Anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with suture tape augmentation

The advent of suture tape augmentation has led to increased use in knee, elbow, and ankle ligament repairs and reconstructions. Recent biomechanical analysis of the use of suture tape augmentation have shown superior strength characteristics compared with repair or reconstruction alone. Despite its increased use in extra-articular ligament procedures, its use as an augment to anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction has not been widely described. This article details a simple technique to incorporate the use of suture tape augmentation during concurrent anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction using hamstring autograft

Eigenarbeits- und Reparaturzentren: Ökologische Qualität der Eigenarbeit

Eigenarbei t in öffentlichen Zentren ist ein innovatives Angebot, eine Einladung zum Tätigwerden für den eigenen Bedarf. Eigenarbeit schafft Erlebnisse, Kompetenzen und Produkte. Sie ist ein Stück Lebensqualität, für die Menschen bereit sind, Zeit, Geld und Anstrengung aufzuwenden. Angebote und die Nutzungsstruktur des 1987 in München gegründeten Hauses der Eigenarbeit, an dem sich Projekte und Initiativen in anderen Städten orientieren, zeigen, daß hier die Förderung nachhaltiger Lebensstile tägliche Praxis ist. Die NutzerInnen begegnen den ökologischen Aspekten der Eigenarbeit bei der Auseinandersetzung mit Werkstoffen und Verarbeitungsverfahren, bei der Nutzung von Reparaturangeboten und indem sie, statt schnell zu kaufen, langsam produzieren und dabei eine Beziehung zu den Gütern entwickeln, die die Langlebigkeit fördert. Die Ökobilanz öffentlicher Eigenarbeit ist günstiger als privates Heimwerken, da Ressourcen geschont werden durch die gemeinsame Nutzung von Räumen, Maschinen und Werkstoffen und durch die von Fachberatern gesicherte Qualität der Produkte. Soll Ernst gemacht werden mit der langfristigen Aufwertung informeller Arbeit in innovativen Arbeitsverteilungsmodellen, so bedarf es entsprechender Bildungs-, Motivations- und Praxisorte. Eigenarbeitszentren sind Verbindungsorte zwischen formellem und informellem Arbeitssektor, kein Ghetto der Erwerbslosen. -- Giving the opportunity to work in a self-determined way (Eigenarbeit) in neighbourhood centres, is an innovative program. Eigenarbeit gives people excitement, competence and useful products. Thus Eigenarbeit is a piece of quality-of-life, in which peopIe are willing to invest time, money, and effort. The first Cent re of Eigenarbeit, founded in Munich in 1987, has become a model for several projects in other cities. In its every-day practice it is a place to make sustainable lifestyle attractive. Users get implicitly in touch with ecological aspects of Eigenarbeit, learning about materials and methods of finishing and repairing, and last but not least because they prefer their own slow production to quick shopping. A deep emotional relation to the products guarantees their longevity as well as a high quality, which results from professional assistance to lays in the workshops. Compared to private do-it-yourself, public Eigenarbeit is more compatible to ecological norms because of an economical use of natural resources, resul ting from the common use of rooms, technical equipment and material. A new model of work, based on a revaluation of informal work, needs attractive pIaces of motivation, learning and practice. Cent res of Eigenarbeit are meeting points of working and jobless people. They are not a social ghetto, but connect the formal and informal sectors of work and economy.

Evaluation of the accuracy of a patient-specific instrumentation

Patient-specific instruments (PSI) has been introduced with the aim to reduce the overall costs of the implants, minimizing the size and number of instruments required, and also reducing surgery time. The aim of this study was to perform a review of the current literature, as well as to report about our personal experience, to assess reliability and accuracy of patient specific instrument system in total knee arthroplasty (TKA). A literature review was conducted of PSI system reviewing articles related to coronal alignment, clinical knee and function scores, cost, patient satisfaction and complications. Studies have reported incidences of coronal alignment ≥3° from neutral in TKAs performed with patient-specific cutting guides ranging from 6% to 31%. PSI seem not to be able to result in the same degree of accuracy as for the CAS system, while comparing well with standard manual technique with respect to component positioning and overall lower axis, in particular in the sagittal plane. In cases in which custom-made cutting jigs were used, we recommend performing an accurate control of the alignment before and after any cuts and in any further step of the procedure, in order to avoid possible outliers

In-out versus out-in technique for ACL reconstruction. a prospective clinical and radiological comparison

Background: Several studies have recently shown better restoration of normal knee kinematics and improvement of rotator knee stability after reconstruction with higher femoral tunnel obliquity. The aim of this study is to evaluate tunnel obliquity, length, and posterior wall blowout in single-bundle anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction, comparing the transtibial (TT) technique and the out–in (OI) technique. Materials and methods: Forty consecutive patients operated on for ACL reconstruction with hamstrings were randomly divided into two groups: group A underwent a TT technique, while group B underwent an OI technique. At mean follow-up of 10 months, clinical results and obliquity, length, and posterior wall blowout of femoral tunnels in sagittal and coronal planes using computed tomography (CT) scan were assessed. Results: In sagittal plane, femoral tunnel obliquity was 38.6 ± 10.2° in group A and 36.6 ± 11.8° in group B (p = 0.63). In coronal plane, femoral tunnel obliquity was 57.8 ± 5.8° in group A and 35.8 ± 8.2° in group B (p = 0.009). Mean tunnel length was 40.3 ± 1.2 mm in group A and 32.9 ± 2.3 mm in group B (p = 0.01). No cases of posterior wall compromise were observed in any patient of either group. Clinical results were not significantly different between the two groups. Conclusions: The OI technique provides greater obliquity of the femoral tunnel in coronal plane, along with satisfactory length of the tunnel and lack of posterior wall compromise. Level of evidence: II, prospective study

