Does balneotherapy provide additive effects to physical therapy in patients with subacute supraspinatus tendinopathy? A randomized, controlled, single-blind study.

This study assessed the additional contribution of balneotherapy on physical therapy in subacute supraspinatus tendinopathy. Ninety patients with subacute supraspinatus tendinopathy were included. They were randomized into two equal groups. In group 1 (n = 45), transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS), hot pack, ultrasound treatments, and Codman's and range of motion (ROM) exercises were performed. In group 2 (n = 45), balneotherapy was added to the treatment program. In both groups, shoulder active ROM and handgrip strength were measured. Pain was evaluated using a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) (rest, sleep, movement); functional assessment and quality of life were measured respectively with the Shortened Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand Questionnaire (QuickDASH), and the Short Form-36 health survey (SF 36) form. All measurements were repeated before and after 15 treatment sessions. There were statistically significant differences between the before and after assessment parameters in group 1 (all p < 0.05), but not for SF-36 General Health Perceptions, SF-36 Mental Health sub-parameters, and handgrip strengths. However, there were statistically significant differences between all the evaluation before and after the treatment in group 2 (all p < 0.05). When the two groups were compared in terms of alpha gains, statistically significant differences were observed in favor of group 2 in all measurements (all p < 0.05) except for SF-36 Emotional Role Difficulty and SF-36 Mental Health sub-parameters. This study shows that the addition of balneotherapy to physical therapy for subacute supraspinatus tendinopathy can make additional contributions to shoulder ROM, pain, handgrip strength, functional status, and quality of life.

In-situ interferometric monitoring of optical coatings.

We present a new method for the in situ measurement of the amplitude and phase of the reflection coefficient of a plane substrate installed in a mechanical holder rotating at high speed (120 turns per minute) during the deposition of optical thin films. Our method is based on digital holography and uses a self-referenced scheme to cancel the effects of the severe constraints generated by the vibrational and thermal environment of the deposition machine.

Use of a broadband monitoring system for the determination of the optical constants of a dielectric bilayer.

This paper extends a method previously applied to the determination of the optical constants of a high-index thin film to a dielectric bilayer. This method is based on the time recording of the spectral transmittance of the stack during its deposition with the help of an in situ broadband monitoring system.

Micromirrors with controlled amplitude and phase.

This paper describes the fabrication of circular micromirrors with diameters between 50 and 150 µm with controlled amplitude and phase. Design, manufacturing, and characterization method are presented.

Determination of the optical constants of a dielectric layer by processing in situ spectral transmittance measurements along the time dimension.

This paper describes a new method based on the use of a broadband monitoring system to determine the spectral dependence of the optical constants of a layer without using a dispersion model.

Single resonance monolithic Fabry-Perot filters formed by volume Bragg gratings and multilayer dielectric mirrors.

A new class of Fabry-Perot filters produced by a multilayer dielectric mirror deposited on top of a reflecting volume Bragg grating is described. The first fabricated prototype for the 852 nm region demonstrates a 30 pm bandwidth, 90+% transmission at resonance, and a good agreement with theoretical simulation.