The role of the angle of the fibularis longus tendon in foot arch support.

INTRODUCTION: Understanding the contribution of the fibularis longus tendon to the support of the midfoot arches has potential therapeutic applications. This cadaveric study sought to quantify this support across both the transverse arch and medial longitudinal arch and to establish whether a correlation exists between this support and the angle at which the tendon enters the sole. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Markers placed in 11 dissected cadaveric foot specimens defined the arch boundaries. Incremental weights up to 150 N were applied to the fibularis longus tendon to simulate progressive muscle contraction, and associated changes in the transverse and medial longitudinal arch boundaries were recorded. RESULTS: A force of 150 N reduced the transverse arch distance by 4.6 (1.7) mm (mean [SD]) and medial longitudinal arch distance by 6.8 (1.4) mm. The angle of the fibularis longus tendon on the sole correlated well with changes in the transverse arch distance (slope ± s.e. = 0.56 ± 0.13 mm/degree, Pearson r = .83, p = .002) but only weakly with the medial longitudinal arch (0.18 ± 0.18 mm/degree, r = .32, p = .33). CONCLUSIONS: The results of this preliminary study raise the possibility that physical therapies targeting the fibularis longus tendon may be valuable in the management of midfoot arch collapse. The correlation observed with the transverse arch suggests the possibility that surgical modification of the angle of the fibularis longus tendon on the sole may benefit patients with transverse arch collapse

Advanced rehabilitation technology in orthopaedics—a narrative review

Funder: University of CambridgeAbstract: Introduction: As the demand for rehabilitation in orthopaedics increases, so too has the development in advanced rehabilitation technology. However, to date, there are no review papers outlining the broad scope of advanced rehabilitation technology used within the orthopaedic population. The aim of this study is to identify, describe and summarise the evidence for efficacy for all advanced rehabilitation technologies applicable to orthopaedic practice. Methods: The relevant literature describing the use of advanced rehabilitation technology in orthopaedics was identified from appropriate electronic databases (PubMed and EMBASE) and a narrative review undertaken. Results: Advanced rehabilitation technologies were classified into two groups: hospital-based and home-based rehabilitation. In the hospital-based technology group, we describe the use of continuous passive motion and robotic devices (after spinal cord injury) and their effect on improving clinical outcomes. We also report on the use of electromagnetic sensor technology for measuring kinematics of upper and lower limbs during rehabilitation. In the home-based technology group, we describe the use of inertial sensors, smartphones, software applications and commercial game hardware that are relatively inexpensive, user-friendly and widely available. We outline the evidence for videoconferencing for promoting knowledge and motivation for rehabilitation as well as the emerging role of virtual reality. Conclusions: The use of advanced rehabilitation technology in orthopaedics is promising and evidence for its efficacy is generally supportive

Stem cell-derived models to improve mechanistic understanding and prediction of human drug induced liver injury

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/135984/1/hep28886.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/135984/2/hep28886_am.pd

Hardness-tensile property relationships for HAZ in 6061-T651 aluminum

High-strength aluminum is used extensively in industry, with welding being a widely used fabrication method. This work focuses on welding of 6061-T651 aluminum and establishment of the hardness-tensile properties relationship in the heat-affected zone (HAZ) of a gas metal arc weld using 4043 filler material. Test welds were prepared from 12.7-mm-thick plate with a single-V weld preparation. Base plate temperatures were measured with an array of eight embedded thermocouples during welding, relating temperature to properties at intervals from the weld. Through-thickness slices 1.7 mm thick were removed, by electric discharge machining, from the plate parallel to the weld at 2-mm intervals and extending from the weld center-line to 40 mm into the HAZ and base plate. Tensile samples were prepared from these slices, and tensile properties and hardness values measured to establish a relationship between these two parameters. Both EQUOTIP (portable hardness tester) and Vickers microhardness measurements were conducted and related to tensile properties. Although a significant body of work exists relating tensile properties to hardness, no previous study was found that used this approach. Most work appeared to use cross-weld tensile tests, which only give the point of lowest strength. Sections of base plate material having a different thickness (31.75 mm) from that of the welded samples, and from a different source, were thermally aged to four hardness values and the hardness-tensile relationship was also established for this material. These results were compared with those of the HAZ samples; the results were found to fall within the scatter band of HAZ results

Two doses of the SARS-CoV-2 BNT162b2 vaccine enhance antibody responses to variants in individuals with prior SARS-CoV-2 infection

Understanding the impact of prior infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) on the response to vaccination is a priority for responding to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. In particular, it is necessary to understand how prior infection plus vaccination can modulate immune responses against variants of concern. To address this, we sampled 20 individuals with and 25 individuals without confirmed previous SARS-CoV-2 infection from a large cohort of health care workers followed serologically since April 2020. All 45 individuals had received two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech BNT162b2 vaccine with a delayed booster at 10 weeks. Absolute and neutralizing antibody titers against wild-type SARS-CoV-2 and variants were measured using enzyme immunoassays and pseudotype neutralization assays. We observed antibody reactivity against lineage A, B.1.351, and P.1 variants with increasing antigenic exposure, through either vaccination or natural infection. This improvement was further confirmed in neutralization assays using fixed dilutions of serum samples. The impact of antigenic exposure was more evident in enzyme immunoassays measuring SARS-CoV-2 spike protein–specific IgG antibody concentrations. Our data show that multiple exposures to SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in the context of a delayed booster expand the neutralizing breadth of the antibody response to neutralization-resistant SARS-CoV-2 variants. This suggests that additional vaccine boosts may be beneficial in improving immune responses against future SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern

Intakes of meat, fish, poultry, and eggs and risk of prostate cancer progression1234

Background: Processed meat and fish have been shown to be associated with the risk of advanced prostate cancer, but few studies have examined diet after prostate cancer diagnosis and risk of its progression