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Head injuries are most common in medico legal investigations. It is important to ascertain if the fatal head injuries is due to fall, road traffic incidents or other causes, especially in found-dead cases with isolated head injuries. Study of patterns of injuries can help differentiate the causative factors. This study is designed to study the patterns of head injury in different categories of fall. A prospective analytical study was conducted on 92 cases of fall presenting with head injuries over a period of one year. Statistical analysis was done using the Chi-square test using SPSS software and inference was made. This study showed younger males were predominant in falls with 12-60 feet being the most common height of fall. Age of victims showed strong correlation with period of survival. All the fall cases had scalp injuries, contusion being the commonest type. The skull base injuries were present in 32.6 % of fall cases with linear fracture being the commonest type. The skull vault injuries occurred in 68.47 % of fall cases. Brain injuries were present in all fall cases. The combination of subdural hemorrhage, subarachnoid hemorrhage and contusions was commonest type of brain injury among falls. The severity of scalp, skull base and skull vault injuries increased with the increase in height of falls. The causation of fatal head injuries in falls can be determined based on the patterns of injuries elicited during the autopsy examination, keeping in mind the various other factors that had come into play in the fall deaths. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Early healing of bone defects is still a clinical challenge. Many bone-filling materials have been studied, among which photocrosslinked alginate has received significant attention due to its good biocompatibility and morphological plasticity. Although it has been confirmed that photocrosslinked alginate can be used as an extracellular matrix for 3D cell culture, it lacks osteogenesis-related biological functions. This study constructed a copper ions-photo dual-crosslinked alginate hydrogel scaffold by controlling the copper ion concentration. The scaffolds were shaped by photocrosslinking and then endowed with biological functions by copper ions crosslinking. According to in vitro research, the dual-crosslinked hydrogel increased the compressive strength and favored copper dose-dependent osteoblast differentiation and cell surface adherence of rat bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells and the expression of type I collagen (Col1), runt-related transcription factor 2 (Runx2), osteocalcin (OCN), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). In addition, hydrogel scaffolds were implanted into rat skull defects, and more angiogenesis and osteogenesis could be observed in in vivo studies. The above results show that the copper-photo-crosslinked hydrogel scaffold has excellent osseointegration properties and can potentially promote angiogenesis and early healing of bone defects, providing a reference solution for bone tissue engineering materials., (© 2024 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Autograft has long been the gold standard for various bone surgeries. Nevertheless, the increasing usage of synthetic implants is taking over the operation rooms due to biosafety and standardized protocols. To fulfill such tremendous needs, a magnesium-impregnated membrane is devised that steadily releases magnesium ions to stimulate osteogenesis. The compatibility of Magnesium oxide (MgO) particles is enhanced through hydration and grafting, characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). With detailed degradation profiles, an in-depth investigation of Magnesium transporter 1 (MagT1) for magnesium intake is carried out and engaging in the N-linked glycosylation by using RNAi and inhibitors. The glycosylation of secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC) affected extracellular secretion and mineral deposition, demonstrated by immunostaining and density-dependent color-SEM (DDC-SEM). Skull defects are treated by implanting magnesium-impregnated membranes in rats and evaluated them by micro-CT and histological exams. This study revealed the compatible integration of grafted magnesium hydroxide (g-MH) particles is the key to functional performance and critical to applicability in vivo; meanwhile, it opens the door to a biological rationale for designing biomimetic materials., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)