Research advancements on nerve guide conduits for nerve injury repair.

Peripheral nerve injury (PNI) is one of the most serious causes of disability and loss of work capacity of younger individuals. Although PNS has a certain degree of regeneration, there are still challenges like disordered growth, neuroma formation, and incomplete regeneration. Regarding the management of PNI, conventional methods such as surgery, pharmacotherapy, and rehabilitative therapy. Treatment strategies vary depending on the severity of the injury. While for the long nerve defect, autologous nerve grafting is commonly recognized as the preferred surgical approach. Nevertheless, due to lack of donor sources, neurological deficits and the low regeneration efficiency of grafted nerves, nerve guide conduits (NGCs) are recognized as a future promising technology in recent years. This review provides a comprehensive overview of current treatments for PNI, and discusses NGCs from different perspectives, such as material, design, fabrication process, and composite function.

Advances in biotechnology and clinical therapy in the field of peripheral nerve regeneration based on magnetism.

Peripheral nerve injury (PNI) is one of the most common neurological diseases. Recent studies on nerve cells have provided new ideas for the regeneration of peripheral nerves and treatment of physical trauma or degenerative disease-induced loss of sensory and motor neuron functions. Accumulating evidence suggested that magnetic fields might have a significant impact on the growth of nerve cells. Studies have investigated different magnetic field properties (static or pulsed magnetic field) and intensities, various magnetic nanoparticle-encapsulating cytokines based on superparamagnetism, magnetically functionalized nanofibers, and their relevant mechanisms and clinical applications. This review provides an overview of these aspects as well as their future developmental prospects in related fields.

[Research status of acetabular reconstruction in Crowe type â ¡ and â ¢ developmental dysplasia of the hip].

Developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) is a major cause of hip arthritis and ultimately total hip arthroplasty. Due to the dysplastic acetabulum, how to place the acetabular cup becomes a challenge in acetabular reconstruction for such patients. Especially in the acetabula classified as Crowe typeⅡand type Ⅲ, the dislocation of the femoral head causes bone defects above the true acetabulum, which will affect the stability of the acetabular cup when the acetabular reconstruction is performed at the true acetabulum. Many acetabular reconstruction methods such as bone grafting, the use of small acetabular cups, socket medialization technique, and high hip center technique are used to increase the host bone coverage of the cup. However, each method has its own shortcomings that can not be ignored so that there is no unified conclusion on the acetabular reconstruction methods for Crowe typeⅡand type Ⅲ hip dysplasia. This article summarized and evaluated various reconstruction methods in combination with the acetabular morphology of DDH, and put forward the research direction in the future.

Bone defect map of the true acetabulum in hip dysplasia (Crowe type II and III) based on three-dimensional image reconstruction analysis.

The high hip center technique (HHC) is considered to be feasible for acetabular reconstruction in patients with DDH, but there is little in-depth study of its specific impact on Crowe type II and III DDH. The purpose of this study was to simultaneously analyze the effect of HHC on bone coverage of the cup (CC) in the acetabular reconstruction of type II and III DDH patients and to propose a map of acetabular bone defects from the perspective of the cup. Forty-nine hip CT data of 39 patients with DDH (Crowe type II and III) were collected to simulate acetabular reconstruction by cup models of different sizes (diameter 38mm-50 mm, 2 mm increment) with the HHC technique. The frequency distribution was plotted by overlapping the portions of the 44 mm cups that were not covered by the host bone. The mean CC of cups with sizes of 38 mm, 40 mm, 42 mm, 44 mm, 46 mm, 48 mm, and 50 mm at the true acetabula were 77.85%, 76.71%, 75.73%, 74.56%, 73.68%, 72.51%, and 71.75%, respectively, and the maximum CC increments were 21.24%, 21.58%, 20.86%, 20.04%, 18.62%, 17.18%, and 15.42% (P < 0.001), respectively, after the cups were elevated from the true acetabula. The bone defect map shows that 95% of type II and III DDH acetabula had posterosuperior bone defects, and approximately 60% were located outside the force line of the hip joint. Acetabular cups can meet a CC of more than 70% at the true acetabulum, and approximately 60% of Crowe type II and III DDH patients can obtain satisfactory CC at the true acetabulum by using a 44-mm cup without additional operations.

Osteomyelitis variolosa, an issue inherited from the past: case report and systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Osteomyelitis variolosa is a self-limiting disease triggered by variola virus that cannot be prevented or repaired. Smallpox has been eradicated for 40 years, and complications that remain after smallpox has been cured have become a remarkable diagnostic challenge for contemporary physicians. In this systematic review, we searched PubMed (MEDLINE), Web of Science, and Google Scholar for cases on complications, diagnosis, and treatment for osteomyelitis variolosa between January 1980 and February 2021. RESULTS: Ten papers and eleven finished cases, all patients from India, were included for comparison with the present case. In total, 100% of patients presented with bilateral elbow deformities, the ankle was the second most common site of lesion in 50%, and knee lesions accounted for 25% in this study. Flexion contracture, joint instability, secondary arthritis, and fracture are common complications of osteomyelitis variolosa, and most patients receive conservative treatment, while internal fixation has good results for combined fractures. CONCLUSIONS: Although osteomyelitis variolosa is not a direct threat to the safety of patients, severe skeletal deformities can have a significant impact on quality of life. With advances in surgical techniques, clinicians are offering an increasing number of treatment options for patients with osteomyelitis variolosa. However, most importantly, smallpox has basically been removed from the historical arena, and for areas where smallpox was once endemic, physicians need to deepen the understanding of this disease again.

