The Use of Shape Memory Alloys in Cages for Cervical Spinal Surgery.

Background:  Degenerative changes in the cervical spine can include the gradual loss of functionality of the intervertebral disks, development of osteophytes and ligament hypertrophy. Removal of the intervertebral disk and replacement with a cage (anterior discectomy and fusion [ACDF]) is a standardized operative procedure in these patients. The implant should provide structural support, should restore the physiologic lordosis, and enable a solid fusion.

A New Concept for Cervical Expansion Screws Using Shape Memory Alloy: A Feasibility Study.

Background:  In general, sufficient anchoring of screws in the bone material ensures the intended primary stability.

Methods:  Shape memory materials offer the option of using temperature-associated deformation energy in a targeted manner to compensate the special situation of osteoporotic bones or the potential lack of anchoring. An expansion screw was developed for these purposes.

Combined Microsurgery and Radiotherapy for Multiple Spinal Cord Hemangioblastomas with Holocord Syrinx in von Hippel-Lindau Disease: A Case Report.

Spinal and cerebellar hemangioblastomas are common in von Hippel-Lindau disease (vHLD) and usually treated surgically. Multifocal presence and surgically not amenable locations are issues that require a combined microsurgical and radiosurgical approach to control complex cases. We would like to present the case of a 37-year-old male patient who was diagnosed vHLD with multiple spinal and one infratentorial hemangioblastomas and holocord syrinx formation of the whole spinal cord.

Discrimination of Enterobacteriaceae and Non-fermenting Gram Negative Bacilli by MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometry.

Discrimination of Enterobacteriaceae and Non-fermenting Gram Negative Bacilli by MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometry Matrix assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) has proven to be an effective identification tool in medical microbiology. Discrimination to subspecies or serovar level has been found to be challenging using commercially available identification software. By forming our own reference database and using alternative analysis methods, we could reliably identify all implemented Enterobacteriaceae and non-fermenting gram negative bacilli by MALDI-TOF MS and even succeeded to distinguish Shigella sonnei from Escherichia coli (E.

A step towards the discrimination of beta-lactamase-producing clinical isolates of Enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa by MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry.

Background: Matrix-Assisted Laser-Desorption/Ionization Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) has already proven to be a powerful tool for species identification in microbiological laboratories. As adequate and rapid screening methods for antibiotic resistance are crucially needed, the present study investigated the discrimination potential of MALDI-TOF MS among extended-spectrum-beta-lactamase (ESBL) or metallo-beta-lactamases- (MBL) producing and the nonproducing strains of Escherichia coli (n=19), Klebsiella pneumoniae (n=19), and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (n=38), respectively.

Material/methods: We used a MALDI-TOF MS protocol, usually applied for species identification, in order to integrate a screening method for beta-lactamases into the routine species identification workflow.