Characterization and Degradation Behavior of Agar–Carbomer Based Hydrogels for Drug Delivery Applications: Solute Effect

In this study hydrogels synthesized from agarose and carbomer 974P macromers were selected for their potential application in spinal cord injury (SCI) repair strategies following their ability to carry cells and drugs. Indeed, in drug delivery applications, one of the most important issues to be addressed concerns hydrogel ability to provide a finely controlled delivery of loaded drugs, together with a coherent degradation kinetic. Nevertheless, solute effects on drug delivery system are often neglected in the large body of literature, focusing only on the characterization of unloaded matrices. For this reason, in this work, hydrogels were loaded with a chromophoric salt able to mimic, in terms of steric hindrance, many steroids commonly used in SCI repair, and its effects were investigated both from a structural and a rheological point of view, considering the pH-sensitivity of the material. Additionally, degradation chemistry was assessed by means of infrared bond response (FT-IR) and mass loss

Propuesta de un programa de actividades físico deportivas para la formación de la corporeidad en estudiantes de educación de la Universidad Nacional de San MartínTarapoto, 2019

La investigación se realizó con el objetivo de elaborar una propuesta de actividades físico deportivas para la formación de la corporeidad en estudiantes de educación de la Universidad Nacional de San Martín-Tarapoto, 2019, el estudio se basa en el enfoque sistémico de Castañer, M. y Camerino, O. (2012) para estudiar la motricidad actual que analiza la formación de corporeidad. En el método se utilizó el diseño descriptivo propositivo porque se elaboró una propuesta de un programa de actividades físico deportivas, el tipo de investigación fue no experimental, la población estuvo constituida por 388 estudiantes de la Facultad de Educación y Humanidades Rioja y la muestra, por 193 estudiantes de la Facultad de Educación y Humanidades Rioja, la técnica utilizada fue la encuesta y el instrumento fue el cuestionario denominado: cuestionario sobre las actividades físicas deportiva conformado por 24 ítems y el desarrollo de la corporeidad por 20 ítems. Las conclusiones del estudio fueron que la formación de la corporeidad en los estudiantes de educación en un 65.28% se encontraron en un nivel bajo y el 34.72% en un nivel medio; el programa de actividades físico deportivas está caracterizado por la expresión corporal con un 80.83% en el nivel medio; el 15.54% en bajo y 3.63% en alto; vida saludable con el 61.14% en el nivel medio; el 24.35% en alto y el 14.51 en bajo; y el deporte formativo con un 74.61% en el nivel medio; el 24.35% en bajo y el 1.04% en alto; la validación de la propuesta del programa de actividades físico deportivas obtuvo un puntaje de 79.00 que representa el 97.5% de concordancia entre jueces expertos. Por lo que, la propuesta de un programa de actividades físico deportivas mejorará la formación de la corporeidad en estudiantes de educación

Composite xenohybrid bovine bone-derived scaffold as bone substitute for the treatment of tibial plateau fractures

Introduction: Tibial plateau fractures represent a common challenge for orthopaedic surgeons, sometimes representing complex cases to manage, where augmentation using bone grafts is required for stabilisation. Autologous iliac bone graft (AIBG) is the current gold standard for bone grafting. In order to overcome limitations related to the procedure, alternative strategies, like allogenic and xenogeneic bone substitutes have been investigated. Here, within the framework of an observational clinical study, we report clinical and radiological outcomes of patients treated for tibial plateau fractures with a composite xenohybrid bone graft, aiming at assessing clinical and radiological outcomes. Materials and Methods: We performed a cohort retrospective study of patients treated for tibial plateau fractures from May 2017 to January 2018. Thirty-four patients, i.e. 100% of those having received the bone graft under investigation for tibial plateaux fracture treatment, met the inclusion criteria and were enrolled in the study. Patients were assessed at 2 weeks, and then at a 1-, 3-, and 6-months, and 1-year follow-up. At each evaluation patients filled a visual analogue scale (VAS) for the level of pain during the day life activities and underwent physical exam and anteroposterior and lateral projection radiographs of the knee. At 1 year the Tegner Lysholm Scoring Scale, International Knee Document Committee 2000 (IKDC 2000), and Short Form (36) Health Survey (SF-36) were administered. Results: At 1-year, mean VAS decreased from 6.33 \ub1 1.40 to 1 \ub1 0.79 (P < 0.0001); Tegner Lysholm Scoring Scale was 89 \ub1 4.10 and mean IKDC 2000 was 78.67 \ub1 3.31. No infections, neurovascular complications or adverse effects related to implants werereported during the clinical exams at follow-up. Mean ROM was 124 \ub1 6\ub0. Radiographs did not show defects of consolidation or progressive post-surgical subsidence and demonstrated a good grade of integration of the implant. Conclusions: Clinical and radiological outcomes, and scores of questionnaires, were good. The xenograft has demonstrated to be a safe biomaterial, with satisfactory mechanical and biological performances in the mid-term period. It also showed a high grade of osteointegration and remodelling

Simulated performance of a xenohybrid bone graft (Smartbone®) in the treatment of acetabular prosthetic reconstruction

open6Total hip arthroplasty (THA) is a surgical procedure for the replacement of hip joints with artificial prostheses. Several approaches are currently employed in the treatment of this kind of defect. Overall, the most common method involves using a quite invasive metallic support (a Burch–Schneider ring). Moreover, valid alternatives and less invasive techniques still need to be supported by novel material development. In this work, we evaluated the performance of SmartBone®, a xenohybrid bone graft composed of a bovine bone matrix reinforced with biodegradable polymers and collagen, as an effective support in acetabular prosthesis reconstruction. Specifically, the material’s mechanical properties were experimentally determined (E = ~1.25 GPa, Ef = ~0.34 GPa, and Et = ~0.49 GPa) and used for simulation of the hip joint system with a SmartBone® insert. Moreover, a comparison with a similar case treated with a Burch–Schneider ring was also conducted. It was found that it is possible to perform THA revision surgeries without the insertion of an invasive metal support and it can be nicely combined with SmartBone®’s osteointegration characteristics. The material can withstand the loads independently (σmax = ~12 MPa) or be supported by a thinner titanium plate in contact with the bone in the worst cases. This way, improved bone regeneration can be achieved.openGrottoli C.F.; Cingolani A.; Zambon F.; Ferracini R.; Villa T.; Perale G.Grottoli, C. F.; Cingolani, A.; Zambon, F.; Ferracini, R.; Villa, T.; Perale, G