Investigation into the neural correlates of emotional augmentation of clinical pain.

Although depressive mood is an important psychological determinate of chronic pain, the neural circuitry that mediates its influence on the pain experience is largely unknown. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging (FMRI) to investigate the neurophysiological interactions between depressive symptoms and disease-relevant pain in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. RA is associated with chronic joint pain and swelling, but peripheral joint pathology often does not fully explain the amount of pain a patient experiences.

Management of scoliosis with special seating for the non-ambulant spastic cerebral palsy population--a biomechanical study.

Objective: To investigate the effects of special seating on lateral spinal curvature in the non-ambulant spastic cerebral palsy population with scoliosis.

Design: Prospective study with matched pairs (same subject pre- and post-intervention).

Background: It is thought that special seating can improve the sitting posture of individuals with spastic cerebral palsy.

The radiographic classification of medial gonarthrosis. Correlation with operation methods in 200 knees.

Ahlbäck's classification of gonarthrosis can be applied with improved precision by careful interpretation of anteroposterior varus stress and lateral radiographs of the knee. The tibial lesion in early gonarthrosis is located in the anterior and middle part of the medial plateau. In more advanced disease, when the anterior cruciate ligament is invariably damaged, the lesion extends to the posterior margin of the medial tibial plateau.

Familial back shape in adolescent scoliosis. A photogrammetric population study.

A stereophotogrammetric technique (ISIS scanning) was used to assess the back shape of children with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (index cases), their unaffected relatives, normal adults and children, and children with small idiopathic scoliotic curves (Cobb's angle less than 30 degrees) to detect any familial trends that may predispose to scoliosis. The analysis revealed a characteristic three-dimensional scoliotic back shape; no differences in unaffected relatives as regards sex or a positive family history of scoliosis; similar back shapes in unaffected parents and normal adults, both of whom differ from index cases and children with small curves. Unaffected siblings had a sagittal profile between those of normal children and children with small curves.

Controlled mechanical stimulation in the treatment of tibial fractures.

Although it is known that the mechanical environment affects the fracture healing process, the optimal conditions for the different stages of healing have not been defined. In the present studies, the influence of applying a very short period of axial micromovement with defined characteristics to healing fractures has been studied both in simulated and clinical tibial fractures. The fracture healing process is seen to be acutely sensitive to small periods of daily strain applied axially within two weeks of fracture.

Surface stereophotogrammetry of thoracic kyphosis.

The thoracic kyphosis angles of 16 normal individuals, 10 patients with Scheuermann's disease and 11 with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis were measured both radiographically and from Integrated Shape Imaging System (ISIS) scans obtained by surface stereophotogrammetry. There was a high correlation between the two measures. The method of kyphosis measurement from ISIS scans was then used for 30 patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis who underwent corrective surgery.

Initiation and enhancement of bone formation. A review.

Knowledge of some of the fundamental biochemical factors that may influence the initiation and continued growth of bone-forming cell lines is presented. The discussion is limited to those factors shown experimentally to be present locally in bone tissue and synthesized in the environment of bone-forming cells. The current state of knowledge of basic research findings on osteogenic factors is given in detail.