The results of this study indicate that PRP is an effective option to successfully treat partial UCL tears of the elbow in athletes.

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Objectives Alcohol consumption is a known risk factor for traumatic injuries of all types and has been shown to produce detrimental effects on bone metabolism. While the mechanisms responsible for these detrimental effects are not well characterized, oxidative stress from alcohol exposure appears to play a central role. This study was designed to examine the effect of a short-term binge alcohol consumption pattern on fracture repair and the effect of an antioxidant, N-acetylcysteine, on fracture healing following binge alcohol consumption. Methods One hundred forty-four (144) adult male Sprague Dawley rats underwent unilateral closed femur fracture after injection of either saline or alcohol to simulate a binge alcohol cycle. Animals in the antioxidant treatment group received daily N-acetylcysteine following fracture. Femurs were harvested at 1, 2, 4 and 6 weeks following injury and underwent biomechanical testing and histological analysis. Results Binge alcohol administration was associated with significant decreases in biomechanical strength at one and two-week time points with a trend toward decreased strength at four and six-week time points as well. Alcohol-treated animals had less cartilage component within the fracture callus and healed primarily by intramembranous ossification. Administration of N-acetylcysteine in alcohol-treated animals improved biomechanical strength to levels comparable to the control animals and was associated with increased endochondral ossification. Conclusions Our results indicate that binge alcohol alters the quality of fracture healing following a traumatic injury and that concurrent administration of an antioxidant is able to reverse these effects.

Our results indicate that acute alcohol intake prior to bilateral femoral fracture with fixation in rats modulates the inflammatory response after injury in a tissue-dependent manner. Although serum biomarkers of inflammation were suppressed in alcohol-treated animals following injury, several measures of pulmonary inflammation including cytokine levels, histological changes, and findings of pulmonary edema were significantly increased following fracture with the presence of alcohol.

IntroductionEvaluation of the systemic inflammatory status following major orthopedic trauma has become an important adjunct in basing post-injury clinical decisions. In the present study, we examined the correlation of serum and lung inflammatory marker levels following bilateral femur fracture.Materials and methods45 Sprague Dawley rats underwent sham operation or bilateral femoral intramedullary pinning and mid-diaphyseal closed fracture via blunt guillotine. Animals were euthanized at specific time points after injury. Serum and lung tissue were collected, and 24 inflammatory markers were analyzed by immunoassay. Lung histology was evaluated by a blinded pathologist.ResultsBilateral femur fracture significantly increased serum markers of inflammation including interleukin (IL)-2, IL-6, IL-10, GM-CSF, KC/GRO, MCP-1, and WBC. Femur fracture significantly increased serum and lung levels of IL-1a and KC/GRO at 6 hours. Lung levels of IL-6 demonstrated a trend towards significance. Histologic changes in pulmonary tissue after fracture included pulmonary edema and bone elements including cellular hematopoietic cells, bone fragments and marrow emboli.Discussion and conclusionOur results indicate that bilateral femur fracture with fixation in rats results in increases in serum markers of inflammation. Among the inflammatory markers measured, rise in the serum KC/GRO (CINC-1), a homolog to human IL-8, correlated with elevated levels of lung KC/GRO. Ultimately, analysis of serum levels of KC/GRO (CINC-1), or human IL-8, may be a useful adjunct to guide clinical decisions regarding surgical timing.