Hip power analysis in individuals with transfemoral amputation: A different strategy different from stabilisation during gait stance

Introduction and Objectives Joint moments and joint powers during gait are widely used to determine the effects of rehabilitation programs as well as prosthetic fitting. Following the definition of power (dot product of joint moment and joint angular velocity) it has been previously proposed to analyse the 3D angle between both vectors, αMw. Basically, joint power is maximised when both vectors are parallel and cancelled when both vectors are orthogonal. In other words, αMw < 60° reveals a propulsion configuration (more than 50% of the moment contribute to positive power) while αMw > 120° reveals a resistance configuration (more than 50% of the moment contribute to negative power). A stabilisation configuration (less than 50% of the moment contribute to power) corresponds to 60° < αMw < 120°. Previous studies demonstrated that hip joints of able-bodied adults (AB) are mainly in a stabilisation configuration (αMw about 90°) during the stance phase of gait. [1, 2] Individuals with transfemoral amputation (TFA) need to maximise joint power at the hip while controlling the prosthetic knee during stance. Therefore, we tested the hypothesis that TFAs should adopt a strategy that is different from a continuous stabilisation. The objective of this study was to compute joint power and αMw for TFA and to compare them with AB. Methods Three trials of walking at self-selected speed were analysed for 8 TFAs (7 males and 1 female, 46±10 years old, 1.78±0.08 m 82±13 kg) and 8 ABs (males, 25±3 years old, 1.75±0.04, m 67±6 kg). The joint moments are computed from a motion analysis system (Qualisys, Goteborg, Sweden) and a multi-axial transducer (JR3, Woodland, USA) mounted above the prosthetic knee for TFAs and from a motion analysis system (Motion Analysis, Santa Rosa, USA) and force plates (Bertec, Columbus, USA) for ABs. The TFAs were fitted with an OPRA (Integrum, AB, Gothengurg, Sweden) osseointegrated implant system and their prosthetic designs include pneumatic, hydraulic and microprocessor knees. Previous studies showed that the inverse dynamics computed from the multi-axial transducer is the proper method considering the absorption at the foot and resistance at the knee. Results The peak of positive power at loading response (H1) was earlier and lower for TFA compared to AB. Although the joint power is lower, the 3D angle between joint moment and joint angular velocity, αMw, reveals an obvious propulsion configuration (mean αMw about 20°) for TFA compared to a stabilisation configuration (mean αMw about 70°) for AB. The peaks of negative power at midstance (H2) and of positive power at preswing / initial swing (H3) occurred later, lower and longer for TFA compared to AB. Again, the joint powers are lower for TFA but, in this case, αMw is almost comparable (with a time lag), demonstrating a stabilisation (almost a resistance for TFA, mean αMw about 120°) and a propulsion configuration, respectively. The swing phase is not analysed in the present study. Conclusion The analysis of hip joint power may indicate that TFAs demonstrated less propulsion and resistance than ABs during the stance phase of gait. This is true from a quantitative point of view. On the contrary, the 3D angle between joint moment and joint angular velocity, αMw, reveals that TFAs have a remarkable propulsion strategy at loading response and almost a resistance strategy at midstance while ABs adopted a stabilisation strategy. The propulsion configuration, with αMw close to 0°, seems to aim at maximising the positive joint power. The configuration close to resistance, with αMw far from 180°, might aim at unlocking the prosthetic knee before swing while minimising the negative power. This analysis of both joint power and 3D angle between the joint moment and the joint angular velocity provides complementary insights into the gait strategies of TFA that can be used to support evidence-based rehabilitation and fitting of prosthetic components.

Can the direct measurement of the load applied on the residuum of individuals with transfemoral amputation fitted with bone-anchored prosthesis help to improve the rehabilitation program?

To strive to improve the rehabilitation program of individuals with transfemoral amputation fitted with bone-anchored prosthesis based on data from direct measurements of the load applied on the residuum we first of all need to understand the load applied on the fixation. Therefore the load applied on the residuum was first directly measured during standardized activities of daily living such as straight line level walking, ascending and descending stairs and a ramp and walking around a circle. From measuring the load in standardized activities of daily living the load was also measured during different phases of the rehabilitation program such as during walking with walking aids and during load bearing exercises.[1-15] The rehabilitation program for individuals with a transfemoral amputation fitted with an OPRA implant relies on a combination of dynamic and static load bearing exercises.[16-20] This presentation will focus on the study of a set of experimental static load bearing exercises. [1] A group of eleven individuals with unilateral transfemoral amputation fitted with an OPRA implant participated in this study. The load on the implant during the static load bearing exercises was measured using a portable system including a commercial transducer embedded in a short pylon, a laptop and a customized software package. This apparatus was previously shown effective in a proof-of-concept study published by Prof. Frossard. [1-9] The analysis of the static load bearing exercises included an analysis of the reliability as well as the loading compliance. The analysis of the loading reliability showed a high reliability between the loading sessions indicating a correct repetition of the LBE by the participants. [1, 5] The analysis of the loading compliance showed a significant lack of axial compliance leading to a systematic underloading of the long axis of the implant during the proposed experimental static LBE.

