Simple facet joint repair with dynamic pedicular system: Technical note and case series

Purpose: Facet joints are important anatomical structures for the stability of spine. Surgical or degenerative damage to a facet joint may lead to spinal instability and causes clinical problems. This article explains the importance of facet joints, reviews facet replacement systems, and describes a simple and effective method for facet replacement after surgical removal of facet joints. Materials and Methods: Ten patients were operated with the diagnosis of unilateral nerve root compression secondary to facet degeneration. The hypertrophic facet joints were removed with microsurgical techniques and the roots were decompressed. Then, a unilateral artificial facet joint was created using two hinged screws and a dynamic rod. Results: The clinical outcome of all the patients was determined good or excellent at second and last follow-up (mean 13.3 months) controls using visual analog scale (VAS) and Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) scores. Radiological evaluations also demonstrated no implant-related complications. Conclusions: The authors suggest that, if removal of a facet joint is necessary to decompress the nerve roots, the joint can be replaced by a construct composed of two hinged screws connected by a dynamic rod. This simple system mimics the function of a normal facet joint and is an effective technique for unilateral facet joint replacement

Construction and Performance Monitoring of Various Asphalt Mixes in Illinois: 2016 Interim Report

series of five experimental projects were constructed to better determine the life-cycle cost and performance of pavement overlays using various levels of asphalt binder replacement (ABR) from use of reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP), recycled asphalt shingles (RAS) and crushed concrete. The ABR varies from 15% to 48% in the experimental sections. The study of these projects prior to construction, during construction, and for a short monitoring period after construction is intended to determine the impact of various pavement conditions, pavement cross-section, mix design, and material properties on the ultimate performance of the hot-mix asphalt (HMA) overlay. This second interim report documents the construction and initial testing of three of the five projects in the study—namely, Washington Street, US 52 (Laraway Road to Gougar Road) and US 52 (Gougar Road to Second Street)—which were constructed in 2015. Distress and profile surveys were conducted before and after construction. Samples were obtained of the HMA surface and binder courses and were tested for basic properties, plus Cantabro, stability/flow, Texas overlay cracking potential, fracture energy, Flexibility Index, fatigue, modulus, creep, and Hamburg rutting. Presented are early performance trends and baseline conditions that future performance can be compared with. Also included in this report is an update of performance on the sections constructed in 2014 and the total recycle asphalt (TRA) sections constructed in 2013.Illinois Department of Transportation, R27-161Ope

Antral hyperplastic polyp: A rare cause of gastric outlet obstruction

INTRODUCTION Gastric polyps are usually found incidentally during upper gastrointestinal endoscopic examinations. These polyps are generally benign, with hyperplasia being the most common. While gastric polyps are often asymptomatic, they can cause gastric outlet obstruction. PRESENTATION OF CASE A 64 years-old female patient presented to our polyclinic with a history of approximately 2 months of weakness, occasional early nausea, vomiting after meals and epigastric pain. A polypoid lesion of approximately 25 mm in diameter was detected in the antral area of the stomach, which prolapsed through the pylorus into the duodenal bulbus, and subsequently caused gastric outlet obstruction, as revealed by upper gastrointestinal endoscopy of the patient. The polyp was retrieved from the pyloric canal into the stomach with the aid of a tripod, and snare polypectomy was performed. DISCUSSION Currently, widespread use of endoscopy has led to an increase in the frequency of detecting hyperplastic polyps. While most gastric polyps are asymptomatic, they can cause iron deficiency anemia, acute pancreatitis and more commonly, gastric outlet obstruction because of their antral location. Although there are no precise principles in the treatment of asymptomatic polyps, polyps >5 mm should be removed due to the possibility of malignant transformation. CONCLUSION According to the medical evidence, polypectomy is required for gastric hyperplastic polyps because of the risks of complication and malignancy. These cases can be successfully treated endoscopically. © 2014 The Authors

Modeling the Capillary Pressure for the Migration of the Liquid Phase in Granular Solid-Liquid-Vapor Systems: Application to the Control of the Composition Profile in W-Cu FGM Materials

International audienceA model is developed to compute the capillary pressure for the migration of the liquid phase out or into a uniform solid-liquid-vapor system. The capillary pressure is defined as the reduction of the overall interface energy per volume increment of the transferred fluid phase. The model takes into account the particle size of the solid particle aggregate, the packing configuration (coordination number, porosity), the volume fractions of the different phases, and the values of the interface energies in the system. The model is used for analyzing the stability of the composition profile during processing of W-Cu functionally graded materials combining a composition gradient with a particle size gradient. The migration pressure is computed with the model in two stages: (1) just after the melting of copper, i.e., when sintering and shape accommodation of the W particle aggregate can still be neglected and (2) at high temperature, when the system is close to full density with equilibrium particle shape. The model predicts well the different stages of liquid-phase migration observed experimentally