Discovering Associations Between Acoustic Emission and Magnetic Resonance Imaging Biomarkers From 10 Osteoarthritic Knees.

Objective: Acoustic emission (AE) sensed from knee joints during weight-bearing movements greatly increases with joint deterioration, but the relationship between AE patterns and specific anatomical damage, as seen for example in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), is unknown. This knowledge is essential to validate AE biomarkers for the evaluation of knee joints, and forms the objective of this exploratory work to associate knee AE and MRI.

Methods: A novel processing framework is proposed to enable direct correlation between static 3D MRI of knees and their dynamic 1D AE during sit-stand-sit movements.

Use of acoustic emission to identify novel candidate biomarkers for knee osteoarthritis (OA).

Our objective was to determine the efficacy and feasibility of a new approach for identifying candidate biomarkers for knee osteoarthritis (OA), based on selecting promising candidates from a range of high-frequency acoustic emission (AE) measurements generated during weight-bearing knee movement. Candidate AE biomarkers identified by this approach could then be validated in larger studies for use in future clinical trials and stratified medicine applications for this common health condition. A population cohort of participants with knee pain and a Kellgren-Lawrence (KL) score between 1-4 were recruited from local NHS primary and secondary care sites.

Acoustic emission and angular movement variations from early adulthood healthy knees to late adulthood osteoarthritic knees.

From sit-stand-sit movements performed by healthy and osteoarthritic knees in three different age bands, this paper presents the investigation of the relationship between joint angular movement measured using electro-goniometers and acoustic emission measured using piezoelectric sensors. By partitioning joint movement in each sit-stand-sit cycle into sub-movement phases based on ascending and descending as well as acceleration and deceleration, the statistical analysis reveals aged and osteoarthritic knees exhibiting increased asymmetry and more variable angular movement compared with young and age-matched healthy knees, particularly in the descending-deceleration phase. With further evidence of a clear difference in the number of acoustic emission events detected from different knee groups, the study suggests the descending-deceleration phase likely to be most informative for quantitative assessment of knee aging and condition.

The impact of ankylosing spondylitis/axial spondyloarthritis on work productivity.

Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a chronic inflammatory condition that has a significant impact on the quality of life and work productivity. New classification criteria have enabled earlier diagnosis of this condition. However, work productivity is an important issue that is still often overlooked during clinical assessments and consultations.

Novel conserved group A streptococcal proteins identified by the antigenome technology as vaccine candidates for a non-M protein-based vaccine.

Group A streptococci (GAS) can cause a wide variety of human infections ranging from asymptomatic colonization to life-threatening invasive diseases. Although antibiotic treatment is very effective, when left untreated, Streptococcus pyogenes infections can lead to poststreptococcal sequelae and severe disease causing significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. To aid the development of a non-M protein-based prophylactic vaccine for the prevention of group A streptococcal infections, we identified novel immunogenic proteins using genomic surface display libraries and human serum antibodies from donors exposed to or infected by S.

Discovering differences in acoustic emission between healthy and osteoarthritic knees using a four-phase model of sit-stand-sit movements.

By performing repeated sit-stand-sit movements to create stress on knee joints, short transient bursts of high frequency acoustic emission (AE) released by the knee joints were acquired from two age matched groups consisting of healthy and osteoarthritic (OA) knees, and significant differences between these two groups were discovered from the signal analysis performed. The analysis is based on a four-phase model of sit-stand-sit movements and a two-feature descriptor of AE bursts. The four phases are derived from joint angle measurement during movement, and they consist of the ascending-acceleration and ascending-deceleration phases in the sit-to-stand movement, followed by the descending-acceleration and descending-deceleration phases in the stand-to-sit movement.

The role of quality tools in assessing reliability of the internet for health information.

The Internet has made it possible for patients and their families to access vast quantities of information that previously would have been difficult for anyone but a physician or librarian to obtain. Health information websites, however, are recognised to differ widely in quality and reliability of their content. This has led to the development of various codes of conduct or quality rating tools to assess the quality of health websites.

The quality of information about kidney transplantation on the World Wide Web.

Background: Websites on the Internet are used increasingly by patients and those caring for them as a source of medical information. This study investigated the nature and quality of the kidney transplant-related information currently available on the World Wide Web (WWW).

Methods: Four common search engines were used to explore the Internet using the keywords "kidney transplantation.

Therapeutic targeting of cytokines.

Over recent years, with many advances in understanding the pathological processes that underlie many inflammatory conditions, it has become clear that targeting cytokines has proven to be highly effective therapeutically. The second International Cytokine symposium, held recently in Manchester UK, has provided an important forum for bringing basic and clinical scientists together to discuss many aspects of cytokine medicine from the laboratory to the clinic. In this article, we provide an overview of the main issues raised from this important conference and set the scene for more detailed reports that follow in subsequent articles in this journal.

Cytokine medicines in clinical practice: current issues.

Cytokine medicines have been licensed for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis since 2000. The rheumatology community has accrued a large amount of experience in the use of these medications. This experience has led to the development of guidelines for their use that include ongoing vigilance for long term adverse events and efficacy using the Biologics Register.

Second International Conference on Cytokine Medicines.

The Second International Conference on Cytokine Medicine was held in Manchester, UK and was organised by an international consortium comprising leading clinicians and researchers from healthcare organisations, universities and industry, all with cognate interests in this field. The conference attracted a diverse mix of delegates including clinicians from a wide range of specialities, biomedical scientists, and a barrister with particular expertise in the legal aspects of care provision in healthcare systems. This meeting uniquely focused on cytokine therapies across the spectrum of medical problems, from bench to bedside, including emerging applications for cytokine therapies, issues raised by the delivery of cytokine medicines in clinical practice, and future developments in this broad and exciting area.

Health sequelae of human cryptosporidiosis in immunocompetent patients.

Background: There have been no systematic studies following up the longer term health effects of cases of cryptosporidiosis for which genotype data exist.

Methods: We report a follow-up study of cases of laboratory-confirmed cryptosporidiosis. Case patients were sent a postal questionnaire asking about a wide range of symptoms occurring within 2 months after their initial diagnosis, and control subjects were sent the questionnaire 2 months after they had been recruited to the original study.

The prevalence of subclinical amyloidosis in Polish patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

The aims of this study were to determine the proportion of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients attending hospital in whom amyloid deposits were present in abdominal fat aspiration (AFA) samples, and to assess possible risk factors for amyloid development in RA. One -hundred and twenty-one patients (16 males, 105 females) with RA referred to the Department of Rheumatology in Wroclaw between 1996 and 2001 were studied regardless of RA duration or laboratory findings. Abdominal subcutaneous fine-needle aspiration was performed, and samples of adipose tissue stained with alkaline Congo red then examined by polarized light microscopy.