Combined effects of long-term sitting and whole-body vibration on discomfort onset for vehicle occupants

Occupants of automobiles experience discomfort after long drives, irrespective of how well designed a seat might be. Previous studies of discomfort during driving have focused either on the seat shape and materials (“static” properties), long-term discomfort (“fatigue” properties), or dynamics (“vibration” properties). These factors have previously not been considered together. This paper reports three studies with objectives to define and test a model for describing long-term discomfort from vibration. Study 1 was an independent measures laboratory trial using an automobile seat, which lasted 80 minutes; Study 2 was a repeated measures laboratory trial using a rail passenger seat, which lasted 60 minutes; Study 3 was a repeated measures field trial in a people carrier automobile, which involved 70 minutes of travelling. The findings showed that discomfort accrues with time but that more discomfort is experienced when subjects are also exposed to whole-body vibration. Exposure to whole-body vibration accelerates development of discomfort. The relationship between the reported discomfort, the vibration magnitude, and the exposure time can be described using a multifactorial linear model. It is concluded that ignoring parts of the multi-factorial model (i.e., static, dynamic, or temporal factors) will compromise understanding of discomfort in context

Use of endoprosthetic diaphyseal replacement:a novel approach to management of extensive metastatic tumor of the midshaft radius

We report the first use of an endoprosthetic diaphyseal replacement after the excision of a midshaft radial tumor. We present a rare case of a solitary midshaft radial metastasis in a 72-year-old gentleman who was treated 8 years earlier for primary renal cell carcinoma by radical nephrectomy. Follow-up for this patient was 25 months after implant insertion and at the latest review was pain-free. Functional scores for the elbow (using the Mayo Elbow Performance Score) and the wrist (using the Mayo Wrist Score) were 80 and 60, respectively, both out of 100. Use of a midshaft radial endoprosthesis provides a good functional outcome and symptom relief after extensive tumor resection, with regard to functional outcome and symptom relief