A comprehensive evaluation of cervical spine surgery outcomes

Aim: study of diagnostic value of different assessment scales to evaluate outcomes of surgeries in degenerative and post-injury deformities of cervical spine. Material and Methods. Between January and December 2015, 110 consecutive patients with degenerative and traumatic lesions of cervical spine were selected for surgery and results of treatment were followed. Preoperatively and 12 months postoperatively the patients filled in a questionnaire that included a VAS, Odom's scale, NDI, modified JOAand the Zung Depression Scale. To assess the results of the intervention, the concept of "effect size" was used. Distribution of different scores classified according to Odom's criteria as excellent/good and fair/poor. Results. All scores improved in all group of patients. For VAS, NDI and modified JOA scores the effect size was largest. NDI, JOAand ZDS seemed to correlate well with the classification of outcome by Odom. Conclusion. It is suggested many scales to assess the outcomes of the cervical spine surgery based on different criteria; nevertheless, there are no generally accepted and validated methods that can be used to analysis the outcome of cervical spine surgery. We conclude that investigated</p

Hybrid PCL/CaCO3 scaffolds with capabilities of carrying biologically active molecules : synthesis, loading and in vivo applications

Designing advanced biomaterials for tissue regeneration with drug delivery and release functionalities remains a challenge in regenerative medicine. In this research, we have developed novel composite scaffolds based on polymeric polycaprolactone fibers coated with porous calcium carbonate structures (PCL/CaCO3) for tissue engineering and have shown their drug delivery and release in rats. In vivo biocompatibility tests of PCL/CaCO3 scaffolds were complemented with in vivo drug release study, where tannic acid (TA) was used as a model drug. Release of TA from the scaffolds was realized by recrystallization of the porous vaterite phase of calcium carbonate into the crystalline calcite. Cell colonization and tissue vascularization as well as transplantability of developed PCL/CaCO3 + TA scaffolds were observed. Detailed study of scaffold transformations during 21-day implantation period was followed by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction studies before and after in vivo implantation. The presented results demonstrate that PCL/CaCO3 scaffolds are attractive candidates for implants in bone regeneration and tissue engineering with a possibility of loading biologically active molecules and controlled release