Publications by authors named "Anna V Cuomo"

Case: We report the case of a 5-year-old girl who sustained a traumatic hip dislocation and a spontaneous reduction that was complicated by nonconcentric reduction and a large bucket-handle labral detachment. This injury was managed, via an anterior approach, with capsulotomy and reduction of the large interposed labral tear with an attached osteochondral fragment from the posterior aspect of the acetabulum. No additional surgical treatment was employed for the labral tear.

Conclusion: The patient ultimately demonstrated radiographic healing and an asymptomatic, clinically stable hip. This case illustrates the spontaneous healing of a large posterior labral detachment in a young pediatric patient with a good outcome at 2.5 years after injury.

Background: Osseous overgrowth is a common complication in children after humeral transcortical amputation. Capping tibial overgrowth with the proximal fibula has been shown to be the most effective treatment. However, best treatment practices are not clear for the humerus. We compared patients treated surgically for humeral osseous overgrowth with simple resection or autologous osteocartilaginous graft to determine if this treatment were as effective in the humerus as it has been in the tibia.

Methods: A retrospective review of humeral amputees from 1987 to 2011 at a pediatric hospital was performed. Patients with 2 years follow-up who underwent surgical treatment for established humeral overgrowth were included. Patients initially managed with simple resection were compared with those managed with autologous osteocartilaginous grafts. Descriptive statistics were calculated for demographic and outcome variables. T tests and χ tests were used to compare differences between groups.

Results: Eighteen humeri in 16 patients met inclusion criteria. Mean age at surgery was 8.3 (2.6 to 13.6) years and mean follow-up was 6.3 (1.5 to 10.4) years. Thirteen humeri underwent simple resection, with recurrent overgrowth in 9, and revision surgery in 8 at a mean 2.6 years. Five humeri were primarily managed with autologous osteocartilaginous grafts. Two developed non-overgrowth-related complications at 1 and 42 months. Including revision procedures after simple resection, 10 humeri were managed with autologous osteocartilaginous grafts. Thirty percent (3/10) required revision surgery; however, there were no cases of recurrent overgrowth. χ comparison showed lower rates of complications (P=0.004) and reoperation (P=0.012) with capping as compared with simple resection.

Conclusions: Autologous osteocartilaginous capping of the humerus has a significantly lower rate of complications and reoperation compared with simple resection. However, the capping procedure has the potential for other complications related to difficulty with graft fixation. Surgeons should be aware that the outcomes are not as consistent as when the technique is applied to osseous overgrowth of the tibia and anticipate the possibilities of hardware prominence and difficulty with fixation.

Level Of Evidence: Level 3-therapeutic-retrospective comparative.

Background: Mistaking the ossific nucleus as the surrogate for the center of the femoral head affects treatment decisions in hip dysplasia. Previous studies of ossific nucleus position within the femoral head have been qualitative, or, have not included both subluxated and dislocated hips. The purpose of this study was, first, to determine the most accurate radiographic landmark to define the center of the immature femoral head in hip dysplasia, and, second, to quantitatively analyze the position of the ossific nucleus relative to the center of the femoral head.

Methods: The center of the femoral head was determined from hip arthrograms for 19 consecutive patients with untreated hip dysplasia. Three radiographic proxies for the center were defined on each film: (1) the center of the proximal physis; (2) the center of the ossific nucleus; and (3) a modification of Mose's concentric circles. Each point was compared with the true center of the head on an arthrogram.

Results: Nineteen patients of an average age of 35.5 months (range, 9 to 76 mo) yielded 22 dysplastic hips. Modified Mose circle was the most accurate technique. In subluxated hips, the center of the femoral physis was equally accurate. The ossific nucleus was the poorest estimation of the center of the femoral head. All of the ossific nuclei were located cephalad and lateral to the center of the femoral head as determined on arthrogram.

Conclusions: The modified Mose technique is the most accurate technique for determining the center of the femoral head. In subluxated hips, the center of the physis is a practical, equivalent, technique. The ossific nucleus is a poor proxy for the center of the head in hip dysplasia.

Clinical Relevance: A modification of Mose's technique is the most accurate assessment of the center of the femoral head in both subluxated and dislocated hips. The center of the physis is a practical, reliable, surrogate for the center of the head in subluxated hips without requiring an arthrogram.

Background: Osseous overgrowth is a common problem in children after tibial transcortical amputation. We present the results of forty-seven children (fifty tibiae) treated for tibial osseous overgrowth with an autologous osteocartilaginous cap from the proximal part of the ipsilateral fibula.

