Characteristics of the receptors in the isolated capsule of the hip in the cat

Summary The properties of the afferent fibres from the capsule of the hip joint have been studied in the cat in situ, in relation to joint rotation, and in an isolated capsule preparation which was opened and stretched directly with an actuator.In situ two types of afferent fibres were found, those having a full range of sensitivity and others having only a limited range in response to the joint rotation. When studied in isolated tissue the afferent fibres of the capsule were uniform in threshold and sensitivities, and no full range receptors were found. We conclude that the full range receptors which enter the articular nerve of the hip are spindle afferents and not capsule receptors. On the basis of these and previous results in animals and man the role of joint receptors in kinaesthesia and position sense is discussed.

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Résumé Les auteurs ont étudié les propriétés des nerfs afférents à la capsule de la hanche, chez le chat en imprimant à l'articulation des mouvements de rotation et sur des préparations de capsule isolée et ouverte en l'étirant directement grâce à un dispositif mécanique.In situ, on a trouvé deux types de nerfs afférents, les uns ayant en réponse à la rotation articulaire une étendue complète de sensibilité et les autres seulement une sensibilité limitée. Sur la capsule isolée les nerfs afférents sont indentiques en ce qui concerne le seuil et la sensibilité et on ne trouve aucun récepteur complet. On en conclut que les récepteurs de toute l'étendue de la sensibilité qui pénètrent les nerfs articulaires de la hanche sont des fibres en fuseau d'origine musculaire et non des récepteurs capsulaires. Sur ces bases et sur les résultats précédemment obtenus chez l'animal et chez l'homme, les auteurs discutent le rôle des récepteurs articulaires dans la cénesthésie et le sens des positions.

     

Wear of the cup in the Charnley LFA in the young patient

Since wear and loosening of the ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene cup are factors which limit the life of an arthroplasty we have attempted to identify factors associated with either low wear (0.02 mm/year or less) or high wear (0.2 mm/year or more). In a series of 1434 Charnley low-friction arthroplasties (1092 patients) 190 (13.2%) showed low wear while 149 (10.4%) showed high wear. We used chi-squared test to assess the significance of various factors. The significant factors of the low-wear group were female gender (p = 0.042), rheumatoid arthritis (p = 0.014), Charnley grade C (p = 0.03) and varus position of the stem (p = 0.003). The use of acetabular cement pressurisation (p = 0.07) and medialisation of the cup (p = 0.07) approached significance. In the high-wear group there was a predominance of men (p = 0.042) with osteoarthritis (p = 0.006) as the underlying hip pathology, and the stem in a valgus position (p = 0.023). Support of the cup by the rim of the acetabulum approached significance (p = 0.07). There was no statistical significance between the two groups for revision for aseptic loosening of the stem or fracture of the stem (p = 0.49). There was a highly significant difference (p < 0.0001) between the two groups for revision for wear and aseptic loosening of the cup, 5.3% compared with 39%. Changes in the cup geometry are probably sufficient to explain the increasing incidence of loosening and revisions with the increasing depth of penetration of the cup. There is much to be gained from the use of a low-wearing ceramic-ultra-high-molecular-weight combination. Tissue reaction to the polyethylene particles cannot be the cause of aseptic loosening of the stem.     

阴茎勃起的信号通路研究进展

对国内外近年来参与阴茎勃起过程中的四条信号通路及分子机制的研究进行回顾，从平滑肌收缩和舒张两方面进行总结，以期能更好地理解ED的发生机制。     

Skeletal changes in the hand in the Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome

We report a woman patient with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome who presented with trapezio-metacarpal subluxation and whose hands exhibited several other skeletal features of Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, including acro-osteolysis.     

Variation in the course of vessels in the vicinity of the hepatic port in biliary atresia

Among 114 patients with biliary atresia, the type of obstruction of the extrahepatic bile duct and the course of the hepatic artery, cystic artery, and portal vein were determined and analyzed from the view point of their mutual relationships and in comparison with postoperative bile excretion. As a result, the following findings characteristic of biliary atresia were obtained: (1) The course and location of the extrahepatic bile duct did not deviate greatly from normal conditions, excluding some exceptional cases, but the site of the origin of the cystic artery differed from that in normal cases. (2) The pattern of the course of the vessels varied among different types of obstruction of the extrahepatic bile duct. (3) There was a difference in postoperative bile excretion in relation to the type of obstruction of the extrahepatic bile duct, the course of the vessels, and their combinations.