Additive manufacturing techniques for smart prosthetic liners

Elastomeric liners are commonly worn between the prosthetic socket and the limb. A number of improvements to the state of the art of liner technology are required to address outstanding problems. A liner that conforms to the residuum more accurately, may improve the skin health at the stump-socket interface. Previous work has shown that for effective thermal management of the socket environment, an active heat removal system is required, yet this is not available. Volume tracking of the stump could be used as a diagnostic tool for looking at the changes that occur across the day for all users, which depend on activity level, position, and the interaction forces of the prosthetic socket with the limb. We believe that it would be advantageous to embed these devices into a smart liner, which could be replaced and repaired more easily than the highly costly and labour-intensive custom-made socket. This paper presents the work to develop these capabilities in soft material technology, with: the development of a printable nanocomposite stretch sensor system; a low-cost digital method for casting bespoke prosthetic liners; a liner with an embedded stretch sensor for growth / volume tracking; a model liner with an embedded active cooling system.

Preoperative biliary drainage in patients performing pancreaticoduodenectomy : guidelines and real-life practice

BACKGROUND AND AIM

Preoperative biliary drainage (PBD) in patients with pancreatic cancer remains debatable. The aim of this study was to analyse the indications for PBD in patients performing pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) and to evaluate the impact of this procedure on postoperative outcome.

METHODS

Observational retrospective cohort study of patients undergoing PD for pancreatic cancer. Clinical data and postoperative outcome, namely complications and 90-day mortality, were prospectively collected and compared between patients performing PBD or direct surgery (DS).

RESULTS

Eighty-two patients were included: 40 underwent PBD and 42 performed DS. Major complications (27.5% vs 33.3%, P=0.156) and 90-day mortality (10% vs 16.7%, P=0.376) were similar between the two groups. There was a trend for higher mean total bilirubin in patients with PBD (P=0.073). The indication for PBD was suspicion of cholangitis/choledocholithiasis or need to perform neoadjuvant chemotherapy in 24 (60%) patients. In the remaining, elevated bilirubin was probably the only reason to perform PBD. Length of hospital stay was longer in PBD group (P=0.003). On multiple logistic regression, 90-day mortality was not related with preoperative bilirubin levels, biliary drainage or its indication, but solely with age (OR 1.15, 95%CI 1.05-1.31, P=0.008).

CONCLUSIONS

PBD is often performed in patients undergoing PD without a formal indication, mainly due to high bilirubin levels. No increased morbidity/mortality was observed but length of hospital stay was prolonged in patients performing PBD.

Bilateral Cnv Associated with Optic Nerve Drusen Treated with Photodynamic Therapy with Verteporfin

Purpose

To report a case of bilateral choroidal neovascularization (CNV) associated with optic nerve drusen (OND) treated with photodynamic therapy (PDT) with verteporfin.

Methods

A 10-year-old girl with juxtapapillary CNV in the right eye and juxtapapillary and juxtafoveal CNV in the left eye associated with OND underwent PDT with verteporfin in both eyes.

Results

Visual acuity increased from 20/160 to 20/25 in the right eye and from 20/1000 to 20/25 in the left eye after two sessions of PDT and 2 years of follow-up. CNV showed no leakage after two PDT sessions in both eyes and no recurrence was observed.

Conclusions

Subfoveal CNV is an uncommon complication of OND and excellent anatomic and functional results can be obtained with PDT.

Myocardial delayed enhancement in patients with pulmonary hypertension and right ventricular failure: evaluation by cardiac MRI

In this study, we evaluated patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and impaired right ventricular function. We used cardiac MRI for the detection of myocardial delayed enhancement (MDE) and its possible association with other clinical variables. 20 patients (6 males and 14 females, aged 44.5+/-11 years; 15 New York Heart Association class III, 5 class IV) with known PAH (13 idiopathic, 7 resulting from chronic pulmonary embolism) were evaluated for the detection of MDE. Short-axis cine images of the heart were made for ventricular function assessment using a steady-state free precession sequence. For MDE evaluation, a short-axis phase-sensitive inversion recovery sequence was performed 10 min after intravenous administration of 0.2 mmol kg(-1) gadodiamide. Right ventricle (RV) systolic dysfunction, RV enlargement and RV hypertrophy were present in 20 patients (RV ejection fraction, 21.5+/-7.2%; RV diastolic diameter, 5.97+/-0.79 cm; RV wall thickness, 0.73+/-0.10 cm). 13 of the 20 patients (65%) were positive for MDE (10 anterior, 12 inferior). All 13 positive patients with MDE demonstrated small hyperintense areas at the insertion points of the RV free wall in the interventricular septum. We found no significant correlation between MDE and ejection fraction or other haemodynamic variables. In this study, MDE correlated positively only with the duration of disease. We found that septal MDE can be present in patients with PAH and impaired ventricular function. However, further studies are necessary to investigate this possible association and its prognostic implication.

Bilateral CNV associated with optic nerve drusen treated with photodynamic therapy with verteporfin

PURPOSE

To report a case of bilateral choroidal neovascularization (CNV) associated with optic nerve drusen (OND) treated with photodynamic therapy (PDT) with verteporfin.

METHODS

A 10-year-old girl with juxtapapillary CNV in the right eye and juxtapapillary and juxtafoveal CNV in the left eye associated with OND underwent PDT with verteporfin in both eyes.

RESULTS

Visual acuity increased from 20/160 to 20/25 in the right eye and from 20/1000 to 20/25 in the left eye after two sessions of PDT and 2 years of follow-up. CNV showed no leakage after two PDT sessions in both eyes and no recurrence was observed.

CONCLUSIONS

Subfoveal CNV is an uncommon complication of OND and excellent anatomic and functional results can be obtained with PDT.

[Total quality management in healthcare. The European Foundation for Quality Management Model]

After presenting the quality model adapted by the health authorities, the authors refer to the development of quality methodology to the present day, and the importance of the self assessment of Quality focusing on the one according to the European Foundation For Quality Management (EFQM) adapted by healthcare organisations. Each criteria of the EFQM model is presented and its potential as a motivation for change by means of self assessment is discussed.

HIV specific humoral immune response in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The HEC/Fiocruz AIDS Clinical Research Group

Efforts to characterize HIV-1 polymorphism and anti-HIV immune response are being made in areas where anti-HIV/AIDS vaccines are to be employed. Anti-HIV-1 humoral immune response is being studied in infected individuals residents in Rio de Janeiro, in distinct cohorts involving recent seroconvertors, pregnant women or intravenous drug users (IDU). Comparative analyses of specificity of antibody response towards epitopes important for anti-HIV-1 immune response indicate quantitative differences between cohorts, with an exceptionally strong response in IDUs and weakest response in pregnant women. However, a comparative analysis between pregnant women cohorts from Rio de Janeiro and Rio Grande do Sul indicated an even lower response (with exception of the anti-V3-C clade peptide recognition) for the southern cohort. Studies analysing the immune function of the humoral response indicate a quite elevated occurrence of antibodies capable for neutralizing heterologous primary HIV-1 isolates from Rio de Janeiro. Attempts to correlate seroreactivity with HIV-1 neutralization with respect to HIV-1 polymorphism were not very successful: while the Brazilian B clade B " variant could be recognized by binding assays, no significant distinction of HIV-1 clades/variants was observed in viral neutralization assays.