SPROING… Hitting A Gym Near You. The Latest Technology In Workouts

July 28, 2011

Word on the street …

“SOFT IS THE NEW HARD”

The latest technology in Treadmills.

I’d like to Introduce you to… 

SPROING!  

You be the judge. Would you consider taking up this new type of treadmill workout ?!?

The other day I was working out at the Equinox Gym on Michigan Ave. in Chicago and found myself stuck, awkwardly staring at a new, very unique looking piece of equipment.

Sproing Machine

Being the avid runner that I am and having suffered the repercussions the impact that treadmills and roads can have on your joints, I found this Sproing Machine/concept to be very intriguing.

The idea: Soft is the new hard. The soft surface absorbs impact. But it also has custom sensors built-in that tell you how far you’ve gone even though there’s no moving belt.

Studies conducted on the Sproing Machine state that Sproing cuts knee impact by 50% compared to a treadmill and has 41% less impact on your back.  And also claims that the give in the soft surface forces your body to work harder with each step. So it burns calories better and delivers an intense workout.

Hooked into the Sproing machine

The majority of running injuries are impact related. Sproing allows you to train on a soft surface that simulates running on the beach and gives your body a break from the harsh pounding of the streets.  The combination of surface and bungee keeps you running on the balls of your feet instead of pounding your heels on a hard treadmill.

Demo Form

For those of you who need even more of a challenge, try Sproing with Resistance- The bungee cord resistance is the key to an amazing workout. 

Demo Resistance Bands

For more information on SPROING Click Here

For a Demo on Sproing Click Here

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Say What?!? A Cigarette A Day May Keep The Knee and Hip Replacement Away!

July 25, 2011

“Male smokers may be less likely to need total knee or hip replacement”

I’m sorry but I woke up to this headline and linked article in my inbox this morning (courtesy of OrthoSuperSite)… this is simply SHOCKING and goes against everything that I know about what smoking does to your bones- think of an over-ripe piece of fruit… soft and mushy.

I just had to share. What say you?!!??

Men who smoke are less likely to undergo total joint replacement surgery than those who have never smoked, according to a study recently published in Arthritis and Rheumatism.

“Our study is the first to demonstrate a strong inverse correlation between smoking duration and risk of total joint replacement,” study author George Mnatzaganian, a PhD student from the University of Adelaide in Australia.

Analysis of the findings showed that being overweight independently increased the risk for total joint replacement while smoking lowered it. This decrease in risk most evident after 23 years of smoking exposure. Furthermore, the authors noted, men who smoked 48 years or more were up to 51% less likely to undergo total joint replacements than those who never smoked.

Mnatzaganian and his team collected clinical data for 11,388 men in the Health in Men Study. 

 

Click HERE to read more on OrthoSupersite

 

 

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Catacombs of Paris… Bones, Bones and More BONES!!!

July 18, 2011

Catacombs Paris, France

I recently got back to Chicago after a fabulous summer getaway to Paris.   I had heard about the catacombs in Paris in the past and considering my profession and pronounced obsession with bones this is one tour I couldn’t miss. It definitely lived up to expectations and then some. I mean, where else in the world can you take a guided tour and find yourself deep underneath a bustling city surrounded by human remains… literally! I was expecting that there would be some sort of barrier in place between the walls of bones lining the narrow, dark, dusty hallways but to my surprise the entire 1.5miles of the walking tour you are in arm’s length of MILLIONS (6 million to be exact) Femurs, Skulls and Tibias. Just Crazy and so fascinating! They’ve certainly had their issues with vandalism (people taking bones home with them) and many are petitioning to have the remains placed behind glass barriers to protect the remains… but for now, they remain in their original places and while you are asked not to touch the bones… it’s crazy to think that you actually could.

I’m pretty sure those on the tour with me were slightly taken back by my reaction/initial comment (I actually thought I was using my inside voice-oops) as I noted out loud my surprise and amazement at how small the tibia’s all were… calling them size 1′s ( the smallest size available for orthopedic implants. Other companies use lettering so could also be an A). That said, it’s clear where my mind was at this point… work!!!

If you are ever in Paris and want to see something totally outrageous and unique (and are not scared of dark, damp, narrow corridors lined with human remains) definitely check this place out! Not for those with any type of fear of small confined spaces!!!

