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Textile-based strain sensors combine wearability with strain sensing functionality by using only the tensile and electrical properties of the threads they are made of. In this study, two conductive sleeves were manufactured for the elbow and three for the knee using a Santoni circular machine with different combinations of elastomeric and non-elastomeric yarns. Linearity, repeatability and sensitivity of the sleeves resistance with strain were compared during 5 repetitive trials, each of them consisting of 4 sequences of 50 joint flexion-extension cycles. All knitted conductive sleeves registered motion over 1000 cycles, proving their suitability for joint motion tracking. In addition, sleeves whose inner layer was made only with nylon exhibited the highest sensitivity and predictability of changes (i.e. a linear trend of the non-elastic deformation). On the other hand, sleeves whose inner layer was made with lycra and polyester or lycra and nylon showed a more balanced performance in terms of linearity, sensitivity and repeatability either for low or high number of cycles. Based on requirements, knitted conductive sleeves show a potential for application in rehabilitation both in healthcare and sports.

Combining stainless steel with polyester fibres adds an attractive conductive behaviour to the yarn. Once knitted in such a manner, fabrics develop sensing properties that make the textiles, also known as e-textiles, suitable for smart/wearable applications. Structural deformations of the fibres (e.g. stretching) will cause changes in the conductivity of the fabric. This work investigates changes in the electrical properties exhibited by four knitted conductive textiles made of 20% stainless steel and 80% polyester fibres during cyclic loading. The samples were preconditioned first with 500 hundred cycles of unidirectional elongation and, after a rest interval, tested again for repeatability at the same conditions. In both cases the electrical behaviour stabilises after a few tens of cycles. In particular the repeatability test exhibited a considerably smaller settling time and a larger resistance due to the mechanical stabilisation and the loosening of the fabrics, respectively. It was found that the current provided to the fabrics affects the resistance measurements by decreasing the resistance value at which the samples become electrically stable. The reported findings present a valid method for the electrical characterisation of conductive textiles for use in further studies as a wearable technology.

Capsaicin 8% patch (Qutenza) is mainly used to treat postherpetic neuralgia and human immunodeficiency virus-associated neuropathy. However, evidence of the efficacy of Qutenza in other forms of neuropathic pain is lacking. A 24-year old Libyan man, with no previous medical history, sustained multiple wounds in the right side of the chest and back after a bomb explosion. The patient experienced pain, which persisted in a wide location around the surgical intervention for a long time, beyond the usual course of natural healing of an acute pain and was different from that suffered preoperatively. The characteristics of the pain included burning, electric shock-like sensation, tingling, and numbness, and it was paroxysmal. The pain was associated with hyperalgesia and intense allodynia in a wide area, approximately of 1,100 cm2. Our initial treatment strategy included pregabalin, tramadol, and duloxetine. However, our patient's pain responded to treatment with capsaicin 8% patch when the initial treatments showed only minimal effectiveness regarding the intensity of pain. Interestingly, the most important finding was that capsaicin 8% patch showed a more than 80% reduction of the area of allodynia associated with the pain, when other treatments failed. Moreover, although recent data showed that in patients who respond to Qutenza, analgesia starts within a few days of treatment and lasts on average 5 months, our patient showed an initial response within 7 days of treatment but a longer duration of more than 18 months. Although further controlled studies are needed to explore the efficacy of the capsaicin 8% patch in patients who experience posttraumatic neuropathic pain, we encourage clinicians to try the capsaicin 8% patch when alternative treatments fail.

Objective: Airway management is of utmost importance in critical patients, for whom endotracheal intubation remains the gold standard. However, it is a difficult skill to acquire and success rates in novices are unacceptably low. Supraglottic devices constitute promising alternatives. The aim of this study was to assess the use of laryngeal mask airway (LMA) classic LMA (cLMA) and a relatively new supraglottic device, the i-gel, in experienced and novice doctors in a manikin setting., Methods: The study population comprised 116 doctors. After a brief educational session and presentation of cLMA and i-gel, participants were randomly allocated to insert both devices in an adult manikin. Insertions were performed using a size-4 cLMA and a size-4 i-gel. The primary endpoints were the success rate for each device and the duration of the insertion attempt. Secondary endpoint was the perception of ease of use with each device., Results: First attempt success rate was 90.5% for i-gel and 63.8% for cLMA (P<0.001). I-gel use reduced insertion times (13.32±4.99 s vs. 17.99±6.87 s, P<0.001) and was related with significantly higher first attempt success rates than cLMA in novices (90 vs. 48.3%, P<0.001). In addition, i-gel use provided almost equal success rates for experienced and novice doctors (91 vs. 90%, P=not significant), whereas cLMA use resulted in significantly lower success rates for novices (48.3 vs. 80.4%, P<0.001)., Conclusion: In this manikin setting i-gel significantly improved success rates and insertion time compared with cLMA. Most importantly, i-gel use resulted in high first pass success rates for novice doctors, equal to those achieved by experienced doctors.

Purpose: To test in a pig model the biocompatibility and effectiveness of carbon-coated renal and iliac artery stent systems during implantation procedures and at different follow-up periods., Materials and Methods: Twenty-two miniature pigs received carbon-coated balloon-expandable stainless-steel stents in their renal and iliac arteries. Animals were killed at 7, 30, or 180 days for evaluation of acute, subacute, and chronic biologic response to the implanted devices. Histologic, histomorphometric, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analyses were performed to assess inflammatory reaction, endothelialization process, and neointimal growth., Results: Forty-four iliac stents and 42 renal stents were successfully implanted. Mural thrombi were not observed by angiography or histologic examinations. Histologically, no significant inflammatory reaction was detected: the stents appeared covered by a thin monolayer of endothelial cells even at 7-day follow-up. The neointima showed homogeneous growth and moderate thickness at 30-day and 180-day explantations (0.09 mm +/- 0.06 and 0.15 mm +/- 0.13, respectively, for renal arteries; 0.12 mm +/- 0.04 and 0.21 mm +/- 0.12, respectively, for iliac arteries). Internal and external elastic laminae were intact in 82 of 86 cases (95%) of stent-implanted arteries. Histologic validations were obtained with SEM observations for each follow-up group., Conclusions: This study showed good technical results of deployment of carbon-coated renal and iliac stents and very satisfactory biologic behavior in terms of tissue and hematologic compatibility. The devices do not induce thrombus formation.

Study was conducted on 20 subjects with non bacterial chronic rhinopharyngitis. Forty-one virus strains, mainly adenoviruses, type 3 parainfluenza virus, influenza and type 1 herpes viruses, as well as enteroviruses were isolated from samples collected at regular intervals. After the NIVGRIP (R) vaccination, the number of subjects with viruses present in the pharynx decreased by 75% (from 20 to 5 positive patients) and that of isolates from 41 to 6 (80% positive samples before vaccination against 10% after immunization).