Review of ankle rehabilitation devices for treatment of equinus contracture.

INTRODUCTION: Equinus contracture is a serious disability and attention should be paid to proper and effective treatment. Most attention is given to neurologically impaired patients, but the incidence of equinus contracture is much higher, for example, in post-traumatic patients. In addition to conventional physical therapy, robotic rehabilitation treatment is one of the promising procedures to precede severe contraction cases and the need for surgery. AREAS COVERED: This study aims to cover the description of different types of stationary and wearable ankle rehabilitation devices suitable for the treatment of equinus contracture and point to deficiency in research, clinical trials, and launch of the market. EXPERT OPINION: This review provides insight into ankle rehabilitation devices with a focus on equinus contracture. Due to the fact that robotic devices successfully restore the condition of patients, attention should not be paid only to those with neurological impairments. This paper points that future research should be effectively linked to clinical practice with the aim of covering a wider range of disabilities and make an effort to successfully introduce devices from development into the practice.

Recent Trends, Construction, and Applications of Smart Textiles and Clothing for Monitoring of Health Activity: A Comprehensive Multidisciplinary Review.

In the area of biomedical signal monitoring, wearable electronics represents a dynamically growing field with a significant impact on the market of commercial products of biomedical signal monitoring and acquisition, as well as consumer electronic for vital functions monitoring. Since the electrodes are perceived as one of the most important part of the biomedical signal monitoring, they have been one of the most frequent subjects in the research community. Electronic textile (e-textile), also called smart textile represents a modern trend in the wearable electronics, integrating of functional materials with common clothing with the goal to realize the devices, which include sensors, antennas, energy harvesters and advanced textiles for self-cooling and heating. The area of textile electrodes and e-textile is perceived as a multidisciplinary field, integrating material engineering, chemistry, and biomedical engineering. In this review, we provide a comprehensive view on this area. This multidisciplinary review integrates the e-textile characteristics, materials and manufacturing of the textile electrodes, noise influence on the e-textiles performance, and mainly applications of the textile electrodes for biomedical signal monitoring and acquisition, including pressure sensors, electrocardiography, electromyography, electroencephalography and electrooculography monitoring.

3D Printed Hollow Off-Axis Profiles Based on Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Polymers: Mechanical Testing and Finite Element Method Analysis.

The aim of the paper is to design, manufacture, and test an off-axis composite profile of circular cross-section. Composite profile based on continuous carbon fibers reinforcing the onyx matrix, i.e., a matrix that consists of nylon and micro carbon fibers, was produced by fused deposition modeling (FDM) method. A buckling test of the six printed composite specimens was performed on a tensile test machine. The values of the experiment were compared with the values of the computational simulation using the Finite Element Method (FEM) analysis. The mean value of the experimentally determined critical force at which the composite profile failed was 3102 N, while the value of the critical force by FEM analysis was calculated to be 2879 N. Thus, reliability of the simulation to determine the critical force differed from the experimental procedure by only 7%. FEM analysis revealed that the primary failure of 3D printed composite parts was not due to loss of stability, but due to material failure. With great accuracy, the results of the comparison show that it is possible to predict the mechanical properties of 3D printed composite laminates on the basis of a theoretical model.

Use of digital technologies for nasal prosthesis manufacturing.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Digital technology is becoming more accessible for common use in medical applications; however, their expansion in prosthetic and orthotic laboratories is not large because of the persistent image of difficult applicability to real patients. This article aims to offer real example in the area of human facial prostheses. TECHNIQUE: This article describes the utilization of optical digitization, computational modelling, rapid prototyping, mould fabrication and manufacturing of a nasal silicone prosthesis. This technical note defines the key points of the methodology and aspires to contribute to the introduction of a certified manufacturing procedure. DISCUSSION: The results show that the used technologies reduce the manufacturing time, reflect patient's requirements and allow the manufacture of high-quality prostheses for missing facial asymmetric parts. The methodology provides a good position for further development issues and is usable for clinical practice. Clinical relevance Utilization of digital technologies in facial prosthesis manufacturing process can be a good contribution for higher patient comfort and higher production efficiency but with higher initial investment and demands for experience with software tools.

Finite element analysis for the evaluation of the structural behaviour, of a prosthesis for trans-tibial amputees.

The finite element analysis (FEA) has been identified as a useful tool for the stress and strain behaviour determination in lower limb prosthetics. The residual limb and prosthetic socket interface was the main subject of interest in previous studies. This paper focuses on the finite element analysis for the evaluation of structural behaviour of the Sure-flex™ prosthetic foot and other load-bearing components. A prosthetic socket was not included in the FEA. An approach for the finite element modelling including foot analysis, reverse engineering and material property testing was used. The foot analysis incorporated ground reaction forces measurement, motion analysis and strain gauge analysis. For the material model determination, non-destructive laboratory testing and its FE simulation was used. A new, realistic way of load application is presented along with a detailed investigation of stress distribution in the load-bearing components of the prosthesis. A novel approach for numerical and experimental agreement determination was introduced. This showed differences in the strain on the pylon between the experimental and the numerical model within 30% for the anteroposterior bending and up to 25% for the compression. The highest von Mises stresses were found on the foot-pylon connecting component at toe off. Peak stress of 216MPa occurred on the posterior adjusting screw and maximum stress of 156MPa was found at the neck of the male pyramid.