Nepple, Jeffrey

Background: Stable osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) lesions are primarily treated nonoperatively. Nonoperative treatment includes several recommendations, including the use of an unloader brace. However, little is known about the clinical effectiveness of unloader bracing and its influence on OCD healing, return to sports, and patient-reported outcomes (PROs). The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate the impact of unloader bracing on patients with stable medial femoral condyle (MFC) OCD lesions treated nonoperatively. Purpose: To investigate the influence of valgus unloader bracing on the success of treating stable MFC OCD with nonoperative treatment strategies. Study Design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 2. Methods: The authors used a prospective cohort of patients receiving nonoperative care for stable MFC knee OCD lesions. The primary variable of interest was the efficacy of bracing. The primary outcomes were transition from nonoperative care to surgical intervention, return-to-play (RTP) clearance, and PROs. Bivariate testing was used to determine if there were differences between groups. Chi-square testing was used to determine if there were differences in rates of transition to surgery by group. The timing of the transition by each group was assessed using a Wilcoxon rank-sum test, given the nonparametric nature of the data. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to calculate time at risk, incidence rate, and survival times for each group. Results: A total of 185 knees (bracing group: 123 [66.5%] knees; no-bracing group: 62 [33.5%] knees) were analyzed. Overall, 142 (76.8%) knees were successfully treated nonoperatively. Transition to surgery occurred in 43 (23.2%) knees. There were no differences in transition to surgery by groups, with no differences seen by group. Of the knees that did not transition to surgical care, 65 (71.4%) in the bracing group and 38 (74.5%) in the no-bracing group received RTP clearance ( P = .693). PRO scores were similar between the 2 groups at the time of RTP clearance. Conclusion: The inclusion of an unloader brace in the nonoperative treatment for stable MFC OCD lesions did not decrease the likelihood of patients undergoing surgical intervention or improve their PRO scores at the time of RTP clearance. Registration: NCT02771496 (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier).

Abstract Background Femoral version plays a critical role in pre-arthritic hip pain, particularly in femoroacetabular impingement (FAI). Variations in femoral version may contribute to hip instability or impingement. This study examines the outcomes of hip arthroscopy for FAI across different femoral version groups. Methods A prospective multicenter cohort of 677 FAI patients undergoing primary hip arthroscopy was collected, with 603 patients in this study based on recorded femoral version. Inclusion criteria were patients aged 14-45 years with idiopathic FAI, while previous ipsilateral hip procedures, associated disorders, or Tönnis 2 or greater osteoarthritis were excluded. Femoral version was measured on low-dose computed tomography (CT) utilizing the Yoshioka oblique method and categorized into five subgroups: <5°, 6°-15°, 16°-25°, 26°-35°, 35°+. Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) were obtained at minimum one-year follow-up. The modified Harris hip score (mHHS) was assessed relative to minimal clinically important difference (MCID) of 8 and patient acceptable symptom state (PASS) of 74. Additional PROs included HOOS Pain and Sports/Recreation subscores and iHOT-12 score. Composite failure was defined as reoperation for persistent symptoms or failure to achieve either the mHHS MCID or PASS. Results Males had statistically lower femoral version than females (14.0 vs 18.0; p<0.001). In females, 38.0% had a femoral version of 16°-25°, 17.9% between 26°-35°, and 3.6% greater than 35°, compared to 27.6%, 9.2%, and 1.8% in males, respectively (all p<0.001). Increased or decreased femoral versions appear to have similar outcomes to normal version. The mildly increased femoral anteversion groups of 16°-25° and 26°-35° demonstrated the best outcomes with changes in HOOS pain and sports subscores being significantly higher. Severely increased femoral anteversion, >35°, only present in 2.8% of patients, demonstrated a higher composite failure rate (15.4%) compared to moderately increased, 26°-35°, femoral version (3.1%). The decreased femoral version group, ≤5°, had a composite failure of 10.4% compared to normal femoral version, 16°-25° (10.2%). Conclusions The general anatomy differences between males and females lends males to be more in retroversion while females tend to be more anteverted. Overall, outcomes did not seem to differ between increased or decreased femoral versions but were superior at mildly increased femoral versions.