Semiconditional Electrical Stimulation of Pudendal Nerve Afferents Stimulation to Manage Neurogenic Detrusor Overactivity in Patients with Spinal Cord Injury

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of semiconditional electrical stimulation of the pudendal nerve afferents for the neurogenic detrusor overactivity in patients with spinal cord injury. Forty patients (36 males, 4 males) with spinal cord injury who had urinary incontinence and frequency, as well as felt bladder contraction with bladder filling sense or autonomic dysreflexic symptom participated in this study. METHOD: Patients with neurogenic detrusor overactivity were subdivided into complete injury and incomplete injury groups by ASIA classification and subdivided into tetraplegia and paraplegia groups by neurologic level of injury. Bladder function, such as bladder volumes infused to the bladder until the first occurrence of neurogenic detrusor overactivity (V(ini)) and the last contraction suppressed by electrical stimulation (V(max)) was measured by water cystometry (CMG) and compared with the results of each subgroup. RESULTS: Among the 40 subjects, 35 patients showed neurogenic detrusor overactivity in the CMG study. Among these 35 patients, detrusor overactivity was suppressed effectively by pudendal nerve afferent electrical stimulation in 32 patients. The infusion volume until the occurrence of the first reflex contraction (V(ini)) was 99.4+/-80.3 ml. The volume of saline infused to the bladder until the last contraction suppressed by semiconditional pudendal nerve stimulation (V(max)) was 274.3+/-93.2 ml, which was significantly greater than V(ini). In patients with good response to the pudendal nerve afferent stimulation, the bladder volume significantly increased by stimulation in all the patients. CONCLUSION: In this study, semiconditional electrical stimulation on the dorsal penile afferent nerve could effectively inhibit neurogenic detrusor overactivity and increase bladder volume in patients with spinal cord injury.

Contact non-linear finite element model analysis of initial stability of mini implant / 대한치주과학회지

Mini implants had been used provisionally for the healing period of implants in the beginning. But it becomes used for the on-going purpose, because it is simple to use, economic and especially suitable for the overdenture. But there is few studies about the stability of mini implants, that is most important factor for the on-going purpose, and particularly the implant parameters affecting the initial stability. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the stress and the strain distribution pattern of immediate- loaded screw type orthodontic mini-implant and the parameters affecting the initial stability of immediate-loaded mini-implant. Two dimensional finite element models were made and contact non-linear finite element analysis was performed. The magnitude and distribution of Von Mises stresses were evaluated. The obtained results were as follows: 1. The stress was concentrated on the thread tip of an implant in the cortical bone. 2. The direction of load is the most important factor for the stress distribution in cortical bone. 3. The diameter of an implant is the most important factor for the stress distribution in the trabecular bone. In conclusion, if the horizontal load vector is successfully controlled, mini-implants, which diameter is under 3mm, can be used for the on-going purpose.