibrillation with ECC is also recommended occasionally. Minimally invasive coronary artery procedures on beating hearts without ECC have to be done in a stabilized and bloodless operative field to allow the construction of high standard anastomoses between bypass grafts and coronary arteries. In practice, silicon occluders, epicardial and myocardial suture occlusion and fixation, mechanical stabilization devices, and pharmacologic induction of bradycardia are used. In principle a skilled surgeon should be familiar with all these methods to select the most suitable solution for the special clinical problem. A final judgement about each method is not possible up to now. High patient numbers have to be recruited in the groups and subgroups due to low mortality (1%) and morbidity (5%), otherwise statistical significance of the results cannot be gained.