Here’s a little history about the Catacombs:

The Catacombs of Paris or Catacombes de Paris are an underground ossuary in Paris, France. Located south of the former city gate (the “Barrière d’Enfer” at today’sPlace Denfert-Rochereau), the ossuary holds the remains of about 6 million people[1] and fills a renovated section of caverns and tunnels that are the remains of Paris’stone mines. Opened in the late 18th century, the underground cemetery became a tourist attraction on a small scale from the early 19th century, and has been open to the public on a regular basis from 1867. Following an incident of vandalism, they were closed to the public in September 2009 and reopened 19 December of the same year.

Since Roman times, Paris buried its dead on the outskirts of the city. This changed with the rise of Christianity and its practice of burying its faithful in consecrated ground in and around its churches. By the 10th century the city had expanded and there were many parish cemeteries within city limits, even in central locations. When Paris’ population began to rise rapidly in the following centuries, some of these cemeteries became overcrowded and because of their location in populated areas, were unable to expand. Part of the reason nothing was done about Paris’ untenable burial practices was a lack of ideas for disposing of the dead exhumed from Paris’ intra-muros parish graveyards. The government had been searching for and consolidating long abandoned stone quarries in and around the capital since 1777, and it was the Police Lieutenant General overseeing the renovations, Alexandre Lenoir, who first had the idea to use empty underground tunnels on the outskirts of the capital to this end. His successor, Thiroux de Crosne, chose a place to the south of Paris’ “porte d’Enfer” city gate (the place Denfert-Rochereau today), and the exhumation and transfer of all Paris’ dead to the underground sepulture began in 1786, taking until 1788 to complete.

From the eve of a consecration ceremony on the 7th April the same year, behind a procession of chanting priests, began a parade of black-covered bone-laden horse-drawn wagons that continued for years to come. In work overseen by the Inspector General of Quarries, Charles-Axel Guillaumot, the bones were deposited in a wide well dug in land bought from a property, “La maison de la Tombe Issoire” (a house near the street of the same name), and distributed throughout the underground caverns by workers below. Also deposited near the same house were crosses, urns and other necropolis memorabilia recovered from Paris’ church graveyards. he catacombs in their first years were mainly a bone repository, but Guillaumot’s successor from 1810, Louis-Étienne Héricart de Thury, oversaw the renovations that would transform the underground caverns into a real and visitable sepulture on par with any mausoleum. In addition to directing the rearrangement of skulls and femurs into the arrangement that we see in the catacombs today, he used the tombstones and cemetery decorations he could find (many had disappeared after the 1789 Revolution) to complement the walls of bones.

 

 

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Brace Yourself…

May 23, 2011

Chicago Bulls

I was at the Bulls vs. Heat game a few nights ago and of course I found myself fixated on the number of joints on the court that were wrapped, bandaged and braced.  There is no doubt that basketball players often find themselves with a host of sports related injuries due to stress on the muscles, joints and soft tissues…the most common being:

  • Tendonitis
  • Patella Tendinitis(Jumpers Knee)-
    The patellar tendon connects the kneecap (the patella) to the shin bone. This is part of the ‘extensor mechanism’ of the knee, and together with the quadriceps muscle and the quadriceps tendon, these structures allow your knee to straighten out, and provide strength for this motion. The patellar tendon, like other tendons, is made of tough string-like bands. These bands are surrounded by a vascular tissue lining that provides nutrition to the tendon.
  • Achilles tendinitis-
    Achilles tendonitis is a common injury in runners and other athletes who run often during sports. The Achilles tendon is the largest and most vulnerable tendon in the body. It joins the gastrocnemius (calf) and the soleus muscles of the lower leg to heel of the foot. The gastrocnemius muscle crosses the knee, the ankle, and the subtalar joints and can create stress and tension in the Achilles tendon.
  • Anterior and Posterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL/PCL)Injuries-
    The posterior cruciate ligament, or PCL, is one of four ligaments important to the stability of the knee joint. The anterior cruciate ligament, or ACL, sits just in front of the PCL. The ACL is much better known, in part because injuries to the ACL are much more commonly diagnosed than injuries to the PCL. Interestingly, it is thought that PCL injuries account for about 20 of knee ligament injuries, however, the PCL is seldom talked about because these injuries are often left undiagnosed. The PCL is the ligament that prevents the tibia (shin bone) from sliding too far backwards. Along with the ACL which keeps the tibia from sliding too far forward, the PCL helps to maintain the tibia in position below the femur (thigh bone).

