New research has identified hip implant materials with the lowest risk of needing revision, helping hospitals, surgeons and patients to choose what hip implant to use for replacement surgery.
Neutral or natural? Researchers from Kyushu University collected convincing evidence on joint alignment that could settle an ongoing dedate regarding best practices in knee replacement surgery.
A crucial component in joints, cartilage is notoriously difficult to repair. Now, US researchers have developed a promising bioactive material to regenerate cartilage in knee joints.
US researchers applied an injectable new therapy, which harnesses fast-moving “dancing molecules,” to repair damaged human cartilage cells within just 4 hours.
Enzyme-driven nanorobots could be used in the treatment of joint diseases such as arthritis. A new research project explores the potential of this technology.
An ageing population and modern lifestyle conditions have greatly increased the case numbers for hip arthroplasty. To prevent complications, it is important for orthopaedic surgeons to identify high-risk patients and take proper precautions. At the Heraeus symposium at DKOU, two experts explored the special measures that should be taken to ensure better outcomes for elderly and frail patients.
Patients suffering from cartilage defects in the knee may benefit from a new method in development: Using cartilage from the nose, researchers grow a tailor-made implant.
Bone fractures caused by osteoporosis are a common major global health risk. The International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) reports that one in three women over the age of 50 will sustain a potentially life-threatening fragility fracture in their remaining lifetimes. Early diagnosis and proactive treatment to keep bones healthy, including prescription medication and lifestyle changes, has the…
Arthroplasty for femoral neck fractures has seen enormous progress in recent years, but complications due to infections are still a major problem. With good preparation and the right technique, however, orthopaedic surgeons can take away much of the horror of this scenario.
Both high and low dose exercise therapy have beneficial effects in patients with symptomatic knee osteoarthritis. However, a new Swedish study shows that, sometime, more can indeed be more.
Researchers from the University of Jyväskylä and the Central Finland Health Care District have developed an AI based neural network to detect an early knee osteoarthritis from x-ray images.
A research team has created the first gel-based cartilage substitute that is even stronger and more durable than the real thing, offering a promising solution for patient suffering from knee pain.
Researchers have established an injectable hybrid inorganic nanoscaffold-templated stem cell assembly and applied it to the regeneration of critically-sized cartilage defects.
The motion capture technology called Precise Marker-less could aid doctors and physiotherapists in their consultations and diagnoses for patients in need of rehabilitation.
For decades, hip arthroplasty has been a routine procedure. In Europe, both total and partial hip replacements are the most frequent surgical interventions for patients with hip fracture or osteoarthritis. The treatment relieves pain and has good long-term outcomes. In cemented hip replacement, the artificial acetabulum and/or the femoral stem are fixed with bone cement and implant and bone bond…
Cartilage cells from the nasal septum can not only help repair cartilage injuries in the knee, they can also withstand the chronic inflammatory tissue environment in osteoarthritis and even counteract the inflammation – according to researchers from the University of Basel and the University Hospital Basel.
3D metal printing technology is producing personalised medical-grade titanium-alloy plates that perfectly fit individuals suffering arthritis of the knee. Engineers at the University of Bath’s Centre for Therapeutic Innovation (CTI) working with 3D Metal Printing Ltd, are using the TOKA (Tailored Osteotomy for Knee Alignment) treatment to improve the surgical procedure and fit of high-tibial…
Osteoarthritis affects more than 30 million adults and is the fifth-leading cause of disability in the United States. In a new study, scientists have discovered the cellular pathway that leads to the joint disease and have identified a commonly used anti-depressant — paroxetine — that inhibits this pathway.
There is currently no cure for osteoarthritis, but a group of scientists believe they’ve discovered a method through which a simple knee injection could potentially stop the disease’s effects. These researchers showed that they could target a specific protein pathway in mice, put it into overdrive and halt cartilage degeneration over time. Building on that finding, they were able to show that…
A novel outpatient procedure offers lasting pain relief for patients suffering from moderate to severe arthritis in their hip and shoulder joints, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the RSNA.
The Focused Ultrasound Foundation (FUS) has published its 2020 State of the Field Report, a 63-page annual update detailing new potential indications, laboratory research, clinical trials, treatments and growth in worldwide procedures performed in 2019.
