Unfallchirurgie (Heidelberg, Germany)最新文献

In the field of tension between generalists and specialists, in modern university trauma and orthopedic surgery the question arises as to which expertise has the greatest importance for the future of clinical care. University medicine consists of three large pillars: Research, teaching and treatment of patients. Each of these pillars is faced with the challenge of increasing specialization; however, generalists are extremely important for the future of university trauma surgery and orthopedics. Generalists promote interdisciplinary collaboration through their broad training and are versatile in acute care situations. Specialists are characterized by in-depth specialist knowledge and technological expertise in specific areas of surgery. This article analyses the changing requirements in trauma surgical and orthopedic care in the context of innovation, technologization, digitalization and increasing specialization. It also examines how structural reforms, such as the Hospital Structure Act and the new licensing regulations, are influencing the role of generalists and specialists in university training and clinical practice. The article provides a differentiated view of which specialist skills will be necessary in hospitals in the coming years and discusses whether a balance between generalism and specialization is the solution for high-quality patient-centered care.

The surgical treatment of traumatic vertebral body fractures in patients with good bone quality is controversially discussed. The data situation is unclear and only of limited help due to mainly insufficient evidence. The surgical measures include an axially aligned reduction and an osteosynthesis which is stable under load so that immediate mobilization of the patient is possible. This requires anatomical restoration of the alignment and the biomechanical challenge of fracture healing or fusion in the correct position without relevant loss of reduction must be taken into account. The aim should be the lowest possible loss of function. In the case of existing or impending neurological deficits it is crucial to prevent deterioration of the neurological situation and to achieve the prerequisites for recovery. Posterior stabilization primarily plays the decisive role in the operative treatment. If possible, this should be a minimally invasive procedure and over short distances. For bisegmental treatment monoaxial screws and the use of index screws improve construct stability. In addition, stable cobalt rods should be used as 5mm longitudinal support. Special minimally invasive reduction instruments are helpful in restoring the sagittal and coronal relationships. The indications for an additional ventral column depend on the rigidity of the posterior stabilization, the extent of the injury of the anterior column and the intervertebral disc. Anterior fusion can often be delayed or avoided altogether, depending on the course with corresponding clinical signs.

Background: Spinal injuries in childhood are rare. There are few meaningful data for German-speaking countries.

Questions/aim of the study: Evaluation of the registry data of the German Spine Society (DWG) with respect to the reality of care for thoracolumbar injuries in childhood.

Material and methods: This retrospective study was initiated by the Spinal Trauma in Childhood Working Group of the Spine Section of the German Society for Orthopaedics and Trauma Surgery (DGOU). All patients under the age of 16 years who underwent surgery between 1 January 2017 and 31 June 2023 were included. An anonymized evaluation of the demographic data was carried out with respect to age, gender, level of injury, neurological impairment, classification and treatment performed with intraoperative and postoperative complications. The specified documentation in the spine register served as the information basis. Regarding age classification 3 groups were used: I: 0-6 years, II: 7-9 years, III: 10-16 years.

Results: Data from 83 children with 150 injuries in the thoracic and lumbar spine areas with a mean age of 11.4 (± 3.45) years were analyzed. A total of 78 (52%) thoracic and 72 (48%) lumbar injuries were found. Type A injuries were most common (n = 89; 59.2%). Type B injuries were found in 32.2% (n = 48) and occurred mainly in group III. According to the AO neurological injury classification 18 (21%) patients had incomplete and 4 (4.8%) patients had complete paraplegia. Various methods were used for surgical treatment, the most common being dorsal stabilization (n = 73; 87.9%). The majority of operations were uncomplicated (n = 75; 90.4%).

Discussion: According to the registry data 83 children were treated surgically with an acceptable complication rate. Older children and adolescents (group III) had a significantly higher injury severity compared to younger children. As with most registry studies, only limited conclusions can be drawn about surgical strategies, indications and techniques.

Medical data registers are a key instrument of medical care research and a valuable tool for medical quality assurance. The structured plausibility tested documentation of large case numbers on a longitudinally oriented time axis with different points in time of data acquisition enables statements to be made on numerous relevant outcomes, not only the mortality of patients. For incidents outside the daily routine care in trauma surgery, such as natural disasters, accidents with multiple casualties and nonmilitary treatment of the domestic population in defence situations, such registers can provide data-based recommendations for action. These data, mainly obtained from routine traumatological treatment, enable a targeted resource management in the abovenamed incidents, which are associated with mass casualties. Due to the utilization of registers from the military field or from international registers, the perspective is additionally extended with respect to treatment strategies and injury patterns. Whether data can also be generated in a suitable manner for the abovenamed registers in specific disaster situations and can provide a direct gain of knowledge from the incident, must be critically discussed. The maintenance of the register datasets is time-consuming and has been subjected to a more stringent regulation at least since May 2018, when the European Union General Data Protection Regulation (EU-GDPR) came into force. The future Register Act in Germany will hopefully achieve greater simplification in the documentation of routine data.

The war in Ukraine and the pandemic triggered by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) have brought the resilience of our healthcare system and the preparation for disaster medical situations into the focus of a broad and current professional discussion. All measures to improve medical care in disasters can be subsumed under the umbrella term civil health protection. Most damage events that result from the realization of the risks in our daily lives in the sense of a catastrophe or damage situation result in an acute presentation of injured people with an exceedance or a restriction of the treatment capacity of a hospital. Both lead to a shortage situation that endangers patients and that may require applying the principles and concepts of disaster medicine and activating the hospital alarm and deployment plan for structured implementation. As the clinics of the TraumaNetworks DGU® represent an essential pillar of trauma care in the event of a disaster, a prerequisite for dealing with a damage situation is to know the elements of the organization, competences and responsibilities as well as to elucidate the role of the hospitals from the perspective of trauma surgery. This article presents the principles of the nomenclature of medical care in disasters, organization and possible coping strategies and discusses the principles of risk stratification in the preparation. All of this happens with the aim of optimizing the preparation and functioning of one's own hospital in the event of damage or a disaster.

The clinical picture and surgical treatment of implant-associated osteomyelitis of the calcaneus with soft tissue defect are presented based on this case study. Due to the fulminant infection, complete resection of the calcaneus and a two-stage complex reconstruction of the hindfoot were performed. As necrosis developed in the surgical access route, coverage with a free ALT flap became necessary.

The current security situation, both in terms of domestic and foreign politics, continues to pose a major challenge for Germany and it is therefore important to prepare the healthcare system for this. In the context of catastrophes based, e.g., on violence, terror, crisis or war, it will be unavoidable to have to treat a large number of injured and wounded casualties. The need for surgical treatment will always play a central role in this context, so that it is imperative that our hospitals and clinics are prepared in this respect. In addition to the general training content in a clinical context, there is a particular need for content that addresses nonroutine aspects, such as gunshot and blast injuries and also provides organizational and strategic recommendations for action. The Academy of Trauma Surgery (AUC) of the German Society for Trauma Surgery is a central and important partner for the German healthcare system and shows how such content, also based on structural advantages such as the TraumaNetworks DGU®, can be successfully communicated.