    The anterior cruciate ligament, or ACL, is one of four major knee ligaments. The ACL is critical to knee stability, and people who injure their ACL often complain of symptoms of their knee giving-out from under them. Therefore, many patients who sustain an ACL tear opt to have surgical treatment of this injury. The anterior cruciate ligament, also called the ACL, is one of the four major ligaments of the knee. The ACL prevents excessive motion of the knee joint–patients who sustain an injury to their ACL may complain of symptoms of the knee “giving out.“
  • Injuries to the Meniscus-
    The meniscus is a small, “c” shaped piece of cartilage that acts as a cushion in the knee joint. They sit between the thigh bone (femur) and the tibia (shin bone), one on the outside (lateral menisus) and one on the inside of the knee (medial meniscus). A meniscus tear occurs when these pieces of cartilage tear and are injured usually during movements that forcefully rotate the knee while bearing weight. A partial or total tear of a meniscus sometimes occurs if an athlete quickly twists or rotates the upper leg while the foot is firmly planted.
  • Ankle Sprains- A sprained ankle or twisted ankle as it is sometimes known, is a common cause of ankle pain. A sprain is stretching and or tearing of ligaments.
    The most common cause of an ankle sprain is applying weight to the foot when it is in an inverted or everted position. Commonly, this happens while running or jumping on an uneven surface. The foot rolls in (inversion) or out (eversion) and the ligaments are stretched. Occasionally a loud “snap” or “pop” is heard at the time of the sprain. This is usually followed by pain and swelling of the ankle.
  • Achilles Tendon Rupture- The Achilles tendon runs from the calf muscles at the back of the lower leg and inserts in at the back of the heel. The achiiles tendon can tear as a partial rupture or a total rupture. The Achilles tendon is the largest and most vulnerable tendon in the body. It joins the gastrocnemius (calf) and the soleus muscles of the lower leg to heel of the foot. The gastrocnemius muscle crosses the knee, the ankle, and the subtalar joints and can create stress and tension in the Achilles tendon.
  • Hamstrings Pull or Tears-  Hamstring injuries are common among athletes who play sports that require powerful accelerations, decelerations or lots of running. The hamstring muscles run down the back of the leg from the pelvis to the bones of the lower leg. The three specific muscles that make up the hamstrings are the biceps femoris, semitendinosus and semimembranosus. Together these powerful knee flexors are known as the hamstring muscle group. An injury to any of these muscles can range from minor strains, a pulled muscle or even a total rupture of the muscle.
  • Muscle Sprains and Strains
  • Shin Splints-  Shin splints describes a variety of generalized shin pain that occurs in the front of the lower leg along the shin bone (tibia). The pain of shin splints is typically located on the outer front portion of the lower leg (anterior shin splints) or pain on the back inside of the lower leg (posterior medial) shin splints. Shin splints generally occur after cumulative stress causes microtrauma to the soleus muscle at the point of attachment to the shinbone. Repetitive stress can also cause irritation of the posterior tibialis muscle and inflammation of the periosteum, the connective tissue that covers the tibia.
Definitions of Injuries from About.com- Orthopedics
So I did a little research and here are the most common braces you will see on the court. So the next time you see your favorite players sporting these braces you will have a better idea as to the types of injuries they are most likely suffering from or trying to prevent.

Types of Braces for Leg and Ankle Injuries

Click HERE to search your favorite NBA teams and current player injuries.
Resources:
Pictures from –  The Brace Shop
Definitions - Sport Medicine
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Foods That Fight Pain… Au Naturel

May 11, 2011

Worried about popping multiple pills every day to fight pain? Well, you’re not alone and researchers have been long at work trying to find the best possible alternatives. Their latest findings show that a simple change to your diet may serve as a natural alternative to pain killers.
While the evidence is still somewhat unclear their is no doubt that a healthy diet has it’s benefits. So at bare minimum, simply adding these foods to your diet will, as the famous milk saying goes, “do a body good.”
So, what should you be eating?

Foods That May Fight Pain (www.metabolismadvice.com) Click to enlarge.

