Piloting a Novel Computational Framework for Identifying Prosthesis-Specific Contributions to Gait Deviations.

This paper introduces a novel computational framework for evaluating above-knee prostheses, addressing a major challenge in gait deviation studies: distinguishing between prosthesis-specific and patient-specific contributions to gait deviations. This innovative approach utilizes three separate computational models to quantify the changes in gait dynamics necessary to achieve a set of ideal gait kinematics across different prosthesis designs. The pilot study presented here employs a simple two-dimensional swing-phase model to conceptually demonstrate how the outcomes of this three-model framework can assess the extent to which prosthesis design impacts a user's ability to replicate the dynamics of able-bodied gait.

Tolerability and Safety of Sublingual Immunotherapy in Patients with Tree Pollen Allergy in Daily Practice-An Open, Prospective, Non-Interventional Study.

To investigate the tolerability and safety of two sublingual tree pollen extracts approved in 2018, a non-interventional study (NIS) was performed. This NIS was an 8-month observational study conducted at 84 sites throughout Germany. Study participants received either a sublingual liquid allergen extract of birch pollen (SBPE) or a liquid allergen extract consisting of a mixture of birch, hazel, and alder tree pollen (STPE).

Footwear and Elevated Heel Influence on Barbell Back Squat: A Review.

The back squat is one of the most effective exercises in strengthening the muscles of the lower extremity. Understanding the impact of footwear has on the biomechanics is imperative for maximizing the exercise training potential, preventing injury, and rehabilitating from injury. This review focuses on how different types of footwear affect the full-body kinematics, joint loads, muscle activity, and ground reaction forces in athletes of varying experience performing the weighted back squat.

A custom, functional and lifelike passive prosthetic hand for infants and small toddlers: Clinical note.

Background And Aim: For infants and small toddlers with congenital upper limb deficiencies, terminal devices mainly provide either cosmesis or functionality. We report a clinical note about fitting a child with a low-cost passive hand targeting both functionality and cosmesis.

Technique: An elastomeric, alloy-wire-reinforced hand was fabricated using additive manufacturing to allow independent positioning of the digits.

Thoracic aortic geometry correlates with endograft bird-beaking severity.

Objective: Aortic geometry has been shown to influence the development of endograft malapposition (bird-beaking) in thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR), but the extent of this relationship lacks clarity. The aim of this study was to develop a reproducible method of measuring bird-beak severity and to investigate preoperative geometry associated with bird-beaking.

Methods: The study retrospectively analyzed 20 patients with thoracic aortic aneurysms or type B dissections treated with TEVAR.

Evaluating the feasibility of two post-hoc correction techniques for mitigating posture-induced measurement errors associated with wearable motion capture.

Wearable motion capture systems are commonly used to measure body kinematics outside of laboratory settings. However, commercially available systems are designed to be used with typically developed adult populations, and assume users begin with a typical standing posture. Individuals with cerebral palsy and other neuromuscular pathologies often present atypical postures that can introduce significant errors in kinematics measurements from wearable motion capture.

Evaluation of Assays to Assess the Modulation of Dendritic Cells Functions by Therapeutic Antibodies and Aggregates.

Therapeutic antibodies have the potential to induce immunogenicity leading to the development of anti-drug antibodies (ADA) that consequently may result in reduced serum drug concentrations, a loss of efficacy or potential hypersensitivity reactions. Among other factors, aggregated antibodies have been suggested to promote immunogenicity, thus enhancing ADA production. Dendritic cells (DC) are the most efficient antigen-presenting cell population and are crucial for the initiation of T cell responses and the subsequent generation of an adaptive immune response.

A New Modeling Method to Characterize the Stance Control Function of Prosthetic Knee Joints.

Objective: Biomechanical models can inform design and optimization of prosthetic devices by connecting empirically derived biomechanical data to device design parameters. A new method is presented to characterize the function of prosthetic stance control under mobility conditions associated with activities of daily living. The method is based on a model of the gait modes corresponding to finite stance control states.

First Characterization of the Dense Granule Protein GRA9.

The obligate intracellular apicomplexan parasite is closely related to . The dense granules, which are present in all apicomplexan parasites, are important secretory organelles. Dense granule (GRA) proteins are released into the parasitophorous vacuole (PV) following host cell invasion and are known to play important roles in the maintenance of the host-parasite relationship and in the acquisition of nutrients.

Evaluating and improving the performance of thin film force sensors within body and device interfaces.

Thin film force sensors are commonly used within biomechanical systems, and at the interface of the human body and medical and non-medical devices. However, limited information is available about their performance in such applications. The aims of this study were to evaluate and determine ways to improve the performance of thin film (FlexiForce) sensors at the body/device interface.

Factors impacting participation in sports for children with limb absence: a qualitative study.

Background: Individuals with limb absence benefit from participating in sports. While barriers and facilitators affecting sport participation are well documented for adults, they have not been explored for children with limb absence.

Purpose: To identify the perceived factors impacting participation in sports according to children with limb absence and their parents.

The Effects of Acute Intense Physical Exercise on Postural Stability in Children With Cerebral Palsy.

