Modelling human musculoskeletal functional movements using ultrasound imaging

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>A widespread and fundamental assumption in the health sciences is that muscle functions are related to a wide variety of conditions, for example pain, ischemic and neurological disorder, exercise and injury. It is therefore highly desirable to study musculoskeletal contributions in clinical applications such as the treatment of muscle injuries, post-surgery evaluations, monitoring of progressive degeneration in neuromuscular disorders, and so on.</p> <p>The spatial image resolution in ultrasound systems has improved tremendously in the last few years and nowadays provides detailed information about tissue characteristics. It is now possible to study skeletal muscles in real-time during activity.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The ultrasound images are transformed to be congruent and are effectively compressed and stacked in order to be analysed with multivariate techniques. The method is applied to a relevant clinical orthopaedic research field, namely to describe the dynamics in the Achilles tendon and the calf during real-time movements.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>This study introduces a novel method to medical applications that can be used to examine ultrasound image sequences and to detect, visualise and quantify skeletal muscle dynamics and functions.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This new objective method is a powerful tool to use when visualising tissue activity and dynamics of musculoskeletal ultrasound registrations.</p

Model validation for a noninvasive arterial stenosis detection problem

Copyright @ 2013 American Institute of Mathematical SciencesA current thrust in medical research is the development of a non-invasive method for detection, localization, and characterization of an arterial stenosis (a blockage or partial blockage in an artery). A method has been proposed to detect shear waves in the chest cavity which have been generated by disturbances in the blood flow resulting from a stenosis. In order to develop this methodology further, we use both one-dimensional pressure and shear wave experimental data from novel acoustic phantoms to validate corresponding viscoelastic mathematical models, which were developed in a concept paper [8] and refined herein. We estimate model parameters which give a good fit (in a sense to be precisely defined) to the experimental data, and use asymptotic error theory to provide confidence intervals for parameter estimates. Finally, since a robust error model is necessary for accurate parameter estimates and confidence analysis, we include a comparison of absolute and relative models for measurement error.The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, the Deopartment of Education and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)

Noninvasive, Transient and Selective Blood-Brain Barrier Opening in Non-Human Primates In Vivo

The blood-brain barrier (BBB) is a specialized vascular system that impedes entry of all large and the vast majority of small molecules including the most potent central nervous system (CNS) disease therapeutic agents from entering from the lumen into the brain parenchyma. Microbubble-enhanced, focused ultrasound (ME-FUS) has been previously shown to disrupt noninvasively, selectively, and transiently the BBB in small animals in vivo. For the first time, the feasibility of transcranial ME-FUS BBB opening in non-human primates is demonstrated with subsequent BBB recovery. Sonications were combined with two different types of microbubbles (customized 4–5 µm and Definity®). 3T MRI was used to confirm the BBB disruption and to assess brain damage

The MiniArc sling for female stress urinary incontinence: clinical results after 1-year follow-up

Development and application of statistical models for medical scientific researc

Castalagin: Some aspects of the mode of Anti-Herpes Virus Activity

Castalagin, a nonahydroxytriphenoyl-bearing C-glucosidic ellagitannin, manifested a marked virucidal effect on HSV-1. This effect was markedly temperature and time dependent, being clearly higher at 37 °C than at room temperature: Δlog of 3.13 with 10 μM concentration of castalagin (MNC). Castalagin also suppressed HSV-1 particle attachment to MDBK cells. A significant effect (Δlog = 1.7) was found after 30 min of substance exposure and was increased at 60 min (Δlog = 3.2). Castalagin effect on the production of virions during the HSV-1 replication cycle was studied using a time-of-addition experimental scheme at the one-step viral replication cycle design. The highest sensitivity to castalagin was recorded 0–3 h post virus inoculation. A substantially weaker effect was found at the 6–12 h time intervals. At 18–24 h, HSV-1 replication was unsusceptible to castalagin. Evidently, castalagin target is located in the earlier stages of the HSV-1 replication cycle.</p

Synthesis of biologically active catecholic compounds via ortho-selective oxygenation of phenolic compounds using hypervalent iodine(V) reagents

A review. Catecholic motifs are present in numerous natural products and synthetic compds. used in various sectors of the chem. industries such as food, cosmetic, pharmaceutical and polymer industries. The antioxidant activity usually conferred to compds. bearing catecholic motifs is the property on which their application is often based. Although several (bio) chem. methods are available to chemists to produce catechols, the oxygenation of phenols constitutes one of the most practical approaches as long as the o-​selectivity of the process can be controlled. In this context, oxygenating hypervalent iodine(V) reagents offer a convenient metal-​free soln. Among these reagents, 2-​iodoxybenzoic acid (IBX) or its stabilized (non explosive) SIBX and polymer-​supported versions have found the most useful and successful applications in the conversion of phenols into o-​quinones, followed by redn. into catechols. Examples of oxygenative demethylation of 2-​methoxyphenols and o-​hydroxylation of phenolic compds. for the synthesis of biol. and industrially-​relevant catechols are highlighted in this review article, together with some mechanistic discussions on these transformations