Anti-oxidants- Eat a diet abundant in anti-oxidizing fruits and vegetables. Asparagus, broccoli , cabbage, cauliflower, tomatoes, avocados, grapefruit, oranges, peaches, and watermelon are all rich in the powerful anti-oxidant glutathione. There is some evidence to show that glutathione lowers the risk of developing arthritis. Other antioxidants are vitamins C and E and can be found in citrus fruits, kiwi fruit, berries and tomato.
Flavanoids- There is a growing theory that the compounds that give color to fruits and vegetables (flavanoids) are key in disease prevention. They are thought to slow the bodies process of degeneration, which can be no bad thing for pain suffers. Try to enrich your diet with foods high flavonoids such as apples, green tea, onions, soy, and grapes.
Beta-Cryptoxanthin- By analysing the diets of over 25,000 individuals a team from the University of Manchester, UK found that those with beta-cryptoxanthin in their diet (found in oranges, apricots, nectarines, tangerines, papaya, peaches,
plums, and watermelon) were less likely to develop painful inflammatory joint conditions1. The research, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, said that as little as a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice was enough to make a difference.
Resveratrol - The chemical resveratrol, naturally found in the skins of grapes (particularly red grapes), in mulberries, nuts and wine inhibits the enzyme cyclooxygenase (COX). This is same action that aspirin and other anti-inflammatory drugs perform. But there is a benificial difference; like aspirin resveratrol blocks COX-2 that causes inflammation and pain but unlike asprin it doesn’t block COX-1 which assists in the healing of the stomach lining.
Omega-3 - a study at the University of Pittsburgh of 250 patients experiencing neck and back pain, 60% experienced an improvement in their overall pain after three months of consuming omega-3, found in oily fish. This result aligns with other studies that show that fish oil has an anti-inflammatory effect. Fish is not the only source of omega-3 it can also be found in flaxseed/linseed oil and in other nuts and seeds but the long chain omega-3 found in fish are said to be the most potent.

These are found in such foods as:

Cherries
Muraleedharan Nair, PhD, professor of natural products and chemistry at Michigan State University, found that tart cherry extract is ten times more effective than aspirin at relieving inflammation. Only two tablespoons of the concentrated juice need to be taken daily for effective results. Sweet cherries have also been found to be effective.

Blackberries, Raspberries, Blueberries and Strawberries

Dr. Nair later found the same anti-pain compound in berries like blackberries, raspberries, blueberries and strawberries.

Celery and Celery Seeds

James Duke, Ph.D., author of The Green Pharmacy, found more than 20 anti-inflammatory compounds in celery and celery seeds, including a substance called apigenin, which is powerful in its anti-inflammatory action. Add celery seeds to soups, stews or as a salt substitute in many recipes.

Ginger

Ginger reduces pain-causing prostaglandin levels in the body and has been widely used in India to treat pain and inflammation. A study by Indian researchers found that when people who were suffering from muscular pain were given ginger, they all experienced improvement. The recommended dosage of ginger is between 500 and 1,000 milligrams per day. If you’re taking medications, check with your health practitioner for possible herb-drug interactions.

Turmeric

Turmeric (curcuma longa) is the yellow spice commonly used in Indian curries. In research it has been shown to be a more effective anti-inflammatory than steroid medications when dealing with acute inflammation. Its main therapeutic ingredient is curcumin. Research shows that curcumin suppresses pain through a similar mechanism as drugs like COX-1 and COX-2 inhibitors (without the harmful side effects). Choose a standardized extract with 1500 mg of curcumin content per day.

Salmon, Mackerel and Herring

Many fatty fish like salmon, mackerel and herring also contain these valuable oils. Omega-3s convert in the body into hormone-like substances that decrease inflammation and pain. According to Dr. Alfred D. Steinberg, an arthritis expert at the National Institute of Health, fish oil is an anti-inflammatory agent. Fish oil acts directly on the immune system by suppressing 40 to 55 percent of the release of cytokines, compounds known to destroy joints. Many other studies also demonstrate that eating moderate amounts of fish or taking fish oil reduces pain and inflammation, particularly for arthritis sufferers.

Flax Seeds and Flax Oil

Freshly-ground flax seeds and cold-pressed flax oil, contain plentiful amounts of fatty acids known as Omega-3s. Do not cook with flax oil otherwise it will have the opposite effect-irritating the body’s tissues and causing pain.

Raw Walnuts and Walnut Oil

Raw walnuts and walnut oil also contain the same powerful Omega-3 fatty acids that fight pain and inflammation in the body.

Cottage Cheese

contains branched-chain amino acids, which protect muscle tissue from damage and soreness.

