Wrist flexion and extension strength in patients with work-related chronic elbow pain: the isokinetic effort factor and its implications.

Background: The validity of isokinetic strength findings relating to forearm muscles in patients with chronic elbow pain and/or epicondylitis is not well established. Furthermore, given the nature of this disorder, ensuring maximal effort in performing the tests is an essential prerequisite. The isokinetic-based DEC parameter (defined as the difference between high- and low-velocity eccentric-to-concentric ratios of a given muscle) has been shown to efficiently detect maximal effort.

Does soccer cleat design influence the rotational interaction with the playing surface?

Non-contact injuries in soccer players may be related to the interplay between cleat type and playing surface, and bladed shoes were often blamed for non-contact injuries with no research support. The aim of this study was to compare the rotational resistance (stiffness and peak sustainable torque) among three types of soccer cleats (metal studs, molded rubber studs, and bladed) in a controlled laboratory environment. The shoes were tested on both natural and artificial turfs under a compressive preload of 1000 N and with internal and external rotations.

Primary stability of pedicle screws depends on the screw positioning and alignment.

Background Context: There is no universal consensus regarding the biomechanical aspects and relevance on the primary stability of misplaced pedicle screws.

Purpose: The study is aimed to the determination of the correlation between axial pullout forces of pedicle screws with the possible screw misplacement, including mild and severe cortical violations.

Methods: Eighty-eight monoaxial pedicle screws were implanted into 44 porcine lumbar vertebral bodies, paying attention on trying to obtain a wide range of placement accuracy.

No difference in gait recovery after THA with different head diameters: a prospective randomized study.

Background: Larger femoral heads are commonly presumed to improve joint stability and hip biomechanics; some studies have suggested they may hasten recovery of a normal gait. To our knowledge, no gait analysis studies have compared different size head diameters in THA.

Questions/purposes: We compared (1) spatiotemporal gait parameters, (2) kinematic and kinetic gait parameters, and (3) Harris hip scores in patients undergoing THA randomized to receive a 28-, 36-, or ≥ 42-mm bearing couple.

Deep brain stimulation for treatment of refractory Tourette syndrome: long-term follow-up.

Background: Eighteen patients with severe and refractory Tourette Syndrome underwent bilateral thalamic deep brain stimulation. The surgical procedures and stimulation processes of the cohort were reported in 2008; the 2 year follow-up was reported in 2009. The aim of the research is the assessment of long-term outcome (5-6 years) on tics, obsessional behaviours, anxiety, mood, and on the overall general health of the patients and their general satisfaction.

Rigid and flexible spinal stabilization devices: a biomechanical comparison.

The surgical devices for the treatment of degenerative disc disease are based on different concepts (rods for spine fusion, ROM-restricting or load-bearing devices for dynamic stabilization). In the present work, the effects of some stabilization systems on the biomechanics of the lumbar spine were investigated by means of a finite element model of the L2-L5 spine segment. Pedicular screws and stabilization devices were added at L4-L5.

Spine stability after implantation of an interspinous device: an in vitro and finite element biomechanical study.

Object: Interspinous devices are widely used for the treatment of lumbar stenosis. The DIAM spinal stabilization system (Medtronic, Ltd.) is an interspinous implant made of silicone and secured in place with 2 laces.

The influence of the axial, antero-posterior and lateral positions of the center of rotation of a ball-and-socket disc prosthesis on the cervical spine biomechanics.

Background: Previous studies documented the importance of the positioning and the design parameters of the prosthesis in determining the biomechanics of the implanted spine. However, a comprehensive biomechanical evaluation of the significance of these parameters is still lacking. Therefore, the paper is aimed to the quantification of their influence on the flexibility of the implanted spine and the force transmitted through the facet joints.