This study evaluated the effects of intense physical exercise on postural stability of children with cerebral palsy (CP). Center of pressure (CoP) was measured in 9 typically developing (TD) children and 8 with CP before and after a maximal aerobic shuttle-run test (SRT) using a single force plate. Anteroposterior and mediolateral sway velocities, sway area, and sway regularity were calculated from the CoP data and compared between pre- and postexercise levels and between groups.

A Method for Evaluating Timeliness and Accuracy of Volitional Motor Responses to Vibrotactile Stimuli.

Artificial sensory feedback (ASF) systems can be used to compensate for lost proprioception in individuals with lower-limb impairments. Effective design of these ASF systems requires an in-depth understanding of how the parameters of specific feedback mechanism affect user perception and reaction to stimuli. This article presents a method for applying vibrotactile stimuli to human participants and measuring their response.

Effects of cognitive load and prosthetic liner on volitional response times to vibrotactile feedback.

Artificial tactile feedback systems can improve prosthetic function for people with amputation by substituting for lost proprioception in the missing limb. However, limited data exists to guide the design and application of these systems for mobility and balance scenarios. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the performance of a noninvasive artificial sensory feedback (ASF) system on lower-limb function in the presence of a cognitive load and a liner interface.

Analysis of terrain effects on the interfacial force distribution at the hand and forearm during crutch gait.

Forces transferred to the upper body during crutch use can lead to both short-term and long-term injuries, including joint pain, crutch palsy, and over-use injuries. While this force transmission has been studied in controlled laboratory settings, it is unclear how these forces are affected by irregular terrains commonly encountered during community ambulation. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of walking speed and uneven terrain on the load magnitude, distribution, and rate of loading at the human-crutch contact surfaces.

Quantifying skeletal muscle recovery in a rat injury model using ultrasound imaging.

Monitoring skeletal muscle health during recovery or degeneration is of great interest both clinically and in research settings. This type of monitoring requires health measurements be taken at multiple time points. Contraction strength is a commonly used metric for quantifying muscle health, but it requires invasive in vitro or in situ procedures that may further damage the tissue.

Examining the feasibility of applying principal component analysis to detecting localized changes in mechanical properties.

Ultrasound elastography is being increasingly used to diagnose musculoskeletal pathologies. This technique measures strain distributions within the muscle tissue, which can be used to calculate local tissue stiffness. However, inaccuracies in the model assumptions, as well as operator variability during imaging, can cause significant error in the resulting stiffness measurements.

The effect of platelet-rich plasma on muscle contusion healing in a rat model.

Background: Current therapy for muscle contusions is usually limited to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and/or use of the RICE principle (rest, ice, compression, elevation); thus, other forms of treatment that can potentially accelerate the rate of healing are desirable.

Hypotheses: A local injection of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) would lead to accelerated healing rates compared with controls; also, delayed administration of PRP would lead to a blunted response compared with immediate treatment.

Study Design: Controlled laboratory study.

Cytomegalovirus infection impairs immunosuppressive and antimicrobial effector functions of human multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells.

Human mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC) possess immunosuppressive and antimicrobial effects that are partly mediated by the tryptophan-catabolizing enzyme indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase (IDO). Therefore MSC represent a promising novel cellular immunosuppressant which has the potential to control steroid-refractory acute graft versus host disease (GvHD). In addition, MSC are capable of reducing the risk of infection in patients after haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HST).

Averaging improves strain images of the biceps brachii using quasi-static ultrasound elastography.

Objective: Quasi-static ultrasound elastography is a technique for measuring tissue deformation (strain) under externally applied loading and can be used to identify the presence of abnormalities. The objective of this study was to demonstrate the efficacy of averaging strain images from repeated compression cycles in mitigating user-induced error using quasi-static ultrasound elastography.

Methods: Freehand compressions were performed with an ultrasound transducer on the biceps brachii of nine participants (five males and four females), as well as with a custom automated compression system.

Antimicrobial effects of murine mesenchymal stromal cells directed against Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum: role of immunity-related GTPases (IRGs) and guanylate-binding proteins (GBPs).

Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) have a multilineage differentiation potential and provide immunosuppressive and antimicrobial functions. Murine as well as human MSCs restrict the proliferation of T cells. However, species-specific differences in the underlying molecular mechanisms have been described.

Influence of tryptophan contained in 1-Methyl-Tryptophan on antimicrobial and immunoregulatory functions of indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase.

Indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) has been identified as an important antimicrobial and immunoregulatory effector molecule essential for the establishment of tolerance by regulating local tryptophan (Trp) concentrations. On the other hand, the immunosuppressive capacity of IDO can have detrimental effects for the host as it can lead to deleterious alterations of the immune response by promoting tolerance to some types of tumors. To suppress this disadvantageous IDO effect, the competitive inhibitor 1-Methyl-Tryptophan (1-MT) is being tested in clinical trials.

Effect of adaptation direction on the motion VEP and perceived speed of drifting gratings.

The N200 amplitude of the motion-onset VEP evoked by a parafoveal grating of variable contrast (0.5-64%), constant speed (2 degrees/s), direction (horizontally rightward), and spatial frequency (2 cpd) was studied before and after adaptation to a stationary or drifting grating (1, 2, or 4 degrees/s rightward or leftward). These results are compared to those for the pattern-appearance VEP.