For More Information On Pain Fighting Foods Check Out These Books!

*Food list above provided by Michelle Schoffro Cook, MSc, RNCP, ROHP, DNM, PhD

Michelle Schoffro Cook, MSc, RNCP, ROHP, DNM, PhD is an international best-selling and eleven-time book author and doctor of traditional natural medicine, whose works include: The Vitality Diet, Allergy-Proof, Arthritis-Proof, Total Body Detox, The Life Force Diet, The Ultimate pH Solution, The 4-Week Ultimate Body Detox Plan, and The Phytozyme Cure. Check out her natural health resources and free e-newsletter at www.WorldsHealthiestDiet.com.  Read more: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/13-foods-that-fight-pain.html#ixzz1M3OSWQco

Neal Barnard, M.D., is a clinical researcher, author, and health advocate. He has been the principal investigator or coinvestigator on several clinical trials investigating the effects of diet on health. He is the author of dozens of publications in scientific and medical journals as well as numerous nutrition books for lay readers and is frequently called on by news programs to discuss issues related to nutrition, research issues, and other controversial areas in modern medicine. Dr. Barnard is an Adjunct Associate Professor of Medicine at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, a Life Member of the American Medical Association, and a member of the American Diabetes Association. Read More: http://www.nealbarnard.org/bio.cfm 


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2011 Arthritis Walk and Kickoff Party – Chicago, IL

April 1, 2011

Join me:  Thursday, April 28th @ Casey Moran’s (Wrigleyville)  for the 2011 Arthritis Walk Kickoff Party!

Then Come Walk With Me: @ The 2011 Arthritis Walk – Chicago, IL

When: Saturday, May 21st, 10:00am
Where: 1950 N. Cannon Drive, Chicago IL

Registration and Expo begins at 9:00am:

Grant’s Statue (located near the South entrance to Lincoln Park,
overlooking the pond to the West and a parking lot to the East)

Sign Up and Donate HERE

The Following Information is provided by: The Arthritis Foundation c/o www.letsmovetogether.org

Arthritis Walk®

Thank you for participating in the 2011 Arthritis Walk®!

The Arthritis Walk® is the signature fundraiser for the Arthritis Foundation. It’s not just an event, it’s a celebration of year-round movement to help prevent and treat arthritis. 

Every year we get together to celebrate movement and make a positive impact on the lives of people living with arthritis by raising funds for arthritis research, education and life improvement programs in 250 communities across the country.

Our rallying cry, Let’s Move Together® encourages people to get up and get moving. When you join us at the Arthritis Walk®, you’re not moving alone-you are becoming part of a community looking to achieve better health and change lives at the same time. We hope to see you there!

Arthritis Walk Honoree
Meet Michaylann
Michaylann was recently diagnosed with Arthritis in May of 2010.
Read More about Michaylann’s Story

 

 

 

Walk Hero – Madeline
Madeline’s battle with arthritis began when she was in the sixth grade. She began feeling widespread pain all over her body. In P.E. class she was unable to run like the other kids. Madeline was eventually diagnosed with Juvenile Arthritis. This disease left Madeline feeling alone and confused.
Read More about Madeline
Walk Hero – Lynette
Lynette’s battle with arthritis began when she was only 2 years old. She began feeling widespread pain all over her body, especially in her knees. After visits to various doctors, Lynette was eventually diagnosed with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis. This disease left Lynette with very bad knees and flare-ups that sometimes get bad enough that she can’t walk.
Read more about Lynette

Incentive Prizes 

The Arthritis Foundation appreciates all the hard work put forth by our walkers and provides the incentive prize program as a way of saying thank you.

Click here to view the 2011 Incentive Prize Sheet and select your fund raising goal to receive your favorite prize. Remember every penny helps!

 2011 Incentives

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Are POD’s (Physician Owned Distributorships) The Way Of The Future? And Are They Even Legal?

March 1, 2011

POD’s have been most widely present and accepted in the Spine community but now as surgeon reimbursements are down, Doctors in other arena’s, specifically those Orthopedists that specialize in joint replacements, are scrambling to find a way to supplement that lost income. So what’s the answer?

The Buzz in the industry today and the topic that dominated last week’s AAOS in San Diego were POD’s, rather Physician Owned Distributorships. There are numerous POD models floating around today, but nobody really knows whether they are legal ( The DOJ has not come down with a verdict).  From what I gather from industry professionals, no one model has been perfected. They cannot simply take the models that are successful in the Spine Industry and re-create them for Joints as the amount of instrumentation and implants on the Joint side are so substantial among other things.

