Protocol for a multicentric, double-blind, randomised controlled trial of hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) versus sham for treating vaso-occlusive crisis (VOC) in sickle cell disease (SCD) in patients aged 8 years or older (HBOT-SCD study).

Introduction: Sickle cell disease (SCD) is one of the most common genetic diseases in the world, annually affecting approximately 310 000 births and causing >100 000 deaths. Vaso-occlusive crisis (VOC) is the most frequent complication of SCD, leading to bone pain, thoracic pain (acute chest syndrome) and/or abdominal spasms. It is the main cause of mortality in patients with SCD, reducing life expectancy.

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy with Iloprost Improves Digit Salvage in Severe Frostbite Compared to Iloprost Alone.

: Frostbite is a freezing injury that can lead to amputation. Current treatments include tissue rewarming followed by thrombolytic or vasodilators. Hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) therapy might decrease the rate of amputation by increasing cellular oxygen availability to the damaged tissues.

A combined experimental and numerical method to estimate the elastic modulus of single trabeculae.

The elastic modulus at the single trabecular level is an important parameter for the understanding of the mechanical behavior of trabecular bone. Current methods are commonly limited by the irregular trabecular shape and the accuracy of displacement measurement. The aim of this study was to propose a method to estimate the trabecular modulus overcoming some of these limitations.

[Hypnoanalgesia, a complementary therapy for painful care procedures].

In the framework of the management of patients receiving hyperbaric oxygen therapy, hypnoanalgesia is a complementary pain management tool, notably during the changing of dressings. Trained in this management of care-related pain, the teams of the hypebaric medicine centre in Lyon share their experience.

[The hyperbaric chamber, a hostile working environment].

Nursing practice in the hyperbaric environment draws on very specific skills. This setting, which is presented as a therapeutic tool in a range of indications, is also a hostile care environment for health professionals. A team from Lyon reveals the characteristics of nursing practice in a hyperbaric chamber.

Strain-induced stiffening of nanocellulose-reinforced poly(vinyl alcohol) hydrogels mimicking collagenous soft tissues.

Soft tissues possess remarkable mechanical strength for their high water content, which is hard to mimic in synthetic materials. Here, we demonstrate how strain-induced stiffening in hydrogels plays a major role in mimicking the mechanical properties of collagenous soft tissues. In particular, nanocellulose reinforced polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) hydrogels of exceptionally high water content (90-93 wt%) are shown to exhibit collagen-like mechanical behavior typical for soft tissues.

Trabecular deformations during screw pull-out: a micro-CT study of lapine bone.

The mechanical fixation of endosseous implants, such as screws, in trabecular bone is challenging because of the complex porous microstructure. Development of new screw designs to improve fracture fixation, especially in high-porosity osteoporotic bone, requires a profound understanding of how the structural system implant/trabeculae interacts when it is subjected to mechanical load. In this study, pull-out tests of screw implants were performed.

Hyperelastic Nanocellulose-Reinforced Hydrogel of High Water Content for Ophthalmic Applications.

A nanocellulose-reinforced poly(vinyl alcohol) hydrogel material of exceptionally high water content for ophthalmic applications is presented (>90 wt %), which also features a hitherto unprecedented combination of optical, mechanical, viscoelastic, oxygen permeability, and biocompatibility properties. The hydrogel combines the desired softness with remarkable strain-dependent mechanical strength and thereby demonstrates hyperelastic, rubber-like mechanical properties. The observed unusual mechanical behavior is due to both high water content and the combination of relatively stiff cellulose nanowhiskers entangled in a soft polymer matrix of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA), thus mimicking the structural characteristics of the cornea's main constituents, i.

Modelling of the hygroelastic behaviour of normal and compression wood tracheids.

Compression wood conifer tracheids show different swelling and stiffness properties than those of usual normal wood, which has a practical function in the living plant: when a conifer shoot is moved from its vertical position, compression wood is formed in the under part of the shoot. The growth rate of the compression wood is faster than in the upper part resulting in a renewed horizontal growth. The actuating and load-carrying function of the compression wood is addressed, on the basis of its special ultrastructure and shape of the tracheids.

Microbiological evaluation of infected wounds of the extremities in 214 adults.

Objective: The aim of this multicentre prospective study was to analyse microbial pathogens cultured from an infected wound.

Methods: The study was performed in the emergency rooms of 10 public hospitals. All adult patients with a clinical diagnosis of cellulitis after a wound in the upper or lower extremities were included.