Outcomes of Operatively Treated Acute Knee Dislocations

Knee dislocation is a complex and rare injury often presenting in the context of high velocity trauma. The aim of this study is to establish the subjective outcomes of surgically treated knee dislocations. A total of 20 knees dislocations treated by open repair were reviewed. Their progress and outcomes were assessed by using a modified Lysholm score questionnaire. Data was obtained on patient demographics, details of injury, investigation, treatment, rehabilitation, 24 months objective outcome and subjective outcomes. Six patients had a vascular deficit and six had neurological deficits. The median range of motion was 0°-100°. Patients with an initially lower pre-injury level of function were able to return an activity level comparable to their pre-injury status. 22% of competitive athletes retuned to competitive sports. 38% of patients undertaking heavy activity returned to comparable pre-injury level of activity and 67% of patients undertaking moderate level of activity before injury returned to a comparable level after repair. 68% regularly had problems running, 70% problem squatting, 40% swelling and 42% problem with stairs. Most patients however did not have locking of the knee or problems with knees giving way. Patients pain scores decreased over time to an acceptable level. Despite the severity of the injury, majority of patients achieved a satisfactory outcome, although none of the patients reached the same level of function as before the injury. 80% of the patients were satisfied with their outcome. All dissatisfied patients suffered postoperative complications

Search for Gravitational Waves from Primordial Black Hole Binary Coalescences in the Galactic Halo

We use data from the second science run of the LIGO gravitational-wave detectors to search for the gravitational waves from primordial black hole (PBH) binary coalescence with component masses in the range 0.2--$1.0 M_\odot$. The analysis requires a signal to be found in the data from both LIGO observatories, according to a set of coincidence criteria. No inspiral signals were found. Assuming a spherical halo with core radius 5 kpc extending to 50 kpc containing non-spinning black holes with masses in the range 0.2--$1.0 M_\odot$, we place an observational upper limit on the rate of PBH coalescence of 63 per year per Milky Way halo (MWH) with 90% confidence.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, to be submitted to Phys. Rev.

Optical Imaging of Bacterial Infections

The rise in multidrug resistant (MDR) bacteria has become a global crisis. Rapid and accurate diagnosis of infection will facilitate antibiotic stewardship and preserve our ability to treat and cure patients from bacterial infection. Direct in situ imaging of bacteria offers the prospect of accurately diagnosing disease and monitoring patient outcomes and response to treatment in real-time. There have been many recent advances in the field of optical imaging of infection; namely in specific probe and fluorophore design. This combined with the advances in imaging device technology render direct optical imaging of infection a feasible approach for accurate diagnosis in the clinic. Despite this, there are currently no licensed molecular probes for clinical optical imaging of infection. Here we report some of the most promising and interesting probes and approaches under development for this purpose, which have been evaluated in in vivo models within the laboratory setting

Ulnar-sided wrist pain. II. Clinical imaging and treatment

Pain at the ulnar aspect of the wrist is a diagnostic challenge for hand surgeons and radiologists due to the small and complex anatomical structures involved. In this article, imaging modalities including radiography, arthrography, ultrasound (US), computed tomography (CT), CT arthrography, magnetic resonance (MR) imaging, and MR arthrography are compared with regard to differential diagnosis. Clinical imaging findings are reviewed for a more comprehensive understanding of this disorder. Treatments for the common diseases that cause the ulnar-sided wrist pain including extensor carpi ulnaris (ECU) tendonitis, flexor carpi ulnaris (FCU) tendonitis, pisotriquetral arthritis, triangular fibrocartilage complex (TFCC) lesions, ulnar impaction, lunotriquetral (LT) instability, and distal radioulnar joint (DRUJ) instability are reviewed

Comparing motives of glacier tourists to Westland Tai Poutini National Park, New Zealand and Vatnajökull National Park, Iceland

Drawing on two aligned, but independent, research projects, this poster compares the motives of visitors to the Fox and Franz Josef glaciers in New Zealand (n=500) and visitors to the glaciers of the Vatnajökull National Park in Iceland (n=435

Comparing motives of glacier tourists to Westland Tai Poutini National Park, New Zealand and Vatnajokull National Park, Iceland

Glaciers are key features of the alpine environment and have had an enduring appeal for nature-based tourists. However, glaciers are highly sensitive to climate change and in many locations are under-going rapid recession. Drawing on two aligned, but independent, research projects, this paper compares the motives of visitors to the Fox and Franz Josef glaciers in New Zealand (n=500) and visitors to the glaciers of the Vatnajokull National Park in Iceland (n=435). Findings reveal that the trips people make to the New Zealand glacier region are fundamentally underpinned by the opportunity to view the glaciers before they might disappear, whereas in Iceland this finding is less apparent, and instead motives more strongly relate to being close to nature more generally. This finding is reflective of the geographic context of the glacier settings; whereby in New Zealand the glaciers are the single major draw for visitors whereas in Iceland glaciers are part of the wider alpine experience

High-content screening identifies a role for Na+ channels in insulin production

Insulin production is the central feature of functionally mature and differentiated pancreatic β-cells. Reduced insulin transcription and dedifferentiation have been implicated in type 2 diabetes, making drugs that could reverse these processes potentially useful. We have previously established ratiometric live-cell imaging tools to identify factors that increase insulin promoter activity and promote β-cell differentiation. Here, we present a single vector imaging tool with eGFP and mRFP, driven by the Pdx1 and Ins1 promoters, respectively, targeted to the nucleus to enhance identification of individual cells in a high-throughput manner. Using this new approach, we screened 1120 off-patent drugs for factors that regulate Ins1 and Pdx1 promoter activity in MIN6 β-cells. We identified a number of compounds that positively modulate Ins1 promoter activity, including several drugs known to modulate ion channels. Carbamazepine was selected for extended follow-up, as our previous screen also identified this use-dependent sodium channel inhibitor as a positive modulator of β-cell survival. Indeed, carbamazepine increased Ins1 and Ins2 mRNA in primary mouse islets at lower doses than were required to protect β-cells. We validated the role of sodium channels in insulin production by examining Nav1.7 (Scn9a) knockout mice and remarkably islets from these animals had dramatically elevated insulin content relative to wild-type controls. Collectively, our experiments provide a starting point for additional studies aimed to identify drugs and molecular pathways that control insulin production and β-cell differentiation status. In particular, our unbiased screen identified a novel role for a β-cell sodium channel gene in insulin production