There is not doubt that there are many out there that question not only the legality of these POD arrangements but if there is a conflict-of-interest  for the surgeons and their patients. The argument goes, that if a doctor is using a product solely based on the fact that he/she is being paid to use it, then are patients getting the best possible product for their individual interests?  However, I must ask, is this much different than the hospitals dictating what vendors products are approved in their systems? I personally have run into numerous situations where hospitals allow any company to bid for their business, and from those bids they choose 2-3 vendors that are approved and for a period of time, say 1-3 years, only those 2-3 chosen vendors are allowed to bring their products in to the OR and sell to their surgeons, therefore, limiting a doctor’s ability to choose the ideal product for their patient and thus placing the patient in the exact same situation but this time the financial interests of the hospital are put before the best interest of the patient- as it could be argued.
As no model has been deemed a so-called “sure-thing” and as questions still linger over their legality, I think we will continue to see numerous POD models arise over the next few years, or at least until the DOJ makes an official ruling, as surgeons try to supplement their income and take business into their own hands.

So, do POD’s place a surgeon’s financial interest before that of the patient’s best interest?
Will the POD models eliminate the need for distributors and reps?
It will be interesting to watch how the POD models transform the healthcare industry and how business is conducted.

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Packers-Bears and Jets-Steelers

January 21, 2011

I’ve gotta admit, I’m feeling pretty lucky right now to have my two favorite football teams sitting in prime positions to go to the Superbowl (and guess who just got her SB ticket! Whoot- Whoot!!!).  Born and Pittsburgh and now a Chicago resident for almost 9 years (wow, can’t believe it’s been that long) I’m super pumped to see the Bears and Steelers kickin’ some major butt out there on the field!

Thousands of fans anxiously await Sunday’s conference championship games: Packers-Bears and Jets-Steelers.

Having worked for  several years selling Sports Medicine products for Arthrex, I can tell you that I’ve seen first hand the extent of what high impact sports like football can do to your joints. We all recall the brutal leg injury (if you can even call it that as his leg basically shattered) that Joe Theismann suffered during the November 18th, 1985 game vs the NY Giants. YUCK!

Click Here if you have the stomach to watch it! I don’t!

So boys, PLEASE be careful out there as no-one wants to see any of you get injured!

GOOD LUCK and may the best team win!

Cheers to SUPER BOWL XLV !

Superbowl XLIII Saying Hello to Former Steeler Rocky Bleier

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What You Don’t Know About Your High Heels

January 19, 2011

Louboutin High Heels

Louboutin Patent Leather Pigalle

When I first started in the orthopedic business I spent a good amount of my time selling products for small joints (i.e. foot/ankle/ hand/wrist/elbow) and thus working with many podiatrists and orthopedic surgeons that specialized in the Foot and Ankle. I can remember walking into their offices in my high-heeled, pointy-toed shoes and always being met with the same reaction… usually a shake of the head and a remark about how much damage I was doing to my feet!

I specifically recall one surgeon Dr. Armen Kelikian, a wonderful orthopod at the Northwestern Orthopedic Institute who’d without fail always give me a hard time about my shoes every time I walked into his office to which I always teased, ” Beauty is pain…I’m just bringing you more business as a future patient.”  I can’t even count the number of surgeries I’ve been in on for reconstructions of such things as hammertoes and bunions and yet one thing will never change… I’m still wearing those very high heels every day. Sorry Dr. Kelikian!

Their has always been much speculation about how much damage we ladies are truly doing to our feet/ankles/hips/knees with the fashion choices we make every day.  Dr. Danielle Barkema, a kinesiology master’s student at Iowa State University recently studied 15 women wearing three different heel heights: flat, 2 inches and 3.5 inches. She measured the forces acting about the knee joint and the heel strike-induced shock wave that travels up the body when walking in heels. She found that heel height affected walking speeds and stride lengths and increased the compression on the medial side of the knee.


