Retrospective observational multicenter study on patients treated with a non-animal origin cross-linked hyaluronic acid with different molecular weights for nasolabial folds

Background: According to the American Academy of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons, more than 11 million cosmetic surgical and nonsurgical procedures were performed by board-certified plastic surgeons, dermatologists and otolaryngologists in the United States, totaling more than 12 billion dollars. Of that total, more than 7 billion was spent on surgical procedures and more than 5 billion was spent on nonsurgical procedures. More than 1,872,172 people received Hyaluronic Acid (HA) injections in 2013. Moreover, filler treatments are the most popular procedures performed by dermatologists. Objective: Evaluate, with a new imaging system, durability, efficacy and safety of a nasolabial fold treatment with a cross-linked HA of non-animal origin with different molecular weights. Material and methods: A cross-linked HA (25 mg/ml, 1000-2000 kDa, 23 ± 3 Newton [N] extrusion force, 1,4-Butanediol Diglycidyl Ether (BDDE) content < 0.1 ppm) was used in order to perform the treatment. The product is commercially available with the trademark Aliaxin®GP (Global Performance) and distributed by IBSA Farmaceutici Italia Srl. 25 female subjects aged 40 and 60 years with a photoageing level III according Rubin or type III according Glogau were recruited for the treatment and 0.5 ml of the product were injected for single nasolabial fold. The aesthetic result and the duration of the aesthetic correction were evaluated by the analysis of the skin microreliefs through confocal microscopy and by Glogau's Scale. Additionally, pictures of each patient were collected by Canon PowerShot G10 Digital Camera (14.7 megapixels) before and after treatment. Below the description of the experimental schedule: T0: Baseline, evaluation and treatment; T1: second visit, 4 months after the treatment; T2: third visit, 6 months after the treatment. Results: From 25 patients, 150 silicone casts were obtained: 75 casts of the right nasolabial fold and 75 casts of the left nasolabial fold. Roughness arithmetical average (Ra) was assessed by profilometry. This parameter represents the arithmetic mean deviation of the profile points compared to the average value. The Ra of the right fold at T2 decreased by 50% versus T0 and by 40% compared to T1; Ra of the left fold at T2 decreased by the 45% versus T0 and by 35% compared to T1. No side effects were reported during the observation period beyond mild symptoms (pain, sensation of heat, reddening in the injection site) also described by the product technical sheet. Conclusion: The results proved the efficacy and safety of the nasolabial folds treatment with the tested product and the durability of the aesthetic correction

Studio dell'influenza delle lavorazioni meccaniche ed elettrochimiche sulla morfologia superficiale di manufatti metallici

Nel lavoro di tesi vengono riportati i risultati delle indagini condotte sulle lamiere in lega di alluminio fresate, chimicamente e meccanicamente, per impiego nei pannelli delle fusoliere degli aerei. I provini, in lega di alluminio AA 2024-T3, sono stati realizzati da Alenia Aermacchi S.p.A. nello stabilimento di Nola, la quale ha provveduto alla fornitura di prodotti che differiscono per la tipologia di lavorazione impiegata; alcuni provini sono stati fresati chimicamente altri, invece, sono stati fresati meccanicamente. Il processo di fresatura meccanica è stato eseguito sulle macchine fresatrici a controllo numerico di nuova installazione basate su una tecnologia denominata Mirror Milling system (Fresatura a Specchio). Con questa tecnica è possibile realizzare tasche di alleggerimento sui detti pannelli con notevoli vantaggi sia in termini ambientali che di produttività. Ci si è posti, dunque, il problema di andare a valutare se il prodotto ottenuto mediante fresatura meccanica avesse delle caratteristiche confrontabili con i prodotti chimici dal punto di vista microgeometrico, micromeccanico e microstrutturale. E' stato pertanto intrapreso un percorso sperimentale volto a mettere in risalto le affinità e le eventuali differenze che contraddistinguono le due tecnologie indagate

