A multi-vertebrae CT to US registration of the lumbar spine in clinical data.

Purpose: Spinal needle injections are widely applied to alleviate back pain and for anesthesia. Current treatment is performed either blindly with palpation or using fluoroscopy or computed tomography (CT). Both fluoroscopy and CT guidance expose patients to ionizing radiation.

Spinal needle navigation by tracked ultrasound snapshots.

Purpose: Ultrasound (US) guidance in facet joint injections has been reported previously as an alternative to imaging modalities with ionizing radiation. However, this technique has not been adopted in the clinical routine, due to difficulties in the visualization of the target joint in US and simultaneous manipulation of the needle.

Methods: We propose a technique to increase targeting accuracy and efficiency in facet joint injections.

Interleukin-17A increases neurite outgrowth from adult postganglionic sympathetic neurons.

Inflammation can profoundly alter the structure and function of the nervous system. Interleukin (IL)-17 has been implicated in the pathogenesis of several inflammatory diseases associated with nervous system plasticity. However, the effects of IL-17 on the nervous system remain unexplored.