So what does this mean?
This means that prolonged wearing and walking in heels could, over time, contribute to joint degeneration and knee osteoarthritis. The study also found that wearing heels, especially those 2 inches or higher, alters body posture by changing joint positions at the ankle, knee, hip and trunk, which can create strain on the lower back.  ”Visually, it is quite apparent that somebody’s posture is altered when wearing high heels,” Barkema noted. “We noted those changes in posture [in the study], as well as various joint angles, such as the knee and ankle angle. The most dramatic change occurs at the ankle.”

As trends go today, most of the major shoe designers’ creations have heel heights that are well above 3.5 inches, many average around 4, and some reaching even 6in heel heights! I personally have a hard time finding anything super cute under 4inches… and OMG Christian Louboutin does it again! Is this for real?!? WOW, these remind me of a very strange version of point shoes from ballet class. Let’s all hope this is not the future for heels.

Christian Louboutin Heels Photos by David Lynch


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A Joint Registry For The U.S

January 11, 2011

In 2002 England and Wales created the first National Joint Registry. According to their website, its purpose is to define, improve and maintain the quality of care of individuals receiving hip, knee and ankle joint replacement surgery across the NHS and the independent healthcare sector. In their words,  the Registry helps to monitor the performance of these implants and the effectiveness of different types of surgery, improving clinical standards and benefiting patients, clinicians and the orthopaedic industry.

Joint registries also exist in Australia, Canada, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark, and New Zealand. Many have more than 10 years of experience and are currently collecting data (including but not limited to the date of surgery, type of implant, operating surgeon, patient’s name, date of birth, social security number, and sex), on more than 90 percent of procedures nationally.

So will the U.S ever have our own registry and if so, where are we in the process?

The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) is actively engaged in creating an U.S. joint registry and in June 2009, the American Joint Replacement Registry (AJRR) was incorporated in Illinois.

“We’re on the verge of making a U.S. joint replacement registry a reality,” said David G. Lewallen, MD, chair of the American Joint Replacement Registry (AJRR) board of directors, during an educational session held during the AAOS 2010 Annual Meeting.The mission of the AJRR is to foster a national center for data collection and research on total hip and knee replacement that has “far-reaching benefits to society, including reduced morbidity and mortality; improved patient safety, quality of care, and medical decision-making; reduced medical spending; and advances in orthopaedic science and bioengineering,” said Dr. Lewallen.

  • In 2006, there were more than 1 million hip and knee replacements in the U.S Of these, approximately 7.5% were revisions, resulting in 77,000procedures at a cost of more than $3.2 billion.
  • Registries in Sweden, Great Britain, Canada and Australia have seen up to a 10% reduction in revision rates.
  • A modest 2% decrease in the U.S. revision rate would yield a savings of$65.2 million in one year.
  • Based on the projected group of these procedures through 2030, the potential savings could exceed $1.3 billion over 20 years.

When a patient has a hip or knee implanted into his body, the device used was chosen by his orthopaedic surgeon based on the patient’s stature and lifestyle as well as the device’s performance. The device longevity is one of the factors that would be able to be monitored by a national joint registry.

A joint registry monitors the artificial joint throughout a recipient’s lifetime in a database with information about the patient, surgeon and facility where the procedure took place. The registry costs are unknown at this point, but could range from $10 to $20 million to operate. The data collected will help doctors to more quickly identify poorly performing products and match patients procedures and devices to optimize outcomes.

One of America’s leading healthcare providers, Kaiser Permanente, has taken the concept of a joint registry and implemented one within their own network. They have over 100,000 joints already registered and believe it has had a positive impact on the quality of care their patients receive.

There are many ongoing efforts to establish local and regional joint registries, however, the AAOS proposes a national, independent, not-for-profit organization outlined below.

 

William J. Maloney, MD, Chair of the AJRR,  defines some of the values of registries as:

  • They provide an early warning system for early implant failure.
  • They provide evidence that, if delivered to physicians in a timely and understandable fashion, will positively influence physician behavior to the benefit of patients and society.
  • They have the power to ultimately decrease the burden of disease and cost associated with surgical morbidity and mortality, and reduce the volume of premature revision procedures.

A pilot program to collect data (hip and knee) has been implemented and set to start sometime in late 2010. According to Lewallen, 15 U.S. hospitals will be involved in this pilot.

I hope to get some more information on the progress of this test pilot at this years Annual Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (Feb 15-19) in San Diego. I will look forward to posting some information on this subject soon thereafter.

Posted by hip2knees
Filed in joint Registry and Data Collection, Joints (Knees and Hips), Medical Orthopedic Device Industry
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