Patients who have hip or knee replacements are set to get more support with their recovery following the launch of a new research study that uses wearable technology to monitor walking patterns. The Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital (NNUH) has joined forces with Dynamic Metrics Ltd (DML) to develop and test a system to study mobility and improve a patient’s gait after a joint replacement.
Radiologist Dr Jamie MacKay has achieved international recognition for his research using advanced imaging to help patients with osteoarthritis and other musculoskeletal conditions. MacKay, who is a radiologist at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital (NNUH) and lecturer at University of East Anglia (UEA), has been elected as a Junior Fellow of the International Society for Magnetic…
An algorithm that analyses MRI images and automatically detects small changes in knee joints over time could be used in the development of new treatments for arthritis. A team of engineers, radiologists and physicians, led by the University of Cambridge, developed the algorithm, which builds a three-dimensional model of an individual’s knee joint in order to map where arthritis is affecting the…
Researchers have created better biosensor technology that may help lead to safe stem cell therapies for treating Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases and other neurological disorders.
Contrary to popular belief, cartilage in human joints can repair itself through a process similar to that used by creatures such as salamanders and zebrafish to regenerate limbs, researchers at Duke Health found. This process could be harnessed as a treatment for osteoarthritis. Publishing in the journal Science Advances, the researchers identified a new mechanism for cartilage repair.
Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have investigated the link between osteoarthritis and mortality in an epidemiological study. It was shown that the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease was higher for people with osteoarthritis than for the rest of the population. Using population registers, the researchers studied approximately 469 000 people living in Skåne, Sweden, who in 2003…
Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital (NNUH) Consultant Radiologist Tom Turmezei has been awarded the prestigious Royal College of Radiologists’ Roentgen Professorship for 2020, a role created to encourage trainee radiologists across the UK to participate in research. “Research is absolutely key to making discoveries that will improve the diagnosis and treatment of patients in the…
For the first time, scientists at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center have been able to measure a specific molecule indicative of osteoarthritis and a number of other inflammatory diseases using a newly developed technology. This preclinical study used a solid-state nanopore sensor as a tool for the analysis of hyaluronic acid (HA). HA is a naturally occurring molecule that is involved in tissue…
Will there come a time when a patient with arthritis can forgo joint replacement surgery in favor of a shot? Keck School of Medicine of USC scientist Denis Evseenko, MD, PhD, has reason to be optimistic. In a new publication in the Annals of Rheumatic Diseases, Evseenko’s team describes the promise of a new molecule aptly named “Regulator of Cartilage Growth and Differentiation,” or RCGD…
A team of researchers at Sahlgrenska Academy has managed to generate cartilage tissue by printing stem cells using a 3D-bioprinter. The fact that the stem cells survived being printed in this manner is a success in itself. In addition, the research team was able to influence the cells to multiply and differentiate to form chondrocytes (cartilage cells) in the printed structure.
Osteoarthritis is a debilitating condition that affects at least 27 million people in the United States, and at least 12 percent of osteoarthritis cases stem from earlier injuries. Over-the-counter painkillers, such as anti-inflammatory drugs, help reduce pain but do not stop unrelenting cartilage destruction. Consequently, pain related to the condition only gets worse.
With a goal of treating worn, arthritic hips without extensive surgery to replace them, scientists have programmed stem cells to grow new cartilage on a 3-D template shaped like the ball of a hip joint. What’s more, using gene therapy, they have activated the new cartilage to release anti-inflammatory molecules to fend off a return of arthritis. The technique was demonstrated in a collaborative…
In an effort to develop a method for cartilage tissue engineering, researchers at Umeå University in Sweden successfully used cartilage cells from cow knee joints. By creating a successful method with conditions conducive to growing healthy cartilage tissue, the findings could help lead to a new treatment cure for osteoarthritis using stem cell-based tissue engineering. This is according to a…
Fibrocartilage tissue in the knee is comprised of a more varied molecular structure than researchers previously appreciated, according to a new study by researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Delaware.