Influence of welding parameters and post-weld aging on tensile properties and fracture location of AA2139-T351 friction-stir-welded joints

Tensile properties and fracture location of AA2139-T351 friction stir welded joints are studied in the as-welded and post-weld aged condition. The experimental results show that when the joints are free of welding defects, they fail on the advancing side of the HAZ exhibiting a large amount of plastic deformation. When the revolutionary pitch exceeds a threshold value, some micro-defects are formed in the weld nugget due to insufficient heat input. In this case, the joints fail near the weld center, and the fracture occurs in a mixed mode, both ductile and brittle. However, being less ductile, post-weld aged joints are less defect-tolerant and, then, they fracture closer to the weld center, showing a reduced elongation at fracture and an UTS within the order of magnitude of the as-welded joints

Mechanical characterization by DOE analysis of AA6156-T4 friction stir welded joints in as-welded and post-weld aged condition

Tensile properties of AA6156-T4 friction stir welded joints were studied in the as-welded and T62 post-weld heat treated condition. To analyze the influence of rotating and welding speed on the 0.2 % proof stress and tensile strength of the two classes of joints, a complete full factorial design with three levels for each studied parameter was performed. Statistical analyses were carried out to establish empirical models of the tensile properties of the joints as a function of the studied welding parameters. The obtained models were validated by statistical tools such as Mallow???s CP, S, R2 and R2(adj). The developed regression models can be effectively used to predict the mechanical properties of the joints at 95 % confidence level

Indentation and penetration of glass fibre reinforced plastic laminates with phenolic matrix

In many advanced industrial fields, such as aeronautics and transportation, the study of impact resistance of the composite materials is very important. In particular, it could be useful to appreciate the damage induced in the material by an accidental impact, during the manufacturing process, the in service or the maintenance. In literature, many papers are available on this topic, in particular different reinforcements (such as glass fibre, carbon fibre and aramid fibre) and resin typology (such as epoxy and polyester) were studied. In this paper, the impact behavior of laminates made of glass fibre and phenolic resin was studied. The laminates were produced by means of autoclave forming process. Two different samples typologies were studied: orthotropic and quasi-isotropic. For both the above mentioned samples, different thickness (3, 4, 5, and 6 mm) were analyzed. Impact test were carried out using a semi-spherical indenter and a “weight drop” CEAST testing machine with full penetration and variable energy. The aim of the variable energy test is to correlate the dimension of the indentation left by the indenter on the surface with the impact energy. The indentation measurement is very important and in this work the measurements were carried out using a LEICA DCM3 confocal microscope. A dedicated software allows to measure all the dimensions of interest. The tests with variable energy confirmed that the samples with different stratification show similar behaviors respect to the energy adsorption. On the other hand, about the external damage, the quasi-isotropic specimens showed an higher resistance than the orthotropic ones in all the different thicknesses tested. Furthermore, the results obtained allow to say that the indentation depth varies as a function of the impact energy following a logarithmic law, contrarily to what happen for laminates made by epoxy resin where an exponential law was observed

Characterization of Ti-6Al-4V Tribopairs: Effect of Thermal Oxidation Treatment

This paper deals with the study of the influence of the thermal oxidation (TO) treatment on the tribological properties of Ti-6Al-4V tribopairs. A detailed experimental campaign, including tribological tests, microgeometrical measurements, microhardness tests and phase composition analyses, was carried out on both treated and untreated components. The tribological behavior was studied through the pin-on-disk tests in four different contact conditions: treated disk coupled with untreated pin, untreated disk coupled with treated pin, both treated and both untreated. The effectiveness of the treatment in enhancing the tribological properties of the Ti-6Al-4V alloy sheets was found. In particular, the thermal oxidation treatment, promoting hardness enhancement and the formation of a superficial rutile layer, changed the wear mechanism of the titanium alloy, passing from adhesive wear type, for the untreated case, to abrasive wear, in the treated one