Eyeglasses of Moses Mendelssohn.

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Letter to congregation in Jamaica asking assistance to build a synagogue

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Letter of Reverend Joseph J. Pinto to K. K. S. I. announcing his intention to return to Europe

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Letter of Joseph Jessurun Pinto to Trustees of K. K. S. I.

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Letter to Rodriques Pacheco and Daniel Gomez

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Charge-transfer interaction mediated organogels from bile acid appended anthracenes: rheological and microscopic studies

In this article we present dual-component charge-transfer interaction (CT) induced organogel formation with bile acid anthracene conjugates as donors and 2,4,7-trinitrofluorenone (TNF) as the acceptor. The use of TNF (1) as a versatile electron acceptor in the formation of gels is demonstrated through the formation of gels with different steroidal groups on the anthracene moiety in a variety of solvents ranging from aromatic hydrocarbons to long chain alcohols. Thermal stability and variable temperature fluorescence experiments were performed on these CT gels. Dynamic rheological experiments conducted on these gels suggest that these are viscoelastic soft materials and with the gel strength can be modulated by varying the donor/acceptor ratios.

Development of a New Generation of Vectors for Gene Expression, Gene Replacement, and Protein-Protein Interaction Studies in Mycobacteria

Escherichia coli-mycobacterium shuttle vectors are important tools for gene expression and gene replacement in mycobacteria. However, most of the currently available vectors are limited in their use because of the lack of extended multiple cloning sites (MCSs) and convenience of appending an epitope tag(s) to the cloned open reading frames (ORFs). Here we report a new series of vectors that allow for the constitutive and regulatable expression of proteins, appended with peptide tag sequences at their N and C termini, respectively. The applicability of these vectors is demonstrated by the constitutive and induced expression of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis pknK gene, coding for protein kinase K, a serine-threonine protein kinase. Furthermore, a suicide plasmid with expanded MCS for creating gene replacements, a plasmid for chromosomal integrations at the commonly used L5 attB site, and a hypoxia-responsive vector, for expression of a gene(s) under hypoxic conditions that mimic latency, have also been created. Additionally, we have created a vector for the coexpression of two proteins controlled by two independent promoters, with each protein being in fusion with a different tag. The shuttle vectors developed in the present study are excellent tools for the analysis of gene function in mycobacteria and are a valuable addition to the existing repertoire of vectors for mycobacterial research.

Orientation Selection and Microstructural Evolution in Directionally Solidified Tb0.3Dy0.7Fe1.95

Tb0.3Dy0.7Fe1.95 alloy was directionally solidified by using a modified Bridgman technique at a wide range of growth rates of 5 to 100 cm/h. The directionally grown samples exhibited plane front solidification morphology up to a growth rate of 90 cm/h. Typical island banding feature was observed closer to the chilled end, which eventually gave rise to irregular peritectic coupled growth (PCG). The PCG gained prominence with an increase in the growth rate. The texture study revealed formation of strong aOE (c) 311 > texture in a lower growth rate regime, aOE (c) 110 > and ``rotated aOE (c) 110 > aEuroe in an intermediate growth regime, and aOE (c) 112 > in a higher growth rate regime. In-depth analysis of the atomic configuration of a solid-liquid interface revealed that the growth texture is influenced by the kinetics of atomic attachment to the solid-liquid interface, which is intimately related to a planar packing fraction and an atomic stacking sequence of the interfacial plane. The mechanism proposed in this article is novel and will be useful in addressing the orientation selection mechanism of topologically closed packed intermetallic systems. The samples grown at a higher growth rate exhibit larger magnetostriction (lambda) and d lambda/dH owing to the absence of pro-peritectic (Tb,Dy)Fe-3 and formation of aOE (c) 112 > texture, which lies closer to the easy magnetization direction (EMD).

Diagnóstico agronómico del sistema de producción de frijol (Phaseolus vulgaris L) en tres localidades representativas del municipio de Ticuantepe, Managua, Nicaragua

