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- Talk
- Uk
What's New Going Forward? The Evolving Picture of Shoulder and Elbow Arthroplasty
Description
In this presentation, Dr. Adam Watts, a consultant elbow surgeon at Wrightington Hospital and member of the NJR Editorial Board, discusses the evolving landscape of shoulder and elbow arthroplasty as reported by the National Joint Registry (NJR). He highlights that shoulders and elbows have been included in the NJR since 2012, contributing to one of the largest datasets globally. With ongoing efforts to reclassify shoulder arthroplasties by Oxford University and the introduction of live audits for these procedures beginning in 2021, the quality of reporting is expected to improve.
Dr. Watts provides detailed statistics concerning shoulder arthroplasty, noting that a significant majority of the cohort consists of female patients and that trends have shifted away from hemiarthroplasties towards reverse polarity arthroplasties, particularly for indications such as osteoarthritis and trauma-related conditions. He also touches on factors such as revision rates and surgical outcomes, indicating that indications for revisions differ significantly between various types of arthroplasties.
On the elbow arthroplasty side, despite smaller cohort sizes compared to shoulders, the NJR presents important insights into practices and outcomes following these procedures. Dr. Watts mentions the persistent need for improved collection of preoperative patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) and reflects on the population of patients undergoing these surgeries, which predominantly consists of older individuals, especially females, with inflammatory arthropathy as the leading indication for surgery.
In conclusion, Dr. Watts emphasizes the importance of enhancing data capture and monitoring changing trends in surgical preferences, aiming for improvements in patient care and outcomes in at-risk populations, while recognizing the collaborative efforts of various academic institutions in advancing this critical area of orthopedic surgery.