Methods: We reviewed the records of all patients who underwent amputation at a single pediatric hospital from 1990 to 2011. All patients who had been followed for a minimum of two years after undergoing osteocartilaginous capping with the proximal part of the ipsilateral fibula to treat established tibial overgrowth were included. Patients with acquired and congenital amputations were compared.

Results: Fifty tibiae in forty-seven patients met our inclusion criteria. There were thirty-one acquired and nineteen congenital amputations. The mean age at surgery was 7.6 years (range, 2.1 to 15.6 years), and the mean duration of follow-up was 7.2 years (range, 2.2 to 15.4 years). Five tibiae (10%) in four patients had recurrence of the overgrowth at a mean of 5.4 years (range, 2.8 to 7.6 years) after the osteocartilaginous transfer. There was no significant difference in the results between children with an acquired amputation and those with a congenital amputation.

Conclusions: At a mean of 7.2 years after autologous osteocartilaginous capping with the proximal part of the fibula, 90% of the limbs had not had recurrent overgrowth. This is a safe and effective treatment of long-bone overgrowth following either congenital or acquired amputation in children.

Background: Obese patients are highly prevalent in the pediatric orthopaedic surgeon's practice and obesity is an increasing issue in the United States. Increased body mass index (BMI) has been associated with increased complications in pediatric orthopaedic patients, but no study has looked specifically at external fixation. The purpose of this study was to determine whether obesity is a risk factor for increased complications in lower-extremity procedures requiring external fixation.

Methods: A retrospective chart review was conducted of pediatric patients who underwent external fixation as definitive operative treatment for any condition at a tertiary care hospital over a 15-year period. Patients were grouped into normal weight, overweight, and obese based on Centers for Disease Control definitions. All orthopaedic complications were recorded.

Results: A total of 208 patients with a mean age of 11.2 years were identified. Ninety-four children were obese at the 95th percentile BMI or higher, 22 were overweight and 93 were normal weight. External fixation was applied to the tibia in 82 cases, to the femur in 77 and to both in 49. Mean duration of fixation was 160 days (range, 31 to 570 d) and patients were followed for a mean of 3.9 years (range, 1.0 to 12.0 y). There was no statistically significant difference in the rate of complications between the 3 groups (P=0.61). In the obese group complications occurred in 68.1% versus 66.7% in the overweight group and 61.3% in normal weight.

Conclusions: In the setting of external fixator use for lower-extremity pathology in pediatric patients, there is no association between an increase in complications and obesity as defined by BMI. Complication rates are high when external fixation is utilized for the lower extremity, however, patients and families should not be counseled that increased BMI will add to the burden of orthopaedic complications in this situation.

Level Of Evidence: Level II-prognostic.

Objective: The primary objective of this study was to determine if Gartland type I supracondylar humerus (SCH) fractures undergo significant displacement resulting in a change in management when treated with a long-arm splint. Secondary objectives included measured changes at follow-up in displacement and/or angulation.

Methods: This was a retrospective review of children who presented with elbow injuries to a children's hospital. Patients were included if they were diagnosed with a Gartland type I SCH fracture, managed with a long-arm splint, and had at least 1 follow-up visit 2 to 3 weeks from the emergency department visit. The primary outcome was the proportion of cases that required the placement of a circumferential cast and/or an operative intervention. Secondary outcomes included the proportion of cases with significant changes in displacement on any view, Baumann or the lateral humerocapitellar angle, and/or category of position of anterior humeral line relative to capitellum.

Results: Of 804 elbow injuries that presented from 2003 to 2008, 53 patients met the inclusion criteria. The median age of the patients was 4.1 years (interquartile range, 3.4-6.1 years) years. Of the 53, there were no cases that required a change in management. One case had a change in the humerocapitellar angle, and another had a change of 1 category in position of the capitellum relative to the anterior humeral line. There were no other cases of significant changes in displacement or angulation.

Conclusions: These data support that Gartland type I SCH fractures can be treated effectively with long-arm posterior splinting for the duration of therapy.

Background: Recent studies have questioned the efficacy of releasing hip flexion contractures and the resulting ankle position after tendoachilles lengthening in ambulating children with cerebral palsy (CP).

Methods: Twenty-three ambulatory children with CP underwent 96 soft tissue-lengthening procedures without bony surgery. Preoperative and postoperative clinical and computerized gait data were reviewed.

