Case report of tension pneumothorax related to acupuncture.

Although recent prospective studies came to the conclusion that the incidence of adverse events following acupuncture can be classified as minimal, many cases of acupuncture-related pneumothorax have been published over the years, among them some cases of tension pneumothorax. In this case, a slender woman received acupuncture from a fully trained medical acupuncturist including needling of the points LU1 in the subacromial region and BL13, which is a paravertebral point at the level of the spinous process of the third thoracic vertebra. During the final treatment, she experienced difficulties in breathing and pain in the left chest.

Guidelines for case reports of adverse events related to acupuncture.

Numerous case reports of adverse events of acupuncture have been published, mostly in journals which are not related to acupuncture. The authors usually have no training in acupuncture. In principle, case reports on adverse events are of value as an aid for learning.

Anatomy for the acupuncturist--facts & fiction. 3: Upper & lower extremity.

Anatomy knowledge, and the skill to apply it, is arguably the most important facet of safe and competent acupuncture practice. The authors believe that an acupuncturist should always know where the tip of their needle lies with respect to the relevant anatomy so that vital structures can be avoided and so that the intended target for stimulation can be reached. This article describes the anatomy of the upper limb and shoulder girdle, and lower limb and pelvis, relevant to safe needling practice.

Anatomy for the acupuncturist--facts & fiction 2: The chest, abdomen, and back.

Anatomy knowledge, and the skill to apply it, is arguably the most important facet of safe and competent acupuncture practice. The authors believe that an acupuncturist should always know where the tip of their needle lies with respect to the relevant anatomy so that vital structures can be avoided and so that the intended target for stimulation can be reached. This article reviews clinically relevant anatomy for somatic needling of the chest and abdomen.

Anatomy for the acupuncturist--facts & fiction. 1: The head and neck region.

Knowledge of anatomy, and the skill to apply it, is arguably the most important facet of safe and competent acupuncture practice. The authors believe that an acupuncturist should always know where the tip of their needle lies with respect to the relevant anatomy so that vital structures can be avoided and the intended target for stimulation can be reached.

[Thiel method fixed cadaver ears. A new procedure for graduate and continuing education in middle ear surgery].

Background And Objective: An efficient training program in ear surgery needs suitable models to learn the specific preparation techniques. However, conventionally fixed or fresh frozen ears of human corpses do not meet all demands. Therefore we investigated the feasibility of ears fixed according to Thiel for surgical training in the temporal bone lab.

The cartilage of the tibiofibular joint: a source for autologous osteochondral grafts without damaging weight-bearing joint surfaces.

Within the past few years, autologous osteochondral transplantation has become an established procedure in the therapy of articular cartilage defects of the knee. One significant disadvantage of this technique is the harvesting of grafts from the weight-bearing area. The tibiofibular articulation is less loaded.

Interindividual reproducibility in perioperative rotational alignment of femoral components in knee prosthetic surgery using the transepicondylar axis.

Femoral component malalignment is one of the main causes of persisting anterior knee pain after knee replacement. This study examined interindividual reproducibility in perioperative definition of the transepicondylar axis (TEA) as a reference for measuring the rotational alignment of the femoral component. Eight surgeons experienced in knee prosthetic surgery marked on Thiel-embalmed cadaver specimens the reference points that they would normally use to define the TEA during knee replacement.

[Basic principles and surgical technique of tibio-fibula-plasty in cartilage-bone transplantation].

Background: Within the last few years autologous cartilage-bone-grafting is becoming an established standardized procedure in joint surgery. One significant disadvantage of this technique is the harvesting of the bone plugs from the weight-bearing area of the knee joint.

Purpose: The tibiofibular articulation is located close to the knee joint that is operated on.

Which joint position puts the axillary nerve at lowest risk when performing arthroscopic capsular release in patients with adhesive capsulitis of the shoulder?

The success of arthroscopic capsular release of the glenohumeral joint depends on complete incision of the inferior capsule. This study determined the distance between capsule and the axillary nerve in different joint positions. In 14 human shoulder specimens the anterior joint capsule and axillary nerve were dissected, and the anterior joint capsule was incised between the 1 and 5 o'clock positions.

The nerve supply of the human auricle.

Knowledge of the innervation of the outer ear is crucial for surgery in this region. The aim of this study was to describe the system of the auricular nerve supply. On 14 ears of seven cadavers the complete course of the nerve supply was exposed and categorized.

