Skin adaptation in lower limb amputees assessed through Raman spectroscopy and mechanical characterization.

Following lower limb amputation residuum skin from the lower leg is used to reconstruct the residual limb. Unlike skin on the sole of the foot (plantar skin), leg skin is not inherently load bearing. Despite this, leg skin is required to be load bearing in the prosthetic socket.

Modeling Insights into Potential Mechanisms of Opioid-Induced Respiratory Depression within Medullary and Pontine Networks.

The opioid epidemic is a pervasive health issue and continues to have a drastic impact on the United States. This is primarily because opioids cause respiratory suppression and the leading cause of death in opioid overdose is respiratory failure ( , opioid-induced respiratory depression, OIRD). Opioid administration can affect the frequency and magnitude of inspiratory motor drive by activating µ-opioid receptors that are located throughout the respiratory control network in the brainstem.

No Right Way: Removal of a Pencil Foreign Body From a Male Urethra.

Foreign body insertion into the urethra is uncommonly encountered in urology practice. Such insertion can result in a myriad of problems including bleeding, infectious sequelae, urinary retention, urethral injury or rupture, and resultant urethral stricture formation. This article describes a case in which an elderly male inserted a pencil into his urethra, which subsequently became lodged and required removal under regional anesthesia in the operating theater.

Tailoring implementation of a youth-focused mental health intervention in Sierra Leone using an implementation blueprint methodology.

Background: Identifying contextual factors that might support or hinder implementation of evidence-based mental health interventions for youth in low- and middle- income countries may improve implementation success by increasing the alignment of intervention implementation with local needs and resources. This study engaged community partners in Sierra Leone to: (a) investigate barriers and facilitators to implementing a mental health intervention within Sierra Leone's schools; (b) develop an implementation blueprint to address identified implementation barriers; (c) explore the feasibility of using the implementation blueprint methodology in Sierra Leone.

Methods: We recruited Ministry of Education Officials (n = 2), teachers (n = 15) and principals (n = 15) in Sierra Leone to participate in needs assessment qualitative interviews.