Community-based falls prevention: lessons from an Interprofessional Mobility Clinic

Falls are a common and serious risk with an aging population. Chiropractors commonly see firsthand the effects of falls and resulting injuries in their senior patients and they can reduce falls risk through active screening. Ongoing research has provided proven approaches for making falls less likely. Screening for falls should be done yearly for all patients 65 years and older or in those with a predisposing medical condition. Additional specific falls prevention professional education would enable the chiropractor to best assist these patients. Collaboration and communication with the patient’s family physician offers an opportunity for improved interprofessional dialogue to enhance patient care related to falls risk. Frequently falls prevention strategies are implemented by an interprofessional team. Chiropractors increasingly contribute within multidisciplinary teams. Collaboration by the chiropractor requires both simple screening and knowledge of health care system navigation. Such awareness can permit optimal participation in the care of their patient and the best outcome.     

Femoral malrotation after intramedullary nailing in obese versus non-obese patients

Objective

Intramedullary nailing (IMN) of obese patients with femoral fractures can be difficult due to soft tissue considerations and overall body habitus. Complications including malrotation can occur and have significant impact on postoperative function. The purpose of this study was to evaluate femoral rotation after intramedullary nailing of obese and non-obese patients to see if there was a difference in rotation, complications and any risk factors for malrotation.

Materials and methods

Between 2000 and 2009, 417 consecutive patients with femur fractures treated with IM nail at Level I trauma and tertiary referral center. Of these, 335 with postoperative computed tomography (CT) scanogram of the bilateral lower extremities were included in this study. Baseline demographic, perioperative and postoperative femoral version calculations were included in the dataset. Statistical analysis included chi-squared test for categorical data, t-test for continuous data, and univariate and multivariate regression analysis. Significance was set at p < 0.05.

Results

Of the 417 patients with femur fractures between 2000 and 2009, 335 met criteria for this study. There were 111 patients with a BMI <25, 129 with BMI 25–29.9, and 95 patients with a BMI >30. When BMI was categorised into 3 groups (<25, 25–29.9, or 30+), none of these groups were predictive of version in univariate or multivariate regressions. Among only obese patients (BMI 30+), BMI of 35+ was not a significant predictor of version when compared to BMI 30–34.9. There were no significant differences in femoral version based on entry point (antegrade vs. retrograde) in any BMI category. There were also no significant difference between groups of patients with a DFV of >15? (p = 0.212).

Conclusions

Based on this study, BMI did not have an effect on postoperative difference in femoral version. In fact, in our multivariate regression analysis, BMI of over 30 was actually predictive of significantly lower difference in femoral version. While other studies have documented the intraoperative difficulties encountered with obese patients with femur fractures, the outcome of femoral rotation is not affected by an increasing BMI.     

Prevention of erectile dysfunction after radiotherapy for prostate cancer

With increasing scrutiny of prostate cancer （PCa） diagnosis and treatment, much attention has been given to the morbidity caused by radical prostatectomy （RP） and/or radiotherapy （RT）. One of the most common side-effects of either treatment is erectile dysfunction （ED）.1 Approximately, 40% of patients will experience ED after RT for PCa. The post-RT ED causes significant patient dissatisfaction with cancer treatment as well as decrease in patient and partner psychosocial function,z To address this issue in patients undergoing RT, Pisansky et al.3 conducted a prospective, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial to assess the efficacy of a phosphodiesterase enzyme-5 inhibitor （PDE5i）, tadalafil, as a preventive measure for patients undergoing RT for PCa and found no difference in erectile function between the control and treatment groups.