Results: Static contractures improved reliably, with improvements in all areas measured, including hip flexion contracture (14 degree improvement), hip abduction (19 degree improvement), popliteal angle (26 degree improvement), and ankle dorsiflexion (11 degree improvement). The changes in computerized gait data were less uniform. The knees showed significant benefits, as evidenced by improved maximal knee extension in stance phase (37.3 degree preop and 19.9 degree postop) and at initial contact (51.6 degree preop and 34.8 degree postop). At the hip, a statistically significant improvement was only seen in maximum hip extension in stance phase (minimum hip flexion), and the magnitude of this change was only 4.6 degree (15.3 to 10.7 degree). There were no significant changes at the pelvis. At the ankle, the tendency was toward calcaneal gait after Achilles tendon lengthening, with excessive dorsiflexion seen both in stance (17.3 degree) and at toe off (-6.9 degree). Tempero-spatial parameters showed improved stride length, but no significant changes in gait velocity or cadence.

Discussion: The persistence of crouch postoperatively, though improved, likely limited the potential changes in hip kinematics. As this study excluded patients undergoing osseous surgery, it is possible that lever arm dysfunction may have contributed to the ongoing crouch. The results of this study suggest that static contractures and knee kinematics improve reliably after soft tissue surgery in children with CP, but that caution must be exercised when considering heel cord lengthening in these children.

Level Of Evidence: Therapeutic level II. See Instructions to Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

Background: Mesenchymal stem cells are multipotent and have the ability to differentiate into bone. We conducted a preclinical trial comparing the osteogenic potential of human bone marrow aspirate with that of mesenchymal stem cell-enriched bone marrow aspirate (both mixed with demineralized bone matrix) in a critical-sized rat femoral defect model.

Methods: The buffy coat was extracted from human bone marrow aspirate to obtain mesenchymal stem cell-enriched bone marrow aspirate. Fifty-nine athymic rats, each with a 6-mm femoral defect, were divided into six treatment groups: defect only (Group I), demineralized bone matrix and saline solution (Group II), demineralized bone matrix and bone marrow aspirate (Group III), demineralized bone matrix and mesenchymal stem cell-enriched bone marrow aspirate (Group IV), demineralized bone matrix and recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 (rhBMP-2) (Group V [positive control]), and absorbable collagen sponge and rhBMP-2 (Group VI [positive control]). All animals were killed at twelve weeks for radiographic, micro-computed tomography, histomorphometric, and histologic analysis.

Results: There was wide variability in the mesenchymal stem cell concentrations obtained from the human donors. All ten defects healed in the positive control groups (Groups V and VI). Only one defect healed in each experimental group (Groups II, III, and IV) (i.e., three of forty-four defects healed). There was no significant difference among the radiographic scores of Groups II, III, and IV (p = 0.59), and the score for each of those groups was significantly higher than that for Group I (p
Conclusions: Neither bone marrow aspirate nor mesenchymal stem cell-enriched bone marrow aspirate mixed with demineralized bone matrix resulted in reliable healing of critical-sized bone defects. It is possible that a greater number of mesenchymal stem cells or an enhanced osteoinductive signal is required for adequate bone-healing. Mesenchymal stem cell and/or carrier variability may also contribute to differences in bone formation.

Background: Studies evaluating multilevel surgery to treat spastic deformity and functional deficits in cerebral palsy (CP) usually focus on data from instrumented gait analysis and clinical examination without examining functional and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) outcomes. Recently, outcome measures for well-being in children with a variety of musculoskeletal disorders have also been validated specifically for CP. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the impact of multilevel surgery on the function and HRQOL in a group of ambulatory children with CP.

Methods: In a multicenter prospective trial, 57 ambulatory children with CP, mean age 9.5 years, underwent multilevel soft tissue surgery to correct sagittal imbalance. Validated clinical outcome measures for HRQOL were administered preoperatively and postoperatively with an average follow-up time of 15.2 months. The functional and psychosocial components of the Pediatric Outcomes Data Collection Instrument (PODCI), Pediatric Quality of Life Questionnaire (PedsQL), and the Functional Assessment Questionnaire Walking Score were used.

Results: Significant improvements in outcome scores occurred postoperatively in the following: PedsQL parent-total (17.6%; P < 0.001) and parent-physical sections (25.0%; P < 0.001), the Functional Assessment Questionnaire Walking Score (15.3%; P < 0.001), and the PODCI sections for transfers and basic mobility (15.8%; P < 0.001), sports and physical function (23.9%; P = 0.012), and global (12.9%; P < 0.001). Improvements also occurred in the PedsQL child-total (8.4%; P = 0.104) and child-physical sections (8.6%; P = 0.189), but these were not statistically significant. There were no significant changes in the PODCI parent-derived pain (-3.2%; P = 0.504) and happiness sections (1.9%; P = 0.645).

Conclusions: Multilevel surgery in ambulatory patients with CP improves function and HRQOL. However, improved functional well-being does not imply improved psychosocial well-being, and patients and their families should be counseled accordingly.