Estrogen-related receptors: novel potential regulators of osteoarthritis pathogenesis.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic inflammatory disease that is associated with articular cartilage destruction, subchondral bone alterations, synovitis, and even joint deformity and the loss of joint function. Although current basic research on the pathogenesis of OA has made remarkable progress, our understanding of this disease still needs to be further improved. Recent studies have shown that the estrogen-related receptor (ERR) family members ERRα and ERRγ may play significant roles in the pathogenesis of OA. In this review, we refer to the latest research on ERRs and the pathogenesis of OA, elucidate the structure and physiopathological functions of the ERR orphan nuclear receptor family, and systematically examine the relationship between ERRs and OA at the molecular level. Moreover, we also discuss and predict the capacity of ERRs as potential targets in the clinical treatment of OA.

Segmental uncoverage ratio analysis of Crowe type-IV developmental dysplasia of the hip via 3-dimensional implantation simulation.

BACKGROUND: To study the segmental uncoverage ratio (UCR) of a 44-mm cup model placed in a true acetabulum of Crowe type-IV developmental dysplasia of the hip via 3-Dimensional (3D) implantation simulation. METHODS: Qualified CT imaging data of 26 patients (involving 30 hips) with Crowe type-IV DDH were imported into Mimics software for reconstruction. Then a 44-mm eggshell cup model was placed in a true acetabulum. First, total uncoverage ratio (TUCR) was measured. Then the virtual cup was divided into 4 segments according to the quadrant setting of the true acetabulum, i.e., anterior-superior (A-S) segment, anterior-inferior (A-I) segment, posterior-superior (P-S) segment and posterior-inferior (P-I) segment. The UCRs of the aforementioned segments were measured, i.e., anterior-superior uncoverage ratio (A-SUCR), anterior-inferior uncoverage ratio (A-IUCR), posterior-superior uncoverage ratio (P-SUCR) and posterior-inferior uncoverage ratio (P-IUCR). The acetabular height and anterior-posterior diameter on the 3-D model were also calculated. Statistic analyses were performed by using SPSS software package. RESULTS: TUCR was 0.2958 ± 0.1003 (95% [CI], 0.1020 to 0.5400) in this cohort of Crowe Type-IV hips. P-SUCR had the greatest value among all the segmental UCRs (0.1012 ± 0.0435, 95% confidence interval [CI],0.0152 to 0.1914) and the most significant positive correlation with TUCR (Pearson correlation = 0.889, p < 0.01. Linear regression R2 = 0.791). Similarly, P-IUCR and A-SUCR showed a significant positive correlation with TUCR. However, A-IUCR exhibited no correlation with either total or other segmental UCRs. P-SUCR was found to bear significant positive correlation with P-IUCR (pearson correlation = 0.644, p < 0.01. Linear regression R2 = 0.415). Acetabular height and A-P diameter were not correlated with TUCR. CONCLUSION: Implantation of a 44-mm cup into Crowe type IV acetabulum is feasible and could achieve acceptable host bone coverage in most of the cases. P-SUCR contributed most to TUCR. TUCR had no linear relationship with the size of the host acetabulum, suggesting that the pre-operative plan should be individualized.

The interference of DEHP in precocious puberty of females mediated by the hypothalamic IGF-1/PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway.

DEHP is reported to cause precocious puberty of females in both humans and rodents, but the underlying mechanisms were largely unknown. This study was designed to clarify the effects and the mechanisms of DEHP on the pathogenesis of sexual precocity. Prepubertal female rats were treated with DEHP for 4 weeks. Key organs were analyzed in control conditions and after exposure to 0.2, 1, and 5 mg/kg/day DEHP in pubertal female rats. To determine the role of the IGF-1/PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway in DEHP-induced female precocious puberty, 36 rats were treated with 5 mg/kg/day DEHP to establish a model of female precocious puberty. And we investigated the expression of genes and proteins related to IGF-1 pathway in rat hypothalamus after treatment with inhibitors. In the present study, we observed that DEHP treatment resulted in earlier vaginal opening time, higher number of Nissl bodies in the hypothalamus neurons, lower apoptosis of hypothalamic cells, higher IGF-1 and GnRH levels in the serum and hypothalamus. DEHP could also upregulated the expression of IGF-1/PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway and GnRH in the hypothalamus of adolescent female rats, and inhibition of IGF-1R and mTOR in hypothalamus could block the activation of Kiss-1, GPR54, and GnRH by DEHP. In summary, our study suggested that DEHP might activate the hypothalamic GnRH neurons prematurely through the IGF-1 signaling pathway and promote GnRH release, leading to the initiation of female sexual development. Our results provide a new molecular mechanism underlying reproductive and developmental toxicity in pubertal female rats induced by DEHP.