OASIS: a coupling software for next generation earth system modelling

In this article we present a new version of the Ocean Atmosphere Sea Ice Soil coupling software (OASIS4). With this new fully parallel OASIS4 coupler we target the needs of Earth system modelling in its full complexity. The primary focus of this article is to describe the design of the OASIS4 software and how the coupling software drives the whole coupled model system ensuring the synchronization of the different component models. The application programmer interface (API) manages the coupling exchanges between arbitrary climate component models, as well as the input and output from and to files of each individual component. The OASIS4 Transformer instance performs the parallel interpolation and transfer of the coupling data between source and target model components. As a new core technology for the software, the fully parallel search algorithm of OASIS4 is described in detail. First benchmark results are discussed with simple test configurations to demonstrate the efficiency and scalability of the software when applied to Earth system model components. Typically the compute time needed to perform the search is in the order of a few seconds and is only weakly dependant on the grid size

Extra-articular tenodesis combined with an anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction in acute anterior cruciate ligament tear in elite female football players

PURPOSE: The growing popularity of elite soccer among female participants has led to increased incidents of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) ruptures. Many authors underline a positive glide after ACL reconstruction (ACLR), especially in women. In fact, an isolated intra-articular ACLR may be inadequate to control rotational instability after a combined injury of the ACL and the peripheral structures of the knee. Extra-articular procedures are sometimes used in primary cases displaying excessive antero-lateral rotatory instability. The purpose of this case series was to report subjective and objective outcomes after combined ACL and lateral extra-articular tenodesis (LET) with a minimum 4-year follow-up in a selected high-risk population of elite female football players. METHODS: Between January 2007 and December 2010, 16 elite Italian female football players were included in the study. All patients underwent the same surgical technique: anatomical ACLR with autogenous semitendinosus and gracilis tendons. After the intra-articular reconstruction was performed, an additional extra-articular MacIntosh modified Coker-Arnold procedure was carried out. Patients were assessed pre- and post-operatively with the subjective and objective International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) evaluation form, Tegner activity scale (TAS) and Lysholm score. Joint laxity was assessed with KT-1000 by measuring the side-to-side (S/S) differences in displacement at manual maximum (mm) testing. RESULTS: At a mean follow-up of 72.6 ± 8.1 months, two independent examiners reviewed all players. All of the patients had a fully recovered range of motion. Lachman test was negative in all patients (100 %). The evaluation of joint laxity and clinical evaluation showed a statistically significant improvement. No patients experienced complication or a re-rupture. DISCUSSION: The rationale of combining extra-articular procedures with ACLR is to restrict the internal rotation of the reconstructed knee, taking advantage of its long lever arm and thus providing more stability in the rotational axis and preventing the ACL graft from undergoing further excessive strain. CONCLUSIONS: The combination of an LET with ACLR in elite female football players demonstrated excellent results in terms of subjective scales, post-operative residual laxity and re-rupture rate with no complication, and a complete return to sport activity

Compulsory Fun: Creating Legitimacy through Anniversary Commemorations in the GDR

From the state’s founding in 1949, East Germany’s ruling SED engaged in an exhaustive campaign to remove doubts about the country’s legitimacy as an independent state, doubts that not only existed abroad, but also at home amongst its own people. Although the Basic Treaty between East and West Germany in 1972 officially established diplomatic relations between the two countries in 1972, and did much to signal to the world the permanency of the state, the fact that the country abruptly dissolved 17 years later tells us much about the precariousness with which the GDR (German Democratic Republic) had existed. At no time was the GDR’s existence certain, a fact which resulted in persistent efforts by the SED to encourage participation in anniversary commemorations in a desperate attempt to create legitimacy. Using previously untouched archival documents, this dissertation explores three main facets of GDR anniversary commemorations that showcase the ways in which the SED attempted to convince the populace of their vision of a distinct GDR identity. The first and most important facet was the ideological theses the SED issued in honour of a particular anniversary, which not only guided the planning of all celebratory measures, but were also integrated into all cultural events, exhibits, group activities, and festivities themselves. The second facet sheds light on the ways in which national, regional, and local National Front organizations sought to educate the populace on these central anniversary theses by carrying out wide-ranging events, most of which were pedagogical in nature, including lectures, forums, publications, exhibitions, and festivals. The third facet involves the ways in which National Front organizations carried out “socialist competitions” at the national, regional, and local levels during the weeks and months leading up to the anniversary itself. Also vital to understanding these anniversary commemorations are the tensions between centre and periphery, especially the ways in which national and regional National Front committees attempted to work with one another, despite often vast differences in opinion, understanding, and available resources. Ultimately, this dissertation seeks to show that even though the National Front designed the anniversary commemorations to be enjoyable for East Germans, the state nevertheless went to great lengths to promote its monopolistic vision of East Germany. The SED sought to strictly control their message down to the individual East German: once the SED Politburo’s propaganda wing had designed the theses, there was no room for an alternative narrative. While less-than positive opinions often came up in theses discussion forums, local National Front committees sought to counteract them as part of their efforts to convince East Germans of the state’s point of view. In fact, the anniversary commemorations were so ubiquitous that there were virtually endless opportunities for the public to hear this point of view, as each GDR citizen could be simultaneously involved in local, regional, or national events, ranging from sporting events, to workplace competitions, to even neighbourhood and apartment-level street festivals

A Perfect Couple

Henseler, J., Schmidt, H. J., & Redler, J. J. (2023). Design Science and Marketing: A Perfect Couple. Journal of Creating Value. https://doi.org/10.1177/23949643231200703This special issue of the Journal on Creating Value about ‘Creating Value through Design Science’ and the articles therein aim at showcasing how design science research in the field of creating value can look like.publishersversionepub_ahead_of_prin