The passive stiffness and strength of periscapular muscles may affect scapulohumeral control, especially in overhead athletes due to sports-specific training. This study tried to assess the ...relationship between the passive stiffness and strength of periscapular muscles, scapulohumeral kinematics and neuromuscular control during scaption in swimmers. Ten male adolescent competitive front-crawl swimmers were recruited. The passive stiffness and strength of periscapular muscles were measured in standard postures by a hand-held myotonometer and dynamometer, respectively. Surface electromyography and electromagnetic tracking systems were synchronized to record the muscle activities and scapulohumeral kinematics during scaption. Correlations between the passive stiffness or strength of periscapular muscles and the kinematics or muscle activity were examined by Spearman's rank correlation coefficient. The maximal strength of periscapular muscles correlated positively with the ranges of upward and external rotation of the scapula and negatively with muscle activity during scaption. Passive stiffness of periscapular muscles was associated with the downward rotation of the scapula and triggered an increase in muscle activity. Increased passive stiffness or decreased strength in the periscapular muscles may affect their role in controlling the scapular rotation and contribute to compensation from adjacent muscles. Our findings suggest that when attempting to evaluate scapular behavior, it may be beneficial to examine muscle strength and passive stiffness of periscapular muscles.
The intricate relationship between alcohol consumption and intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) presents a nuanced field of study, especially concerning the dose-dependent impact on secondary brain injury ...(SBI). Recognizing the established risks associated with heavy drinking, this review delves deeper into the less understood territories of low to moderate alcohol consumption. By systematically analyzing recent studies, we uncover critical insights into how varying alcohol intake levels modulate ICH risk through mechanisms such as microglial activation, oxidative stress, and the protective potential of polyphenols. This analysis extends beyond the hypertensive effects of heavy alcohol use to explore the complex molecular pathophysiology involved in alcohol-related ICH. Our findings indicate that while heavy alcohol use unequivocally exacerbates ICH risk, moderate consumption and its associated polyphenols may offer neuroprotective effects against SBI, albeit within a finely balanced threshold. This review highlights the significant gaps in current understanding and underscores the urgent need for targeted research to elucidate these complex interactions. Through this comprehensive examination, we aim to inform more nuanced public health policies and intervention strategies, taking into account the diverse effects of alcohol consumption on ICH risk.
A mechanically pattern reconfigurable array Lee, Yi‐Lung; Wang, Po‐Kai; Chen, Tsair‐Rong ...
Microwave and optical technology letters,
March 2020, 2020-03-00, 20200301, Letnik:
62, Številka:
3
Journal Article
Recenzirano
A design of pattern reconfigurable arrays realized with mechanical mechanism is presented. The radiating element of the array is a printed dipole backed with a metallic box, and it has a broad ...impedance bandwidth as well as a high front‐to‐back ratio. Four of the elements are connected together by using a mounting fixture with rotatable joints. When the joints are rotated manually, the array configuration is changed, and each array configuration can generate a specific radiation pattern. For the proposed array, a prototype designed at the frequency band from 4.8 to 5.9 GHz is constructed. Measured results for the prototype operating in three typical radiation modes are exhibited, including high‐directivity radiation mode, two‐beam radiation mode, and omnidirectional radiation mode. Simulated results also validate the experiments.
Background
Chronic stress has been reported to increase basal pain sensitivity and/or exacerbate existing persistent pain. However, most surgical patients have normal physiological and psychological ...health status such as normal pain perception before surgery although they do experience short-term stress during pre-and post-operative periods. Whether or not this short-term stress affects persistent postsurgical pain is unclear.
