Principles of cartilage tissue engineering in TMJ reconstruction

Diseases and defects of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ), compromising the cartilaginous layer of the condyle, impose a significant treatment challenge. Different regeneration approaches, especially surgical interventions at the TMJ's cartilage surface, are established treatment methods in maxillofacial surgery but fail to induce a regeneration ad integrum. Cartilage tissue engineering, in contrast, is a newly introduced treatment option in cartilage reconstruction strategies aimed to heal cartilaginous defects. Because cartilage has a limited capacity for intrinsic repair, and even minor lesions or injuries may lead to progressive damage, biological oriented approaches have gained special interest in cartilage therapy. Cell based cartilage regeneration is suggested to improve cartilage repair or reconstruction therapies. Autologous cell implantation, for example, is the first step as a clinically used cell based regeneration option. More advanced or complex therapeutical options (extracorporeal cartilage engineering, genetic engineering, both under evaluation in pre-clinical investigations) have not reached the level of clinical trials but may be approached in the near future. In order to understand cartilage tissue engineering as a new treatment option, an overview of the biological, engineering, and clinical challenges as well as the inherent constraints of the different treatment modalities are given in this paper

Information Management Infrastructure for Telemonitoring

Chronic ailments such as cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, and diabetes affect a significant number of the western population [1]. Telemonitoring (TM) allows healthcare institutions to take care of their patients while they are out of hospital, which is especially useful for managing various chronic diseases. A prognosis fo

Thrust membrane analysis of the domes of the baia thermal baths

Starting from the recent reformulation of the Thrust Network Analysis (TNA) developed by the authors, we further generalize the method in order to include triangular stress elements, used to model membrane thrusts within the analysis process. These elements substitute the classical network branches so that the correspondence between thrust stresses and the equilibrium condition of the membrane nodes is straightforward. The method is applied to the analysis of the dome of Mercury, the earliest preserved concrete Roman dome, still standing inside the archaeological complex of Baia (Naples)