Role of the newly designed Ankle Foot Orthosis on balance related parametersin drop foot post stroke patients

BackgroundPassive and hybrid passive ankle foot orthoses (AFOs) are often prescribed in post stroke drop foot; however, the effects of these AFOs on balance related parameters in these patients seem unclear. Accordingly, the aim of current study was to evaluate the role of the newly designed hybrid passive and Posterior Leaf Spring (PLS) AFOs on balance related parameters including: self-reported balance confidence (ABC), Timed Up and Go Test (TUG) and Berg Balance Scale (BBS) in post stroke drop foot patients.MethodsFifteen post stroke drop foot patients were recruited in current study. Then, ABC, TUG and BBS were assessed with newly designed AFO and PLS AFO.ResultsThe results of this study were shown a significant improvement in ABC, TUG and BBS scores with the newly designed AFO than PLS AFO (p < 0.05).ConclusionThis study suggested that the newly designed AFO was improved the balance related parameters than PLS AFO.     

Effects of anteriorly-loaded treadmill walking on dynamic gait stability in young adults

BackgroundAnteriorly-loaded walking is common in many occupations and may increase fall risk. Dynamic gait stability, defined by the Feasible Stability Region (FSR) theory, quantifies the kinematic relationship between the body’s center of mass (COM) and base of support (BOS). FSR-based dynamic gait stability has been used to evaluate the fall risk.Research questionHow does front load carriage affect dynamic gait stability, step length, and trunk angle among young adults during treadmill walking?MethodsIn this between-subject design study, 30 healthy young adults were evenly randomized into three load groups (0%, 10%, or 20% of body weight). Participants carried their assigned load while walking on a treadmill at a speed of 1.2 m/s. Body kinematics were collected during treadmill walking. Dynamic gait stability (the primary variable) was calculated for two gait events: touchdown and liftoff. Step length and trunk angle were measured as secondary variables. One-way analysis of variance was conducted to detect any group-related differences for all variables. Post-hoc analysis with Bonferroni correction was performed when main group differences were found.ResultsNo significant differences but medium to large effect sizes were found between groups for dynamic gait stability at touchdown (p = 0.194, η² = 0.114) and liftoff (p = 0.122, η² = 0.139). Trunk angle significantly increased (indicating backward lean) with the front load at touchdown (p < 0.001, η² = 0.648) and liftoff (p < 0.001, η² = 0.543). No significant between-group difference was found related to the step length (p = 0.344, η² = 0.076).SignificanceCarrying a front load during walking significantly alters the trunk orientation and may change the COM-BOS kinematic relationship and, therefore, fall risk. The findings could inform the design of future studies focusing on the impact of anterior load carriage on fall risk during different locomotion.     

DHS和PFNA固定治疗老年股骨粗隆间骨折的疗效

目的对比动力髋螺钉(dynamic hip screw,DHS)治疗和股骨近端抗旋髓内钉(proximal femoral nail anti-rotation,PFNA)固定治疗老年股骨粗隆间骨折疗效。方法纳入本院收治的45例采用PFNA固定治疗的老年股骨粗隆间骨折患者作为研究组,研究时间为2017年11月-2018年11月;回顾性分析2016年11月-2017年11月在我院采用DHS治疗的45例老年股骨粗隆间骨折患者的临床资料,作为对照组。记录两组的相关手术指标,观察手术并发症情况。结果研究组的手术时间和骨折愈合时间均短于对照组,术中出血量明显少于对照组,术后疼痛VAS评分均明显低于对照组(P<0.05)。对照组的并发症发生率高于研究组(P<0.05)。结论PFNA固定治疗比DHS治疗老年股骨粗隆间骨折更加安全有效,值得临床借鉴和应用。     

Optimal combination of antiangiogenic therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma

The success of sorafenib in prolonging survival of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) makes therapeutic inhibition of angiogenesis a component of treatment for HCC. To enhance therapeutic efficacy, overcome drug resistance and reduce toxicity, combination of antiangiogenic agents with chemotherapy, radiotherapy or other targeted agents were evaluated. Nevertheless, the use of antiangiogenic therapy remains suboptimal regarding dosage, schedule and duration of therapy. The issue is further complicated by combination antiangiogenesis to other cytotoxic or biologic agents. There is no way to determine which patients are most likely respond to a given form of antiangiogenic therapy. Activation of alternative pathways associated with disease progression in patients undergoing antiangiogenic therapy has also been recognized. There is increasing importance in identifying, validating and standardizing potential response biomarkers for antiangiogenesis therapy for HCC patients. In this review, biomarkers for antiangiogenesis therapy including systemic, circulating, tissue and imaging ones are summarized. The strength and deficit of circulating and imaging biomarkers were further demonstrated by a series of studies in HCC patients receiving radiotherapy with or without thalidomide.     

