Silicone radial head prostheses revisited: do they have a role in today's practice? A systematic review of literature on clinical outcomes.

Background: Silicone radial head prostheses (SRHP) are considered obsolete due to reports of frequent failure and destructive silicone-induced synovitis. Considering the good outcomes of modern non-radial silicone joint implants, the extent of scientific evidence for this negative view is unclear. The aim of this research was to systematically analyze the clinical evidence on complications and outcomes of SRHP and how SRHP compare to both non-SRHP and silicone prostheses of other joints.

Silicone radial head prostheses: the clinical course and treatment of failure-a case series.

Introduction: Silicone radial head prostheses (SRHP) have a reputation of acceptable initial function but failure in the medium to long term as a result of the disintegration of the silicone material. Damaged SRHP can result in a silicone-induced synovitis and destruction of the joint. Early removal of damaged SRHP may prevent joint destruction.

Demand, capacity, and access of the outpatient clinic: A framework for analysis and improvement.

Rationale: While theoretical frameworks for optimization of the outpatient processes are abundant, practical step-by-step analyses to give leads for improvement, to forecast capacity, and to support decision making are sparse.

Aims And Objectives: This article demonstrates how to evaluate and optimize the triad of demand, (future) capacity, and access time of the outpatient clinic using a structured six-step method.

Methods: All individual logistical patient data of an orthopaedic outpatient clinic of one complete year were analysed using a 6-step method to evaluate demand, supply, and access time.

Reinforcement of hydrogels using three-dimensionally printed microfibres.

Despite intensive research, hydrogels currently available for tissue repair in the musculoskeletal system are unable to meet the mechanical, as well as the biological, requirements for successful outcomes. Here we reinforce soft hydrogels with highly organized, high-porosity microfibre networks that are 3D-printed with a technique termed as melt electrospinning writing. We show that the stiffness of the gel/scaffold composites increases synergistically (up to 54-fold), compared with hydrogels or microfibre scaffolds alone.

Impact of duration of macula-off retinal detachment on visual outcome: a systematic review and meta-analysis of literature.

Purpose: To systematically review the influence of the lag time between macula-off retinal detachment and surgical intervention on postoperative visual acuity as main outcome measure.

Methods: Systematic review and meta-analysis of articles published from 1995 to October 2013 of patients with macula-off retinal detachment and treated with scleral buckling or pars plana vitrectomy. Eligible data were pooled in a meta-analysis, analyzing the odds ratio between different durations of ≤ 3, ≤ 4, ≤ 7, and ≤ 10 days, comparing a final visual acuity of ≤ 0.

Effect of the eyelid speculum on pachymetry during corneal collagen crosslinking in keratoconus patients.

Purpose: To compare central corneal thickness (CCT) with and without using an eyelid speculum during corneal collagen crosslinking (CXL).

Setting: University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands.

Design: Prospective nonrandomized comparative study.

Accumulation of drug resistance and loss of therapeutic options precede commonly used criteria for treatment failure in HIV-1 subtype-C-infected patients.

Background: Virological monitoring is essential to identify antiretroviral treatment (ART) failure, but not widely available. Here, accumulation of resistance and consequences for second-line therapy were investigated in African HIV-1 subtype-C-infected patients.

Methods: A total of 836 patients initiated non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI)-based ART and received biannual HIV RNA monitoring.