Editor's Note Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists may offer orthopedic patients with obesity and type 2 diabetes a powerful tool for preoperative weight loss and potential disease modification, according to a July 10 review article in The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery. However, the agents carry perioperative risks that…

Read More

Editor's Note Surgeons are performing robotic shoulder replacements in ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) for the first time, signaling a significant shift in the trajectory of outpatient total joint arthroplasty. According to Outpatient Surgery Magazine May 7, the world’s first robotic total shoulder replacement outside of a hospital took place on…

Read More

Editor's Note Opening a hospital-affiliated ambulatory surgery center (ASC) can shift healthier patients out of the hospital without compromising outcomes for those who remain, according to a new study published in the Journal of the AAOS Global Research & Reviews in April 2025. The retrospective analysis from Luminis Health Anne…

Read More

Editor's Note According to a May 2025 Canadian Medical Association Journal study, creating centralized waitlists for hip and knee replacements can cut surgical wait times without increasing costs or expanding OR capacity, CBC News May 20 reports. The study, led by David Urbach, MD, MSC, head of the surgery department…

Read More

Editor's Note Arthroplasty implants may release metals that accumulate in the central nervous system (CNS), potentially contributing to neurotoxic effects, according to a study published March 28 in JAMA Network Open. Researchers found that patients with large joint replacements had significantly higher levels of cobalt, chromium, titanium, niobium, and zirconium…

Read More

Editor’s Note A growing body of research is shedding new light on the long-running debate about spinal anesthesia (SA) and general anesthesia (GA) in outpatient surgical settings, Outpatient Surgery Magazine March 12 reports. Recent studies suggest both approaches can be considered safe and effective, with the “best” choice often hinging…

Read More

For many in the healthcare industry, imagining surgery without onsite sterile processing seems unthinkable. Then again, performing total joints in an ambulatory surgery center (ASC) was unthinkable 10 years ago. ASC sterile processing departments (SPDs) are generally not designed to handle the high volumes of instrument trays, vendor trays, and…

Read More

Editor's Note The Joint Commission has released revised requirements for the advanced disease-specific care certification for total hip and total knee replacement (THKR). The requirements, which are designed to align with the updated AAOS clinical practice guidelines, go into effect July 1, 2024 and focus largely on addressing opioids and…

Read More

Editor's Note: A point-of-care, antimicrobial coating for orthopedic implants could soon make implant-associated infections a problem of the past, UCLA Health reported on January 3. Developed by two UCLA surgeons, the coating is designed to kill or slow the spread of micro-organisms in order to prevent post-surgical infections. According to…

Read More

Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on August 9, announced that it is revising a performance measure for the advanced Total Hip and Total Knee Replacement (THKR) Certification Program—THKR-5: Postoperative Functional/Health Status Assessment—to align with a similar Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) measure. The recently adopted CMS performance measure—Hospital-Level,…

Read More