股骨近端空心锁定板内固定治疗股骨颈骨折临床疗效观察

目的：：研究股骨近端空心锁定板内固定治疗股骨颈骨折的临床效果。方法：对2008年2月至2010年4月我院入院治疗的108例股骨颈骨折患者进行了研究，随机分为两组，对照组给与空心钉进行治疗，观察组采用股骨近端空心锁定板内固定治疗，比较两组治疗方案的手术时间、出血量、住院时间以及下床时间，比较两组治疗方案的手术并发症发生率，并比较两组患者三年期临床疗效。结果：观察组患者手术出血量明显少于对照组，手术时间、住院时间以及下床时间明显短于对照组，两组比较差异明显，有统计学意义( P<0.05)；两组患者手术并发症均以疼痛、骨不连以及感染为主，其中观察组上述并发症的发生率为13.0％，明显低于对照组33.3％，两组比较差异有统计学意义( P<0.05)；观察组患者三年临床总有效率为79.6％，对照组患者三年期临床总有效率为51.9％，两组比较差异明显，有统计学意义( P<0.05)。结论：股骨近端空心锁定板内固定治疗股骨颈骨折临床效果显著，可以明显缩短手术时间以及住院时间，降低手术并发症，并且三年临床总有效率更高，值得临床推广应用。     

On the Relationship between Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound Parameters and the Underlying Vascular Architecture Extracted from Acoustic Angiography

Dynamic contrast-enhanced ultrasound (DCE-US) has been proposed as a powerful tool for cancer diagnosis by estimation of perfusion and dispersion parameters reflecting angiogenic vascular changes. This work was aimed at identifying which vascular features are reflected by the estimated perfusion and dispersion parameters through comparison with acoustic angiography (AA). AA is a high-resolution technique that allows quantification of vascular morphology. Three-dimensional AA and 2-D DCE-US bolus acquisitions were used to monitor the growth of fibrosarcoma tumors in nine rats. AA-derived vascular properties were analyzed along with DCE-US perfusion and dispersion to investigate the differences between tumor and control and their evolution in time. AA-derived microvascular density and DCE-US perfusion exhibited good agreement, confirmed by their spatial distributions. No vascular feature was correlated with dispersion. Yet, dispersion provided better cancer classification than perfusion. We therefore hypothesize that dispersion characterizes vessels that are smaller than those visible with AA.     

A comparison of double single suture-button fixation,suture-button fixation,and screw fixation for ankle syndesmosis injury: A retrospective cohort study

Different methods have been used throughout the years for syndesmotic injury but there is no consensus on the ideal treatment. Some methods are expensive and some have more complications. The aim of this study is to compare single suture endobutton with double suture endobutton and screw fixation for syndesmotic injury.Sixty nine patients with syndesmotic injury with fibular fractures whom were treated with a single interosseous suture endobutton system (ZipTight^TM, Zimmer Biomet), a double interosseous suture endobutton system (ZipTight^TM, Zimmer Biomet) and 1 syndesmotic screw (TST, Istanbul, Turkey) were included in this study. Functional and radiological results from patient records between 2015 and 2018 were retrospectively evaluated.Twenty patients were treated with the double interosseous suture endobutton, 23 were treated with the single interosseous suture endobutton, and 26 were treated with traditional AO screw fixation. Three patients from the screw fixation group (11.5%) required revision surgery (P < .05). All the radiologic and clinical outcomes were statistical similar in all 3 groups.Our findings showed that the interosseous suture endobutton system is at least as safe as the screw fixation technique for treatment of syndesmosis joint injuries and can be used as an alternative to the screw method. The interosseous suture endobutton system eliminates the need for a second surgery to remove the hardware, which minimizes the probability of re-diastasis. Since our results showed no statistical difference between single and double interosseous suture endobutton systems, the less costly single endobutton system may be the better alternative.     

Reoperation rates and risk factors for revision 4 years after dynamic stabilization of the lumbar spine

Background Context

The concept of dynamic stabilization (DS) of the lumbar spine for treatment of degenerative instability has been introduced almost two decades ago. Dynamic stabilization follows the principle of controlling movement in the coronal plane by providing load transfer of the spinal segment without fusion and, at the same time, reducing side effects such as adjacent segment disease (ASD). So far, only little is known about revision rates after DS due to ASD and screw loosening (SL).

椎弓根螺钉三椎体内固定对脊椎爆裂性骨折患者椎体与神经功能状态的影响观察

目的:探讨椎弓根螺钉三椎体内固定对脊椎爆裂性骨折患者椎体与神经功能状态的影响.方法:选取2013年7月至2015年1月于本院进行治疗的58例脊椎爆裂性骨折患者为研究对象,对其进行回顾性研究,将其根据手术方式不同分为对照组(短节段椎弓根内固定组)29例和观察组(椎弓根螺钉三椎体内固定组)29例,然后将两组患者手术前与手术后不同时间的伤椎恢复指标与血清神经功能相关指标进行比较.结果:观察组手术后不同时间的伤椎恢复指标中的后凸Cobb角、椎体平移率、椎体高度丢失率与血清神经功能相关指标中的BDNF、NSE、NGF及S100B均显著好于同期的对照组指标,并且明显好于其治疗前,均有显著性差异(P＜0.05).结论:椎弓根螺钉三椎体内固定可更为有效地恢复脊椎爆裂性骨折患者椎体参数,并且更有助于神经功能状态的恢复.