Review of therapeutic failures of microvascular decompression in trigeminal neuralgia at a tertiary hospital.

Introduction: Microvascular decompression (MVD) is a non-ablative technique aimed at relieving pain in trigeminal neuralgia (TN) by resolving a neurovascular conflict. Despite reported high success rates, a significant percentage of patients experience therapeutic failure.

Methods: Retrospective observational study of patients with suspected TN undergoing MVD was performed with the goal of identifying factors contributing to the persistence and recurrence of pain.

Benchtop Fabricated Nano-Roughened Microstructured Electrodes for Electrochemical and Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering Sensing.

Tailoring a material's surface with hierarchical structures from the micro- to the nanoscale is key for fabricating highly sensitive detection platforms. To achieve this, the fabrication method should be simple, inexpensive, and yield materials with a high density of surface features. Here, using benchtop fabrication techniques, gold surfaces with hierarchically structured roughness are generated for sensing applications.

Shrinking Devices: Shape-Memory Polymer Fabrication of Micro-and Nanostructured Electrodes.

The front cover artwork is provided by Prof. Jose Moran-Mirabal's group at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The image shows a 3D rendering and electron microscopy images of micro/nanostructured electrodes, fabricated through thermal shrinking of a shape memory polymer.

Shrinking Devices: Shape-Memory Polymer Fabrication of Micro-and Nanostructured Electrodes.

Since their discovery in the 1940s, shape memory polymers (SMPs) have been used in a broad spectrum of applications for research and industry. SMPs can adopt a temporary shape and promptly return to their original form when submitted to an external stimulus. They have proven useful in fields such as wearable and stretchable electronics, biomedicine, and aerospace.