Usefulness of ultrasound in diagnosing long head of the biceps tendon malposition in patients with rotator cuff tears.

Purpose: This study aimed to determine the role of preoperative shoulder ultrasonography (SUS) in detecting positional abnormalities of the long head of the biceps tendon (LHBT) and predicting subscapularis (SSC) tears in patients with rotator cuff injuries.

Methods: A total of 331 patients (365 shoulders) who had undergone arthroscopic shoulder surgery for the treatment of rotator cuff tears were included in the study. Their preoperative SUS and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings were examined retrospectively to assess the presence of LHBT abnormalities at the bicipital groove.

Cubane Chirality via Substitution of a "Hidden" Regular Tetrahedron.

In the hexahedral hydrocarbon cubane, replacing hydrogen with other atoms at three positions within any one of the internal tetrahedrons can conceptually lead to the formation of a unique class of chiral molecules. In pursuit of this endeavor, we prepared 1,3-dibromo-4-deuteriocubane-,-diisopropylcarboxamide, which upon treatment with zincates affords 1,3,5-trisubstituted cubanes via simultaneous two-position substitution reactions. The proposed chiral attributes of this stereogeometric class were confirmed by enantiomeric resolution of a -bromobenzyl derivative using chiral HPLC.

H/D Exchange Using Hot Heavy Water.

Metal-catalyzed H/D exchange in hydrothermal deuterium oxide, performed in an autoclave using external heating or in a sealed glass tube under microwave irradiation, was shown to be an efficient method for preparing various deuterium-labeled compounds. Phosphonium salts for the Wittig reaction were deuterated at the α-position in the presence of MS 4A under microwave irradiation; primary alcohols and primary/secondary amines were deuterated at the α-position in the presence of ruthenium catalyst under microwave irradiation; metal-catalyzed direct C-H functionalizations on sp³ and sp² carbon gave the corresponding fully deuterated products under hydrothermal conditions. These methods gave various deuterium-labelled compounds efficiently using D₂O as a D-atom source.

A Protocol for an Iodine-Metal Exchange Reaction on Cubane Using Lithium Organozincates.

The iodine-metal exchange reaction on cubane was examined using various lithium organozincates. Among these, the dianionic zincate, n-BuZnLi, gave optimum results. The resulting cubyl metal species could be converted into various cubane derivatives via addition reactions with electrophiles, such as an organohalide or aldehyde.

Perioperative local anaesthesia for reducing pain following septal surgery.

Background: Septal surgery is a well-established procedure used to treat nasal obstruction due to deviation of the nasal septum, which is carried out under local or general anaesthesia. Local anaesthesia is used for postoperative pain control, but its effectiveness and safety are unclear.

Objectives: To assess the effectiveness of perioperative local anaesthesia for reducing pain in septal surgery and to evaluate the risk of associated complications.

Single- and double-layered organically modified nanosheets by selective interlayer grafting and exfoliation of layered potassium hexaniobate.

Organically modified niobate nanosheets are promising building blocks for the design of advanced hybrid materials. Nanosheets with controlled thickness and surface composition are important for precise structural design of the nanosheet-based materials. In this work, single-layered and double-layered niobate nanosheets functionalized by phenylphosphonate moieties were selectively prepared by interlayer grafting of A-type and B-type intercalation derivatives of potassium hexaniobate (K4Nb6O17·3H2O) with phenylphosphonic acid (PPA), followed by exfoliation by ultrasonication in acetonitrile.

Effects of negative air ions on activity of neural substrates involved in autonomic regulation in rats.

The neural mechanism by which negative air ions (NAI) mediate the regulation of autonomic nervous system activity is still unknown. We examined the effects of NAI on physiological responses, such as blood pressure (BP), heart rate (HR), and heart rate variability (HRV) as well as neuronal activity, in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN), locus coeruleus (LC), nucleus ambiguus (NA), and nucleus of the solitary tract (NTS) with c-Fos immunohistochemistry in anesthetized, spontaneously breathing rats. In addition, we performed cervical vagotomy to reveal the afferent pathway involved in mediating the effects of NAI on autonomic regulation.

Osteocalcin, deoxypyridinoline and interleukin-1beta in peri-implant crevicular fluid of patients with peri-implantitis.

The aim of the present study was to analyze the levels of osteocalcin, deoxypyridinoline (Dpd) and interleukin-1beta as markers of bone metabolism in peri-implant crevicular fluid (PICF) from peri-implantitis patients. PICF was sampled from a total of 34 endosseous titanium implants from 16 patients; nine females (mean age 52.8, range 40-62 years) and seven males (mean age 56.

The use of video refraction to measure the dynamic properties of the near triad in observers of a 3-D display.

Objective: Recording of the dynamic behaviour of the near triad during viewing of a three-dimensional (3-D) display is attempted. This may then be used to identify the possible origin of asthenopia and other ocular problems which occur whilst viewing such displays.

Methods: Subjects viewed a 3-D display through an image splitter.

Vascular endothelial growth factor and transforming growth factor-alpha and -beta1 are released from human cultured gingival epithelial sheets.

Background: It has been demonstrated that human cultured epithelial sheets prepared by tissue engineering techniques provide useful graft material for wound healing and tissue regeneration. However, limited information is available with regard to biological effects such as release of growth factors from human cultured gingival epithelial sheets (HCGES). The purpose of this study was to measure the levels of growth factors released from HCGES into culture medium.

Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor and Transforming Growth Factor-α and -β1 Are Released From Human Cultured Gingival Epithelial Sheets.

Background: It has been demonstrated that human cultured epithelial sheets prepared by tissue engineering techniques provide useful graft material for wound healing and tissue regeneration. However, limited information is available with regard to biological effects such as release of growth factors from human cultured gingival epithelial sheets (HCGES). The purpose of this study was to measure the levels of growth factors released from HCGES into culture medium Methods: Twenty patients aged 44 to 71 years with generalized chronic periodontitis were recruited, and their gingival tissues obtained during periodontal flap surgery.