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A lower incidence of hip fracture in black women has been reported by several studies. The most frequently proposed explanations for this phenomenon have included a genetically greater bone mass, better preservation of bone due to the fact that certain populations of black women perform more physical labor, and the impact of other unidentified environmental and/or lifestyle factors. This retrospective study demonstrates that low body weight is as significant a risk factor for hip fracture in black women as it is in white women. Coupled with the known higher prevalence of obesity in the older black female population, the findings of this study suggest that differences in body weight may be a significant and possibly sufficient explanation for the lower incidence of hip fracture in black women.

Synovial sarcomas are soft-tissue malignancies with a poor prognosis and propensity for distant metastases. Although originally believed to arise from the synovium, these tumors have been found to occur anywhere in the body. We report a rare case of synovial sarcoma arising from the median nerve. To our knowledge, this is the twelfth reported case of intraneural synovial sarcoma, and only the fourth arising from the median nerve. Because the diagnosis may not be apparent until after pathological examination of the surgical specimen, synovial sarcoma should be kept in mind when dealing with what may seem like a benign nerve tumor.

The latissimus dorsi mycocutaneous flap has developed a reputation for its versatility in both skin and soft tissue coverage and for restoration of elbow function in both flexion and extension. In a case presented, a large extra-abdominal desmoid was removed along with the entire deltoid and three-quarters of the triceps. The latissimus dorsi was elevated with a large overlying skin island and rotated on its neurovascular pedicle into the defect in the posterior shoulder and upper arm to replace the resected triceps and deltoid muscle, and to provide coverage in this region.

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