Autografts, the gold standard of bone grafts, have several limitations. As a result, new orthobiologics products are being developed for the benefit of patients as well as surgeons. Innovations in biomaterials and graft design have enabled these advanced products that mimic the natural human bone and speed up bone repair and regeneration.
Knee injuries are the bane of athletes everywhere, from professionals and college stars to weekend warriors. Current surgical options for repairing damaged cartilage caused by knee injuries are costly, can have complications, and often are not very effective in the long run. Even after surgery, cartilage degeneration can progress leading to painful arthritis. But a University of Iowa orthopedics…
The European Commission has an ambition to create more equitable, cost-effective and available healthcare throughout its member states. Here is a report on preliminary findings from the EU funded initiative striving for greater equality in healthcare systems across Europe.
Countries vary considerably in the number of cases in which artificial knee joints are employed, according to researchers from the Medical University of Graz (Austria) reporting at the EFORT Congress in Istanbul.
Photoacoustics offers an additional contrast mechanism that makes the technology far more sensitive for the presence of blood.
More than 30 clinicians, researchers and industry partners (including Siemens, Aesculap and SurgiTAIX, an RWTH spin-off) are working on OrthoMIT, Germany’s largest collaborative orthopaedic research project that aims to develop future strategies for knees, hip and spinal surgery. Anja Behringer reports
Until now, orthopaedic surgeons have had limited options for the treatment of progressive degradation of the knee joints (osteoarthritis) in active patients who require care, but are not yet ready for a total knee replacement. DePuy Orthopaedics EMEA now launches the first complete surgical system Sigma® High Performance Partial Knee, specifically designed to treat progressive osteoarthritis…
Researchers from University Hospital in Umea, Sweden, have identified several cytokines, cytokine-related factors, and chemokines that increase significantly prior to rheumatoid arthritis (RA) disease onset. These findings confirm those of earlier studies which suggest that the risk of developing RA can be predicted and disease progression may be prevented. Complete findings of this study are…
In the sixth in his series for European Hospital, Professor Stefan Schönberg (left) of the Institute of Clinical Radiology and Nuclear Medicine (IKRN), University Hospital Mannheim, Medical Faculty of Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, invited colleagues from Mannheim and Vienna for a round-table discussion on:
For the last nine months, Jens Timmermann MD PhD, Head of the Interventional Radiology Department, has been using micro-invasive technology to treat these patients.
Osteoarthritis of the knee is a degenerative disease that causes joint pain, stiffness and decreased function. Its frequency increases dramatically with ageing populations. Treatment is multidisciplinary; combinations of pharmacology, physiotherapy and/or surgery are used for most patients.
Since Rofecoxib (Vioxx) was withdrawn from the worldwide market based on the safety findings of the Adenomatous Polyp Prevention on Vioxx (APPROVe) study, the uncertainty around the cardiovascular safety of NSAIDs and COX-2 inhibitors remains and leaves practitioners with difficult management decisions for the hundreds of millions of patients worldwide who continue to require pain-relieving…
British researchers found that the NHS and private healthcare are not providing good enough basic care to a large portion of the population in England. Particulary older and frailer people are suffering from lack of care.
The probability of woman of suffering from cardiovascular diseases is often underestimated. A recent study evaluated the risk of nearly 9.000 women in the U.S. screened for heart-health risk: one in five women had a higher risk than measured by a frequently used predictor.
Radiological services and equipment are not yet adapted to obese patients. The accuracy of current MRI, CT and Ultrasound is hindered by subcutaneous and intraabdominal fat. These modalities are crucial in diagnosing pathologies associated with obesity, including heart-related disease. Optimising imaging modalities will be a major challenge for radiology.
K U Brust, of the Division of Surgery, Oncology, Reproductive biology and Anaesthetics, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, UK, and G Bontemps of the Fabricius Klinik, orthopedic department, Remscheid, Germany, report on mid- to long-term results
During the last ten years or so, there has been a convergence of modern international science with traditional Chinese medicine, with research carried out in physiology, biochemistry and pharmacology.
This was the motto of the ECR 2007 in Vienna, where a group of high-ranking experts discussed diseases of the 21st century; research competition between the US and Europe; the conditions needed to progress leading medical R&D - moderated by Congress President Professor Christian J Herold.