Preface: ATM special section: lower extremity arthroplasty
This special section of Annals of Translational Medicine focuses on important topics and techniques in total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and total hip arthroplasty (THA). It is not only meant for the orthopaedic audience, but also for the general readership who are interested in learning about the application of various surgical concepts. Therefore, we purposefully included studies evaluating a wide range of procedures and patient populations.
The variety of studies included in this special section report on patients under 50 years of age, those who previously underwent arthroscopy and are now undergoing TKA, patients who have rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, and/or different types of cancer. In addition, the studies in this section evaluated various peri-operative factors including different approaches for THA, a novel categorization of hip anatomy, and alternate methods for TKA implant cement fixation, as well as compared a multitude of methods for surgical wound closure.
Since patient outcomes should always be a primary focus for any physician, this special section also highlights clinical outcomes such as post-operative complications after THA, muscle strength after TKA, and novel methods of venous thromboembolism prophylaxis.
In summary, this edition of Annals of Translational Medicine reports on various patient populations undergoing lower extremity arthroplasty, as well as advances in the peri-operative and post-operative management of these patients. We believe that the studies published in this edition are highly pertinent, time sensitive, important for the readership, and should promote future research in the field.