Rare but serious complications of acupuncture: traumatic lesions.

Acupuncture has a reputation among the public of being safe. Although recently performed prospective studies on the frequency of adverse effects of acupuncture found no severe complication, since 1965 many case reports of serious or even life-threatening incidents caused by acupuncture have appeared in the scientific literature. The most frequently reported complications are pneumothorax and lesions of the spinal cord.

Entrapment of the lingual nerve due to an ossified pterygospinous ligament.

During a routine dissection course at the University of Muenster (Germany) an unusual course of the lingual nerve was found with entrapment of the nerve between a widely ossified pterygospinous ligament and the medial pterygoid muscle. Furthermore, the nerve's mobility was restricted by a more distal anastomosis with the inferior alveolar nerve. Although incomplete or complete ossification of the pterygospinous ligament is not uncommon, the combination with a medial course of the lingual nerve has not been described before.

The posterior subdeltoid approach: a modified access to the posterior glenohumeral joint.

A modified surgical approach to the posterior aspect of the glenohumeral joint and/or the dorsal glenoid is described. This access does not alter any muscle insertion or neuromuscular planes. After the skin incision is made, the inferior border of the spinal part of the deltoid is identified and the deltoid muscle is mobilized and retracted, thus offering an excellent approach to the interval between the infraspinatus and teres minor muscles.

[Surgical procedures in mouth, jaw and facial surgery in Thiel embalmed body donors].

This study investigates whether human cadavers embalmed according to Thiel can be used for research and education in oral-maxillo-facial surgery. Different surgical approaches were tested on such cadavers. The usability of the specimen was judged jointly by anatomists and surgeons.

[Pathomorphology of laser-induced interstitial tumor thermotherapy of the liver].

The aim of this study was to analyse pathomorphological findings after treatment with laser induced tumor thermotherapy (LITT) on liver tissue and to correlate the results with magnetic resonance imaging. LITT was performed ex vivo and in vivo using a Neodym-YAG-Laser. Lesions were monitored by MR-thermometry ex vivo and by contrast-enhanced MRI in vivo.

[Precision and comparison of CT-, MRI- and DL-controlled interventions exemplified by lumbar facet infiltration--an experimental study].

We evaluated the accuracy of the needle tip representation by different imaging techniques for the guidance of facet infiltrations. For visualisation of the lumbar facet joints we used a high-field magnetic resonance tomograph (MRT) with a 2.0 Tesla field and 3.

[Virtual simulation for optimizing the range of motion in hip alloarthroplasty using an adapted thrust-plate prosthesis model].

The purpose of the present study was to increase the free range of motion in conventional trust-plate prosthesis design and to optimize the trust-plate contact as well as the osteointegration area below the trust-plate. For the first part of the study, the two-dimensional geometry of the osteotomy plane was demonstrated in 25 CT-reconstructed femora after performing a virtual cut at a CCD angle of 135 degrees. In the second part, we constructed a prototype of an anatomic adapted trust-plate prosthesis (A-TPP) with an optimized trust-plate and corpus geometry based on the three-dimensional data of three human cadaveric femurs (age 67-75 years).

Is there an option for harvesting autologous osteochondral grafts without damaging weight-bearing areas in the knee joint?

Within the past few years autologous osteochondral transplantation has become an established standardized procedure in joint surgery. One significant disadvantage of this technique is the harvesting of the osteochondral grafts from the weight-bearing area of the knee joint. The tibiofibular articulation is located close to the knee joint that is operated on.

Vitamin E reduces platelet adhesion to human endothelial cells in vitro.

Although it has been reported that vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol) can reduce platelet adhesiveness and aggregation in vivo, the mechanism is still unknown. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to determine whether incubations of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) with vitamin E influence platelet adhesion to cultured endothelial cells. To exclude blood plasma involvement, also washed platelets were pretreated with alpha-tocopherol.

Reflection contrast microscopy (RCM): a forgotten technique?

Reflection contrast microscopy (RCM), which utilizes the optical phenomena caused by oblique epi-illumination in combination with a specific optical apparatus, provides an approach for exploring biological phenomena in greater detail. The lack of stray reflection makes it superior to other microscopes. It bridges light and electron microscopic capabilities by allowing the analysis of ultrathin sections beyond the usual light microscopic magnification.