A Prospective Analysis of Patient Characteristics Affecting the Outcome of Dorsal Splinting for Soft Tissue Mallet Injuries.

Background: Much has been written about the diagnosis and treatment of soft tissue mallet injuries. However, there has been little regarding the characteristics of this injury affecting patients' prognosis. The purpose of this prospective study was to identify factors influencing the outcome of treatment of soft tissue mallet injuries.

Knee Function Assessment in Patients With Meniscus Injury: A Preliminary Study of Reproducibility, Response to Treatment, and Correlation With Patient-Reported Questionnaire Outcomes.

Background: Outcomes of meniscus surgery are typically assessed with patient questionnaires that help capture symptoms and functional limitations but may not provide an accurate representation of underlying joint health. There are currently no performance-based measures of knee function in patients with symptomatic meniscus injury.

Purpose: To assess the reproducibility, response to partial meniscectomy, and correlation with patient-reported questionnaire outcomes of novel performance-based knee function tests.

Steroid injections in the upper extremity: experienced clinical opinion versus evidence-based practices.

A survey regarding upper-extremity steroid injection practices was distributed to all active members of the American Society for Surgery of the Hand (ASSH) and American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons (ASES) using SurveyMonkey. Response rates for the ASSH and ASES were 26% and 24%, respectively. The potency-adjusted dose of steroid injected for common hand and wrist injections ranged from 0.

Sensitivity and reliability of language laterality assessment with a free reversed association task--a fMRI study.

Objective: The aim of the study was to evaluate the sensitivity and reliability of assessing hemispheric language dominance with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) using a 'free reversed association task.'

Methods: Thirty-nine healthy subjects (13 dextrals, 13 sinistrals and 13 bimanuals) underwent two repeated fMRI sessions. In the active phases sets of words were presented via headphones, and an associated target item was named.

Substance P enhances wound closure in nitric oxide synthase knockout mice.

Introduction: The neuropeptide, substance P (SP), up-regulates nitric oxide production (NO). The purpose of this study was to determine whether SP enhances response to cutaneous injury in nitric oxide synthase knockout (NOS null) mice.

Methods: We studied mice with targeted deletions of the 3 NOS genes, neuronal NOS, inducible NOS, or endothelial NOS.