Background Identifying risk factors for inferior outcomes after ACL reconstruction (ACLR) is important for prognosis and future treatment. The goal of this study was to determine whether articular cartilage and meniscal variables are predictive of 3 validated sports outcome instruments after ACLR. Hypothesis/Purpose We hypothesized that articular cartilage lesions and meniscus tears/treatment would be predictors of the IKDC, KOOS (all 5 subscales), and Marx activity level at 6 years following ACLR. Study Design Prospective cohort, Level 1 Methods Between 2002 and 2004, 1512 ACLR subjects were prospectively enrolled and followed longitudinally with the IKDC, KOOS, and Marx activity score completed at entry, 2, and 6 years. A logistic regression model was built incorporating variables from patient demographics, surgical technique, articular cartilage injuries, and meniscus tears/treatment to determine the predictors (risk factors) of IKDC, KOOS, and Marx at 6 years. Results We completed a minimum follow-up on 86% (1307/1512) of our cohort at 6 years. The cohort was 56% male, had a median age of 23 years at the time of enrollment, with 76% reporting a non-contact injury mechanism. Incidence of concomitant pathology at the time of surgery consisted of the following: articular cartilage (medial femoral condyle [MFC]-25%, lateral femoral condyle [LFC]-20%, medial tibial plateau [MTP]-6%, lateral tibial plateau [LTP]-12%, patella-20%, trochlear-9%) and meniscal (medial-38%, lateral-46%). Both articular cartilage lesions and meniscal tears were significant predictors of 6-year outcomes on IKDC and KOOS. Grade 3 or 4 articular cartilage lesions (excluding patella) significantly reduced IKDC and KOOS scores at 6 years. IKDC demonstrated worse outcomes with the presence of a grade 3-4 chondral lesion on the MFC, MTP, and LFC. Likewise, KOOS was negatively affected by cartilage injury. The sole significant predictor of reduced Marx activity was the presence of a grade 4 lesion on the MFC. Lateral meniscus repairs did not correlate with inferior results, but medial meniscus repairs predicted worse IKDC and KOOS scores. Lateral meniscus tears left alone significantly improved prognosis. Small partial meniscectomies (<33%) on the medial meniscus fared worse, but conversely, larger excisions (>50%) on either the medial or lateral menisci improved prognosis. Analogous to previous studies, other significant predictors of lower outcome scores were lower baseline scores, higher BMI, lower education level, smoking, and ACL revisions. Conclusions Both articular cartilage injury and meniscal tears/treatment at the time of ACLR were significant predictors of IKDC and KOOS scores 6 years following ACLR. Similarly, having a grade 4 MFC lesion significantly reduced a patient’s Marx activity level score at 6 years.

IMPORTANCESepsis is a common syndrome with substantial morbidity and mortality. A combination of vitamin C, thiamine, and corticosteroids has been proposed as a potential treatment for patients with sepsis.OBJECTIVE To determine whether a combination of vitamin C, thiamine, and hydrocortisone every 6 hours increases ventilator-and vasopressor-free days compared with placebo in patients with sepsis.DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Multicenter, randomized, double-blind, adaptive-sample-size, placebo-controlled trial conducted in adult patients with sepsis-induced respiratory and/or cardiovascular dysfunction. Participants were enrolled in the emergency departments or intensive care units at 43 hospitals in the United States between August 2018 and July 2019. After enrollment of 501 participants, funding was withheld, leading to an administrative termination of the trial. All study-related follow-up was completed by January 2020. INTERVENTIONS Participants were randomized to receive intravenous vitamin C (1.5 g), thiamine (100 mg), and hydrocortisone (50 mg) every 6 hours (n = 252) or matching placebo (n = 249) for 96 hours or until discharge from the intensive care unit or death. Participants could be treated with open-label corticosteroids by the clinical team, with study hydrocortisone or matching placebo withheld if the total daily dose was greater or equal to the equivalent of 200 mg of hydrocortisone. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURESThe primary outcome was the number of consecutive ventilator-and vasopressor-free days in the first 30 days following the day of randomization. The key secondary outcome was 30-day mortality. RESULTS Among 501 participants randomized (median age, 62 [interquartile range {IQR}, 50-70] years; 46% female; 30% Black; median Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score, 27 [IQR, 20.8-33.0]; median Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score, 9 [IQR, 7-12]), all completed the trial. Open-label corticosteroids were prescribed to 33% and 32% of the intervention and control groups, respectively. Ventilator-and vasopressor-free days were a median of 25 days (IQR, 0-29 days) in the intervention group and 26 days (IQR, 0-28 days) in the placebo group, with a median difference of −1 day (95% CI, −4 to 2 days; P = .85). Thirty-day mortality was 22% in the intervention group and 24% in the placebo group.CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Among critically ill patients with sepsis, treatment with vitamin C, thiamine, and hydrocortisone, compared with placebo, did not significantly increase ventilator-and vasopressor-free days within 30 days. However, the trial was terminated early for administrative reasons and may have been underpowered to detect a clinically important difference.

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a b s t r a c tBackground: With the shift of our healthcare system toward a value-based system of reimbursement, complications such as surgical site infections (SSI) may not be reimbursed.The purpose of our study was to investigate the costs and risk factors of SSI for orthopedic trauma patients.Methods: Through retrospective analysis, 1819 patients with isolated fractures were identified. Of those, 78 patients who developed SSIs were compared to 78 uninfected control patients. Patients were matched by fracture location, type of fracture, duration of surgery, and as close as possible to age, year of surgery, and type of procedure. Costs for treatment during primary hospitalization and initial readmission were determined and potential risk factors were collected from patient charts. A Wilcoxon test was used to compare the overall costs of treatment for case and control patients. Costs were further broken down into professional fees and technical charges for analysis. Risk factors for SSIs were analyzed through a chi-squared analysis.Results: Median cost for treatment for patients with SSIs was $108,782 compared to $57,418 for uninfected patients ( p < 0.001). Professional fees and technical charges were found to be significantly higher for infected patients. No significant risk factors for SSIs were determined.Conclusions: Our findings indicate the potential for financial losses in our new healthcare system due to uncompensated care. SSIs nearly double the cost of treatment for orthopedic trauma patients. There is no single driver of these costs. Reducing postoperative stay may be one method for reducing the cost of treating SSIs, whereas quality management programs may decrease risk of infection.