Therapeutic errors captured by the New Zealand National Poisons Centre: a retrospective audit.

INTRODUCTION Medication errors are one important cause of harm to patients. Information about medication errors can be obtained from diverse sources, including databases administered by poisons centres as part of their routine operation. AIM The aim of this study was to describe the data regarding therapeutic errors captured by the New Zealand National Poisons Centre (NZNPC).

Evaluation of Weight Thresholds for Pediatric Patients to Use Adult Dosage of Therapeutic Monoclonal Antibodies.

With increasing interest in enrolling adolescent patients in adult trials, a question often arises: when can pediatric patients use adult dosages? For currently approved therapeutic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) with equivalent adult and pediatric indications, body weight thresholds for pediatric patients to receive adult doses vary from 30 to 75 kg. Our objective is to determine if a consistent weight threshold can be recommended for therapeutic mAbs with wide therapeutic windows. Simulations were run to predict exposure using a population pharmacokinetic model describing the typical PK characteristics of a mAb with linear elimination.

Femur Rotation Increases Patella Cartilage Stress in Females with Patellofemoral Pain.

Purpose: This study aimed to test the hypothesis that internal rotation of the femur increases patellofemoral joint stress in persons with patellofemoral pain (PFP).

Methods: Patella cartilage stress profiles of nine female participants with PFP were obtained during squatting using subject-specific finite element (FE) models of the patellofemoral joint (15° and 45° of knee flexion). Input parameters for the FE model included joint geometry, quadriceps muscle forces during squatting, and weight-bearing patellofemoral joint kinematics.

Failure locus of the anterior cruciate ligament: 3D finite element analysis.

Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) disruption is a common injury that is detrimental to an athlete's quality of life. Determining the mechanisms that cause ACL injury is important in order to develop proper interventions. A failure locus defined as various combinations of loadings and movements, internal/external rotation of femur and valgus and varus moments at a 25(o) knee flexion angle leading to ACL failure was obtained.

The effect of the frontal plane tibiofemoral angle and varus knee moment on the contact stress and strain at the knee cartilage.

Subject-specific models were developed and finite element analysis was performed to observe the effect of the frontal plane tibiofemoral angle on the normal stress, Tresca shear stress and normal strain at the surface of the knee cartilage. Finite element models were created for three subjects with different tibiofemoral angle and physiological loading conditions were defined from motion analysis and muscle force mathematical models to simulate static single-leg stance. The results showed that the greatest magnitude of the normal stress, Tresca shear stress and normal strain at the medial compartment was for the varus aligned individual.

Effect of frontal plane tibiofemoral angle on the stress and strain at the knee cartilage during the stance phase of gait.

Subject-specific three-dimensional finite element models of the knee joint were created and used to study the effect of the frontal plane tibiofemoral angle on the stress and strain distribution in the knee cartilage during the stance phase of the gait cycle. Knee models of three subjects with different tibiofemoral angle and body weight were created based on magnetic resonance imaging of the knee. Loading and boundary conditions were determined from motion analysis and force platform data, in conjunction with the muscle-force reduction method.

The combined effect of frontal plane tibiofemoral knee angle and meniscectomy on the cartilage contact stresses and strains.

Abnormal tibiofemoral alignment can create loading conditions at the knee that may lead to the initiation and progression of knee osteoarthritis (OA). The degenerative changes of the articular cartilage may occur earlier and with greater severity in individuals with abnormal frontal plane tibiofemoral alignment who undergo a partial or total meniscectomy. In this investigation, subject specific 3D finite element knee models were created from magnetic resonance images of two female subjects to study the combined effect of frontal plane tibiofemoral alignment and total and partial meniscectomy on the stress and strain at the knee cartilage.

DNA analysis of digested tomato seeds in stomach contents.

Examination of stomach contents is one of the important steps in medical legal autopsy. Vegetative materials such as stems, roots, and seeds in stomach contents can be valuable evidence for providing investigative leads in death investigation. Currently, the identification of plant materials relies on microscopic and morphologic examination.