Orthopedic Surgery Research Updates

This single-institution series of 40 elbows (mean age 59 years, mean follow-up 9 years) evaluated total elbow arthroplasty (TEA) for post-traumatic sequelae after proximal ulna or radius fractures or fracture-dislocations. When successful, TEA provided pain relief and functional restoration, but overall revision rate was 28% with common complications including neurologic events, aseptic loosening, and deep infection; 10-year implant survival free of revision or resection was 73%.

In propensity‑score matched cohorts of 609 total hip arthroplasty (THA) and 609 total knee arthroplasty (TKA) patients, changes in joint‑specific PROMs (HOOS JR/KOOS JR) from preoperative to one year postoperatively were moderately to strongly correlated with PROMIS‑10 physical health (THA r=0.63; TKA r=0.56) and weakly correlated with mental health and quality of life. The strength of these correlations did not differ significantly between THA and TKA, supporting joint‑specific PROMs as reflective of overall physical health improvements.

Using a US inpatient database (2016–2023), adults undergoing elective inpatient total hip arthroplasty (THA) and total knee arthroplasty (TKA) showed increasing in-hospital mortality rates (THA rose from 0.04% to 0.13%; TKA from 0.03% to 0.05%) and higher inflation-adjusted hospitalization costs over time. Patient profiles and complication patterns among those who died remained stable, but mortality events shifted away from high–case-volume hospitals toward lower-volume centers.