Characteristics and Clinical Assessment of Elbow Pain in Youth Baseball Players.

Elbow injuries related to the throwing motion in baseball during the growth period present difficulties for early detection and may cause serious future disabilities. This study aimed to comprehensively determine the characteristics and clinical assessment of elbow pain in youth baseball players. Two hundred and sixteen young baseball players underwent elbow medical examination.

Incidence and characteristics of aspiration pneumonia in the Nagasaki Prefecture from 2005 to 2019.

Background: Aspiration pneumoniae remains a major health concern, particularly in the older population and has poor prognosis; however, the concept itself remains vague worldwide. This study aimed to determine the actual situation and characteristics of aspiration pneumonia from 2005 to 2019 in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan.

Methods: Cases of aspiration pneumonia that occurred in the Nagasaki Prefecture between 2005 and 2019 were analyzed using emergency transportation records.

Progression of microstructural deterioration in load-bearing immobilization osteopenia.

Purpose: Immobilization osteopenia is a major healthcare problem in clinical and social medicine. However, the mechanisms underlying this bone pathology caused by immobilization under load-bearing conditions are not yet fully understood. This study aimed to evaluate sequential changes to the three-dimensional microstructure of bone in load-bearing immobilization osteopenia using a fixed-limb rat model.

Clinical Outcomes Evaluation of Combined Valgus and Chiari Osteotomy Inconsistent with Patient Satisfaction.

The Japanese Orthopaedic Association Hip-Disease Evaluation Questionnaire, which is tailored to Japanese lifestyles, has recently been developed in Japan as a patient-reported outcome measure. In this study, combined valgus and Chiari osteotomy were evaluated using the JHEQ and JOA scores. The subjects were 42 hips of 39 patients with a mean age at surgery of 45.

Double-bundle anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction improves tibial rotational instability: analysis of squatting motion using a 2D/3D registration technique.

Background: The anterior cruciate ligament-deficient (ACLD) knee requires appropriate treatment for the patient to return to sports. The purpose of this study was to clarify the kinematics of the anterior cruciate ligament-deficient knee in squatting motion before and after double-bundle anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (DB-ACLR) using a 2D/3D registration technique.

Methods: The subjects of this study were 10 men with confirmed unilateral ACL rupture who underwent DB-ACLR.

Early staphylococcal biofilm formation on solid orthopaedic implant materials: in vitro study.

Biofilms forming on the surface of biomaterials can cause intractable implant-related infections. Bacterial adherence and early biofilm formation are influenced by the type of biomaterial used and the physical characteristics of implant surface. In this in vitro research, we evaluated the ability of Staphylococcus epidermidis, the main pathogen in implant-related infections, to form biofilms on the surface of the solid orthopaedic biomaterials, oxidized zirconium-niobium alloy, cobalt-chromium-molybdenum alloy (Co-Cr-Mo), titanium alloy (Ti-6Al-4V), commercially pure titanium (cp-Ti) and stainless steel.

Effect of surface roughness of biomaterials on Staphylococcus epidermidis adhesion.

Background: Implant-related infections are caused by adhesion of bacteria to the surface of biomaterials. In this in vitro research, we evaluated the ability of Staphylococcus epidermidis (ATCC35984) to adhere to the surface of solid biomaterials at different levels of roughness below 30 nm Ra and investigated the minimum level of roughness required to promote bacterial adhesion on five kinds of biomaterials: oxidized zirconium-niobium alloy (Oxinium), cobalt-chromium-molybdenum alloy (Co-Cr-Mo), titanium alloy (Ti-6Al-4 V), commercially pure titanium (Cp-Ti) and stainless steel (SUS316L), samples of which were categorized into a fine group and a coarse group according to surface roughness. The test specimens were physically analyzed and the viable bacterial density of the adhered bacteria was quantitatively determined (n = 20).

Adherence ability of Staphylococcus epidermidis on prosthetic biomaterials: an in vitro study.

Bacterial adhesion to the surface of biomaterials is an essential step in the pathogenesis of implant-related infections. In this in vitro research, we evaluated the ability of Staphylococcus epidermidis to adhere to the surface of solid biomaterials, including oxidized zirconium-niobium alloy (Oxinium), cobalt-chromium-molybdenum alloy, titanium alloy, commercially pure titanium, and stainless steel, and performed a biomaterial-to-biomaterial comparison. The test specimens were physically analyzed to quantitatively determine the viable adherent density of the S.

Colonic delivery of docosahexaenoic acid improves impaired glucose tolerance via GLP-1 secretion and suppresses pancreatic islet hyperplasia in diabetic KK-A(y) mice.

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) is an incretin hormone that regulates the insulin secretion depending on blood glucose level. Recent studies show that the unsaturated fatty acids can promote GLP-1 secretion from intestinal L-cells. We have shown previously that docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) administered into a mouse closed intestinal loop, especially into the colonic segment, stimulate GLP-1 and insulin secretion and have a hypoglycemic effect, suggesting that DHA and EPA have potential as antidiabetic agents.

Clinical and histomorphometrical study on titanium dioxide-coated external fixation pins.

Background: Pin site infection is the most common and significant complication of external fixation. In this work, the efficacy of pins coated with titanium dioxide (TiO(2)) for inhibition of infection was compared with that of stainless steel control pins in an in vivo study.

Methods: Pins contaminated with an identifiable Staphylococcus aureus strain were inserted into femoral bone in a rat model and exposed to ultraviolet A light for 30 minutes.

Usefulness of colon targeted DHA and EPA as novel diabetes medications that promote intrinsic GLP-1 secretion.

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) is a gut-derived peptide secreted from intestinal L-cells and now considered as an ideal diabetic medicine. Recently, it was reported that the unsaturated fatty acid alpha-linoleic acid promotes the secretion of GLP-1 via a G protein-coupled receptor, GPR120. However, the effects of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids on the secretion of GLP-1 have not been examined in vivo.