Early resection of congenital pseudarthrosis of the tibia and successful reconstruction using the Masquelet technique.

Congenital pseudarthrosis of the tibia remains one of the most difficult orthopaedic problems. We describe early excision and the use of the Masquelet technique to reconstruct the bone defect in a child aged 14 months. Consolidation sufficient for complete weight-bearing was achieved by seven weeks.

Compact integrated optical sensor system.

A compact integrated optical sensor system for a large variety of different (bio-) chemical applications using replicated sensor chips is described. Features of the refractometric system to be emphasized for practical applications include a high-resolution window that can be positioned within a wide measuring range, an in situ chip testing and characterization procedure, and on-chip referencing. As an application example, experimental results on refractometric measurements as well as on the suppression of non-specific binding are given.