Medial-lateral loading and wear in TKA

Pre-clinical wear testing of Total Knee Arthroplasty has traditionally been carried out in a physical experiment [Fisher, 2002]. Recent computational models have been shown to have sufficient accuracy to be considered alongside these experiments [Knight, 2007]. These computational models use a relationship of wear volume proportional to the product of contact pressure, sliding distance and cross shear [Maxian, 1996]. Instrumented knees have recently shown that medial-lateral (ML) loads may be of similar magnitudes to that of the anterior-posterior (AP) load. The AP load is known to have a significant effect on the kinematics of the total knee replacement and so it is reasonable to assume that application of an ML load may have a similar degree of influence on kinematics. The effect of the ML load is hypothesised to increase the cross shear and hence the wear rate. At present, the ISO standard for testing TKA contains no provision for a ML load

Tyrosinase, could it be a missing link in ochronosis in alkaptonuria?

The hypothesis that is proposed is that tyrosinase, an enzyme widely found within the human body is implicated in the ochronosis that occurs in alkaptonuria; an autosomal recessive condition first used by Archibald Garrod to describe the theory of “Inborn Errors of Metabolism.” The disease results from the absence of a single enzyme in the liver that breaks down homogentisic acid; this molecule becomes systemically elevated in sufferers. The condition is characterised by a clinical triad of symptoms; homogentisic aciduria from birth, ochronosis (darkening) of collagenous tissues (from ∼30years of age) and ochronotic osteoarthropathy in weight bearing joints due to long term ochronosis in them (from ∼40years of age). Tyrosinase, a polyphenol oxidase has been shown in many species to contribute to the darkening of tissues in many organisms; including humans in the production of melanin. Tyrosinase under the right conditions shows alterations in its substrate specificity and may contribute to the darkening seen in AKU where it moves away from polymerising tyrosine but also homogentisic acid, the causative molecule in alkaptonuria, that is present in excess

Reducing Sound Levels of Granulator at ORBIS Corporation

The plastic granulation process at OrbisCorporation produces noise levels up to 114 decibels. The current noise level at the closest operator station from the grinder is 90 dB.Due to OSHA regulations, noise levels must be decreased to at or below 85 decibels at the nearest operator station

The social life of the dead:the role of post-mortem examinations in medical student socialisation

Dissection has held a privileged position in medical education although the professional values it inculcates have been subject to intense debate. Claims vary from it generating a dehumanising level of emotional detachment, to promotion of rational and dispassionate decision-making, even to being a positive vehicle for ethical education. Social scientists have positioned dissection as a critical experience in the emotional socialisation of medical students. However, curricular revision has provoked debate about the style and quantity of anatomy teaching thus threatening this ‘rite of passage’ of medical students. Consequently, some UK medical schools do not employ dissection at all. In its place, observation of post-mortem examinations - a long established, if underutilised, practice – has re-emerged in an attempt to recoup aspects of anatomical knowledge that are arguably lost when dissection is omitted. Bodies for post-mortem examinations and bodies for dissection, however, have striking differences, meaning that post-mortem examinations and dissection cannot be considered comparable opportunities to learn anatomy. In this article, we explore the distinctions between dissection and post-mortem examinations. In particular, we focus on the absence of a discourse of consent, concerns about bodily integrity, how the body’s shifting ontology, between object and person, disrupts students’ attempts to distance themselves, and how the observation of post-mortem examinations features in the emotional socialisation of medical students

Embedding Core Information Skills At The Point Of Need In First Year Science

Online information literacy modules have been integrated into semester 1 units of study so that every commencing first year science student is now engaged in developing information skills as part of their disciplinary learning (Kift, 2004). A certificate of completion system has enabled these activities to be easily introduced by staff from a range of disciplines. This methodology has enabled skill development to be introduced with no duplication or overlap in the workload for students despite the range of course choices available and without core units

An Electronic Calendar for Organizing Assessments in a Large Faculty

Using data from an electronic unit of study outline system, the University of Sydney's Faculty of Science built an assessment calendar to organize assessment schedules and help first-year students transition to university life. The calendar helps students organize and understand their assessments using their preferred computers or mobile calendar applications. The calendar also helps staff in a large faculty compare and rationalize assessment dates and ensure that a variety of assessment modes are used, irrespective of a student's course choices