The Influence of Schmorl Nodes in Spinal Sagittal Balance in Young Adults.

 The present study aims to characterize the spinal balance (SB) in young adults with Schmorl nodes (SN).  A cross-sectional study was conducted on a sample of 47 young adults. Lumbar magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to divide the patients into an SN group and a control group.

Advancing spinal fusion: Interbody stabilization by in situ foaming of a chemically modified polycaprolactone.

Spinal fusion (SF) surgery relies on medical hardware such as screws, cages and rods, complemented by bone graft or substitute, to stabilize the interventioned spine and achieve adequate bone ingrowth. SF is technically demanding, lengthy and expensive. Advances in material science and processing technologies, proposed herein, allowed the development of an adhesive polymeric foam with the potential to dismiss the need for invasive hardware in SF.

Biomaterials and Bioactive Agents in Spinal Fusion.

Management of degenerative spine pathologies frequently leads to the need for spinal fusion (SF), where bone growth is induced toward stabilization of the interventioned spine. Autologous bone graft (ABG) remains the gold-standard inducer, whereas new bone graft substitutes attempt to achieve effective de novo bone formation and solid fusion. Limited fusion outcomes have driven motivation for more sophisticated and multidisciplinary solutions, involving new biomaterials and/or biologics, through innovative delivery platforms.

Long-term Follow-up of Dorsal Wedge Osteotomy for Pediatric Freiberg Disease.

Background: Treatment for Freiberg disease has been largely conservative despite availability of various operative options for severe or refractory cases. The aim of this study was to evaluate the long-term results of pediatric patients with symptomatic Freiberg disease treated with intra-articular dorsal wedge osteotomy.

Methods: Pediatric patients treated for Freiberg disease with surgery between January 1982 and 1999 were identified and selected for long-term clinical evaluation.

Continuous zoom calibration by tracking salient points in endoscopic video.

Many image-based systems for aiding the surgeon during minimally invasive surgery require the endoscopic camera to be calibrated at all times. This article proposes a method for accomplishing this goal whenever the camera has optical zoom and the focal length changes during the procedure. Our solution for online calibration builds on recent developments in tracking salient points using differential image alignment, is well suited for continuous operation, and makes no assumptions about the camera motion or scene rigidity.

Benefits of radial distortion correction in arthroscopic surgery: a first experimental study on a knee model.

Background: Lens probes used in arthroscopy typically have a small diameter and wide field-of-view. This introduces strong radial distortion (RD) into the image, ultimately affecting the surgeon's hand-eye coordination. This study evaluates potential benefits of using distortion-free images in arthroscopic surgery.

Spinal infection: state of the art and management algorithm.

Introduction: Spinal infection is a rare pathology although a concerning rising incidence has been observed in recent years. This increase might reflect a progressively more susceptible population but also the availability of increased diagnostic accuracy. Yet, even with improved diagnosis tools and procedures, the delay in diagnosis remains an important issue.