Three-dimensional printing technique aids screw insertion into the sustentaculum tali of the internal fixation of intra-articular calcaneal fractures.

INTRODUCTION: Treating complex calcaneus fractures remains challenging. This study evaluated the influence of 3D printing and simulation on precision screw insertion into the calcaneus sustentaculum tali (ST). HYPOTHESIS: 3D printing and simulation improve the treatment for calcaneal fracture. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This retrospective cohort study included 85 patients admitted with 93 Sanders type II-IV intra-articular fractures from January 2015 to June 2020. Multi-slice computed tomography (MSCT) images were used in the conventional group, and MSCT data were used to construct a 3D model of the calcaneus to simulate screw insertion and verify parameter accuracy in the 3D group. RESULTS: The designed parameters (upward and backward oblique angles and screw-path length) were similar to the actual values in the 3D group (p=0.428,0.287,0.585) but not in the conventional group (p=0.01,0.002,0.023). The Maryland foot functional score, accuracy rate, and average screw number were higher and operative time was shorter in the 3D group (p=0.005,0.007,0.000,0.000). DISCUSSION: Preoperative simulation using the 3D printing model helped guide the screws into the ST more accurately, lending better-quality treatment for Sanders type II-IV calcaneal fractures. LEVEL OF PROOF: III; Retrospective case-control study.

Effects of home-based telerehabilitation on dynamic alterations in regional intrinsic neural activity and degree centrality in stroke patients.

Objective: To explore the effects of home-based telerehabilitation (TR) on dynamic alterations in regional intrinsic neural activity and degree centrality in stroke patients by resting-state functional MRI (fMRI) methods. Methods: The neuroimaging data of 52 stroke patients were analyzed. Dynamic regional spontaneous neural activity (dynamic amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations, dALFF; and dynamic regional homogeneity, dReHo) and dynamic degree centrality (dDC) were compared between the TR and conventional rehabilitation (CR) groups. A flexible factorial model was employed to investigate the expected effects. Results: The patients in the TR group showed increased dALFF in the right precuneus and bilateral precentral gyrus (PreCG) and reduced dALFF in the right inferior parietal lobule by the analysis of main effects. Significant differences between groups were detected in the right precuneus, right fusiform gyrus and left middle frontal gyrus for dReHo and in the left cingulate gyrus, right middle temporal gyrus and left precuneus for dDC. A significant correlation was found in the TR group between the changed dALFF in the left PreCG and the changed Fugl-Meyer assessment (FMA) scores from baseline to postrehabilitation. Conclusions: This study implied that home-based TR training can alter the patterns of dynamic spontaneous brain activity and functional connectivity in certain brain regions. The identification of key brain regions by neuroimaging indicators such as dynamic regional brain activity and degree centrality in the recovery process would provide a theoretical basis for noninvasive brain stimulation technology and strategies for formulating targeted rehabilitation programs for stroke patients with motor dysfunction.

Effects of home-based telerehabilitation in patients with stroke: A randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effects of a 12-week home-based motor training telerehabilitation program in patients with subcortical stroke by combining motor function assessments and multimodality MRI analysis methods. METHODS: Fifty-two patients with stroke and hemiplegia were randomly assigned to either a home-based motor training telerehabilitation (TR) group or a conventional rehabilitation (CR) group for 12 weeks. The Fugl-Meyer assessment (FMA) for upper and lower extremities and the modified Barthel Index were used as primary outcomes. The secondary outcomes included resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) between the bilateral M1 areas, gray matter volumes of the primary motor cortex (M1) areas, and white matter integrity of the corticospinal tract. Analysis of covariance was applied to examine the effects of the home-based motor training TR program on neural function recovery and brain plasticity. RESULTS: Compared with the CR group, the TR group showed significant improvement in the FMA (p = 0.011) and significantly increased M1-M1 rsFC (p = 0.031) at the end of the rehabilitation. The M1-M1 rsFC change was significantly positively correlated with the FMA change in the TR group (p = 0.018). CONCLUSION: This study showed a beneficial effect of the home-based motor training telerehabilitation program on motor function in patients with stroke, which was accompanied by enhanced interhemispheric functional connectivity of the M1 areas. We inferred that it is feasible, safe, and efficacious for patients with stroke to receive professional rehabilitation training at home. The combined use of imaging biomarkers should be encouraged in motor training clinical studies in patients with stroke. CLASSIFICATION OF EVIDENCE: This study provides Class II evidence that for patients with stroke with hemiplegia, home-based telerehabilitation compared to conventional rehabilitation significantly improves some motor function tests.