Results
In this study, we showed that pre-or post-surgical exposure to immobilization 6 h daily for three consecutive days did not change basal responses to mechanical, thermal, or cold stimuli or peak levels of incision-induced hypersensitivity to these stimuli; however, immobilization did prolong the duration of incision-induced hypersensitivity in both male and female rats. These phenomena were also observed in post-surgical exposure to forced swimming 25 min daily for 3 consecutive days. Short-term stress induced by immobilization was demonstrated by an elevation in the level of serum corticosterone, an increase in swim immobility, and a decrease in sucrose consumption. Blocking this short-term stress via intrathecal administration of a selective glucocorticoid receptor antagonist, RU38486, or bilateral adrenalectomy significantly attenuated the prolongation of incision-induced hypersensitivity to mechanical, thermal, and cold stimuli.
Conclusion
Our results indicate that short-term stress during the pre- or post-operative period delays postoperative pain recovery although it does not affect basal pain perception. Prevention of short-term stress may facilitate patients' recovery from postoperative pain.
Vasculitic peripheral neuropathy (VPN) arises from an inflammatory obstruction in the blood vessels supplying peripheral nerves and subsequent ischaemic insults, which exhibits the clinical features ...of neuropathic pain and impaired peripheral nerve function. VPN induced by ischaemia–reperfusion (IR) has been reported to involve nuclear factor‐κB (NF‐κB)‐mediated neuroinflammation. Recent studies have suggested that endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress has been implicated in the development of peripheral neuropathies. Resveratrol possesses a potent anti‐inflammatory capacity. We hypothesized that resveratrol may exert a protective effect against VPN through modulating the interrelated ER stress and NF‐κB pathways. Male Sprague‐Dawley rats were allocated into five groups: sham, sham + resveratrol 40 mg/kg (R40), IR, IR + R20 and IR + R40. VPN was induced by occluding the right femoral artery for 4 hours followed by reperfusion. Our data have shown that VPN induced by IR led to hind paw mechanical allodynia, heat hyperalgaesia, and impaired motor nerve conduction velocity (MNCV). With resveratrol intervention, the behavioural parameters were improved in a dose‐dependent manner and the MNCV levels were increased as well. The molecular data revealed that VPN induced by IR significantly increased the expression of NF‐κB as well as the ER stress sensor proteins, protein kinase RNA‐like endoplasmic reticulum kinase, inositol‐requiring enzyme 1 and activating transcription factor 6 in the sciatic nerves. More importantly, resveratrol significantly attenuated the expression of NF‐κB and the ER stress sensor proteins after IR. In conclusion, resveratrol alleviates VPN induced by IR. The mechanisms may involve modulating NF‐κB‐mediated neuroinflammation via suppressing ER stress.
Background and Objectives: Ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt placement is the most common treatment for cerebrospinal fluid diversion. Head and neck pain occurring after a long period following VP ...shunt insertion is rarely reported. Here, we present a rare case of head and neck pain occurring 2 years after surgery due to irritation of the superficial cervical plexus by the VP shunt. Case Description: A 46-year-old female patient received VP shunt placement surgery. Two years after the surgery, she experienced a left temporal headache with neck pain on the left side, which extended to the left para-auricular and fascial region. Ultrasound (US) scanning revealed that the VP shunt passed within the superficial cervical fascia and through the left sternocleidomastoid muscle (SCM). Additionally, friction of the branches of the superficial cervical plexus and of the greater auricular and lesser occipital nerves caused by the VP shunt was found underneath the lateral border of the SCM. Subsequently, the blocking and hydro-release of the left superficial cervical plexus were performed. After four series of treatments, the patient’s head and neck pain vanished, and the frequency of the headaches was substantially reduced. The patient was regularly followed-up in the outpatient department of neurosurgery. Conclusions: Head and neck pain caused by the malpositioning of a VP shunt catheter with an unusually delayed onset is a rarely reported complication and could be easily neglected. Patients with head and neck pain following VP shunt insertion should be checked using US scanning to identify the potential origin of the pain and receive adequate treatments. Intraoperative US-guided tunnelling is suggested to avoid the malpositioning of the VP shunt catheter.
Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is a life-threatening type of stroke that disrupts the normal neurological function of the brain. Clinical studies have reported a non-linear J-shaped association ...between alcohol consumption levels and the occurrence of cerebral stroke. Specifically, alcohol intoxication increases stroke incidence, while moderate alcohol pre-conditioning decreases stroke frequency and improves outcomes. Although alcohol pre-consumption is likely a crucial player in ICH, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. We performed 1-h alcohol pre-conditioning followed by ICH induction in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats to investigate the role of alcohol pre-conditioning in ICH. Interestingly, behavioral test analysis found that ethanol intoxication (3 g/kg) aggravated ICH-induced neurological deficits, but moderate ethanol pre-conditioning (0.75 g/kg) ameliorated ICH-induced neurological deficits by reducing the oxidative stress and proinflammatory cytokines release. Moreover, we found that moderate ethanol pretreatment improved the striatal endoplasmic reticulum (ER) homeostasis by increasing the chaperone protein expression and reducing oxidative stress and apoptosis caused by ICH. Our findings show that the mechanism regulated by moderate ethanol pre-conditioning might be beneficial for ICH, indicating the importance of ER homeostasis, oxidative stress, and differential cytokines release in ICH.
During the processing of mango, a huge amount of peel is generated, which is environmentally problematic. In the present study, a compressional-puffing process was adopted to pretreat the peels of ...various mango cultivars, and then the bioactive compounds of mango peels were extracted by water or ethanol. The phenolic compound compositions as well as the free radical-scavenging, anti-inflammatory, and antibacterial activities of water extract (WE) and ethanol extract (EE) from nonpuffed (NP) and compressional-puffed (CP) mango peels were further evaluated. It was found that compressional-puffing could increase the yield of extracts obtained from most mango varieties and could augment the polyphenol content of extracts from Jinhwang and Tainoung number 1 (TN1) cultivars. The WE and EE from TN1 exhibited the highest polyphenol content and the greatest free radical-scavenging activities among the mango cultivars tested. Seven phenolic compounds (gallic acid, pyrogallol, chlorogenic acid, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, p-coumaric acid, ECG, and CG) were detected in CPWE (compressional-puffed water extract) and CPEE (compressional-puffed ethanol extract) from TN1, and antioxidant stability of both CPWE and CPEE was higher than that of vitamin C. Further biological experiments revealed that CPEE from TN1 possessed the strongest anti-inflammatory and antibacterial activities, and thus it is recommended as a multibioactive agent, which may have applications in the food, cosmetic, and nutraceutical industries.
Insertion of a double-lumen endotracheal tube (DLT) is the most commonly used method for one-lung ventilation (OLV). This meta-analysis was aimed at investigating the performance of lung ultrasound ...in assessing the DLT position in OLV.
Electronic databases were searched for related trials from inception to October 2022. The primary outcome was the performance of ultrasound or clinical evaluation in confirming the correctness of the DLT position, using fiberoptic bronchoscopy or intraoperative direct visualization of lung collapse as the gold standard. The secondary outcome was the time required to confirm or adjust the DTL position.
Five randomized controlled trials and three observational studies involving 771 patients were included in the meta-analysis. The pooled sensitivity and specificity of ultrasound were 0.93 (95% confidence interval CI: 0.79–0.98) and 0.61 (95% CI: 0.41–0.77), respectively, while those of clinical evaluation were 0.93 (95% CI: 0.73–0.99) and 0.35 (95% CI: 0.25–0.47), respectively. The pooled procedure duration was 122.27 s (95% CI: 20.85–223.69) with ultrasound and 112.03 s (95% CI: 95.30–128.76) with clinical evaluation. The area under the curve for discriminating the DLT position was 0.86 (95% CI: 0.82–0.88) for ultrasound and 0.52 (95% CI: 0.48–0.57) for clinical evaluation.
Compared to clinical evaluation, ultrasound has a similar sensitivity but a better specificity for confirming the correctness of the DLT position. Ultrasound is an acceptable imaging tool for assessing DTL placement in OLV.
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