Case report: Movement analysis in oncological rehabilitation: proposal of a kinematic and surface electromyographic protocol in breast oncology.

Introduction: Breast cancer disease often affects the ipsilateral shoulder joint, with pain and joint limitation. Proper pain management, which can be obtained using, for example, pulsed radiofrequency of the suprascapular nerve, can help the physiotherapist mitigate patient pain. The modern technologies of kinematic analysis and surface electromyography of movement analysis can give further support in building a personalized rehabilitation program, based on the quantitative study of movement, in this case of the upper limb. Methods: A brief case report was conceived to develop and test the evolution of a shoulder joint analysis protocol based on an inertial accelerometer and non-invasive surface electromyography. Results: An analysis algorithm was defined to adapt to the needs of patients operated on at the breast based on a kinematic component (ROM - range of movement - and Jerk index) and an electromyographic one (study of muscle behavior in groups of four). The coactivations were also evaluated, both as an average value and in graphical form, to offer the physiotherapist a complete overview of the movement of the upper limb. Discussion: The promising protocol results underline its strengths, including the simplicity of use, combined with the reduced time required for processing the reports and the portability of the PC-sensors complex, making these analyses potentially valuable for patient care.

Profilometry of thin films on rough substrates by Raman spectroscopy.

Thin, light-absorbing films attenuate the Raman signal of underlying substrates. In this article, we exploit this phenomenon to develop a contactless thickness profiling method for thin films deposited on rough substrates. We demonstrate this technique by probing profiles of thin amorphous silicon stripes deposited on rough crystalline silicon surfaces, which is a structure exploited in high-efficiency silicon heterojunction solar cells. Our spatially-resolved Raman measurements enable the thickness mapping of amorphous silicon over the whole active area of test solar cells with very high precision; the thickness detection limit is well below 1 nm and the spatial resolution is down to 500 nm, limited only by the optical resolution. We also discuss the wider applicability of this technique for the characterization of thin layers prepared on Raman/photoluminescence-active substrates, as well as its use for single-layer counting in multilayer 2D materials such as graphene, MoS2 and WS2.

The electrical conductivity of hydrogenated nanocrystalline silicon investigated at the nanoscale.

Hydrogenated nanocrystalline silicon (nc-Si:H) is a multiphase, heterogeneous material, composed of Si nanocrystals embedded in an amorphous matrix. It has been intensively studied in the last few years due to its great promise for photovoltaic and optoelectronics applications. The present paper aims to study the current transport mechanisms in nc-Si:H by mapping the local conductivity at the nanoscale. The role of B doping in nc-Si:H is also investigated. Conductivity maps are obtained by atomic force microscopy using a conductive tip. Differences and similarities between intrinsic and doped nc-Si:H conductivity maps were observed and these are also explained on the basis of recently published computational studies.

Degeneracy and instability of nanocontacts between conductive tips and hydrogenated nanocrystalline Si surfaces in conductive atomic force microscopy.

Conductive atomic force microscopy (C-AFM) has been extensively used for making measurements of electrical properties of nanostructures, devices and multiphase materials. Despite its wide use, the mechanical and electrical interactions at the nanoscale between the tip and the sample surface are not yet well understood. These phenomena should be carefully studied and modeled in order to avoid significant measurement artifacts. In the present contribution a study of the interactions occurring between conductive tips and the surface of nanocrystalline silicon thin films that lead to measurement artifacts is presented. A significant deterioration of the tip coating was detected after a few maps, resulting in meaningless maps. The features of the map obtained dramatically depend on the tip coating characteristics and on the load conditions. Moreover, under a constant bias voltage, the electrical current passing through the tip-sample junction degenerates strongly with time. These phenomena were interpreted by considering the effect of strong electric fields present during C-AFM experiments.

Arthroscopic release of suprascapular nerve entrapment at the suprascapular notch: technique and preliminary results.

PURPOSE: We describe a novel all-arthroscopic technique for suprascapular nerve (SSN) decompression and present our preliminary results for this procedure. METHODS: A prospective series of 10 patients with preoperative electromyographic findings consistent with chronic SSN compression, posterior shoulder pain, and subjective weakness were treated with arthroscopic SSN decompression. There were 8 men and 2 women, with a mean age of 50 years. The mean follow-up was 15 months (range, 6 to 27 months). In 8 of 10 patients, we performed an electromyographic examination postoperatively to evaluate nerve recovery after decompression. The clinical outcomes measures used to assess preoperative and postoperative function were the visual analog scale for pain, the Constant score, strength testing of the supraspinatus and infraspinatus, and a subjective satisfaction questionnaire. In all patients preoperative and postoperative computed tomography arthrograms were obtained to document the absence of a rotator cuff tear. RESULTS: There were no complications resulting from SSN decompression. Of 10 patients, 8 had postoperative electromyography at a mean of 6 months after SSN release and 2 refused to undergo this study after surgery. Of the 8 postoperative electromyograms, 7 had complete normalization of the latency in the motor fibers of the SSN and normalization of the voluntary motor action potential for the supraspinatus and infraspinatus muscles. Two of the electromyograms showed evidence of partial recovery. The preoperative and postoperative Constant scores for these patients were 60.3 and 83.4, respectively (P < .001). All patients returned to their normal work and sports activity at a mean of 3 weeks (range, 2 days to 3 months). The abduction and external rotation strength also significantly improved. At the time of last follow-up, 9 patients graded their clinical outcome as excellent and responded that they had complete relief of pain. One of the study subjects reported a satisfactory result with moderate relief of pain. CONCLUSIONS: Arthroscopic release of the SSN can be performed safely and effectively. All of the patients in this preliminary study had improvement in their postoperative electromyographic findings and had marked improvement in pain relief and function. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level IV, therapeutic case series.