El presente estudio se desarrolló durante la época de postrera (1996) en la zona de Ticuantepe, Managua, en las localidades de Buenos Aires, El Edén y Cebadilla, con los objetivos de conocer y profundizar en la problemática agronómica y socioeconómica que se presenta en la producción de frijol (Phaseolus vulgaris L) en el área de estudio, y específicamente investigar que factores de producción están limitando el potencial de rendimiento del cultivo. Como criterio principal se consideró el nivel tecnológico de los productores, definiendo tres grupos de tecnología: tecnología alta, tecnología media y tecnología baja. Se tomaron como muestra veinte productores. La información se recolectó a través de encuesta semi-estructurada, abordando los aspectos involucrados en la producción de frijol tanto agronómicos como socioeconómicos, se aplicó una hoja de campo para analizar los componentes del rendimiento, se calculó la producción estimada para realizar análisis de rendimiento y rentabilidad del cultivo al igual que se realizaron consultas con las instituciones de apoyo al agro que se desempeñan en la zona en diversos aspectos. Los resultados del estudio muestran que existe poca asistencia técnica de parte de las instituciones de apoyo a la agricultura y ausencia de planes de apoyo crediticio de cualquier modalidad. En referencia al manejo agronomico el estudio mostro que existen deficiencias especialmente en lo que se refiere a la fertilización, manejo de plagas y enfermedades debido a la falta de conocimientos basicos de los productores en estos aspectos. De igual forma los criterios de fertilización no están bien definidos, por lo que es comun el mal uso de formulas y dosis del fertilizante. Los productores de tecnologia alta presentan buena rentabilidad con un promedio de 359.21 por ciento de acuerdo a los rendimientos estimados y valor de venta del producto. De igual forma los productores de tecnología media obtienen buena rentabilidad con un promedio de 281.4 por ciento, a excepción de un productor que obtuvo rentabilidad negativa (24.90). Los productores de tecnología baja tienen los rendimientos estimados y rentabilidades más bajas con un promedio de 169.64 por ciento, y aún así, de ocho productores solo tres obtienen rentabilidad negativa (25.4, 47.60 y 22.10 por ciento), lo que demuestra que el cultivo de frijol si es un cultivo rentable a pesar de las diferentes problemáticas que presentan los productores, al igual que se perfila como un cultivo que pasa a ser de subsistencia a un cultivo que genera ganancias.

The interaction between poly(vinylpyrrolidone) and reversed micelles of water/AOT/n-heptane

The interactions between poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) and the reversed micelles composed of water, AOT, and n-heptane are investigated with the aid of phase diagram, measurements of conductivity and viscosity, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrum, and dynamic light scattering (DLS). The phase diagrams of water/AOT/heptane in the presence of and absence of PVP are given. The conductivity of the water/AOT/heptane reversed micelle without PVP initially increases and then decreases with the increase of water content, ω0 (the molar ratio of water to AOT), while the plots of conductivity (K) versus ω0 of the reversed micelle in the presence of PVP depend on the PVP concentrations. The plot of K versus ω0 with 2.0%wt PVP is similar to that without PVP. Only the ω0,max (the water content that the maximum conductivity corresponds to) is larger than that without PVP. Nevertheless, the conductivity of the reversed micelle containing more than 4%wt PVP always rises with the increase of the water content in the measured range. The DLS results indicate that the hydrodynamic radius (Rh) in the presence and absence of PVP rises with the increase of ω0. The plots with PVP and without PVP have almost the same value when ω0<17; and after that, it quickly increases with the increase of ω0. It is interesting to find that there is almost no effect of the PVP concentration on the viscosity and Rh of the reversed micelle at ω0 = 15. The FTIR results suggest that the contents of SO3--bound water and Na+-bound water both decrease with PVP added, while the content of the bulky-like water increases. However, the trapped water in the hydrophobic chain of the surfactant is nearly unaffected by PVP. It is also found from the FTIR that the carbonyl group stretching vibration of AOT is fitted into two sub-peaks, which center at 1740 and 1729 cm-1, corresponding to the trans and cis conformations of AOT, respectively.

Ovinos y caprinos

El presente dossier ha sido elaborado como texto básico para la Asignatura OVINOS Y CAPRINOS que se imparte en el octavo semestre (sistema de bloques) y quinto semestre (sistema de créditos) de la carrera Ingeniería en Zootecnia, el cual pretende ser un auxiliar de manejo e información sobre la oveja tropical, que día a día, en Nicaragua, ha causando bastante interés entre muchos criadores de ganado y productores agropecuarios, en general. Los aspectos que se abordan son: Generalidades, Razas, Manejo, Instalaciones, Planeación, Proyección y Control del Hato, entre otros. Para la elaboración de este texto he tomado como referencia, bibliografía especializada que ha servido de consulta, enseñanza y aprendizaje a docentes y estudiantes de las Ciencias Agrarias, así como también mi experiencia acumulada en 15 años de trabajar con las especies animales aquí estudiadas. La explotación de estas especies menores puede ser una actividad económica muy productiva y rentable, requiere de que los profesionales pecuarios y los ganaderos, además de ser observadores, detallistas, pacientes, constantes e incansables trabajadores tengan elementos técnicos y tecnológicos que les facilite la toma de decisiones y un manejo óptimo de los animales en cuestión. Espero que este texto se convierta en fuente de lectura, consulta, análisis, principalmente de estudio, y en punto de comparación con el trabajo cotidiano y práctico, que te motive a leer y consultar otras fuentes, como Internet, con el fin de enriquecer aún más tus conocimientos y formarte tus propios criterios. Ojalá que este material pueda ser enriquecido por los comentarios y sugerencias que querrás hacer al momento de su uso y agradezco de antemano las críticas y comentarios que podrás hacer con relación al presente documento. Estimado estudiante y amigo, confío en poder satisfacer tus expectativas y espero estar muy pronto con vos, para aclarar las dudas e inquietudes que se te presenten.