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Additive manufacturing offers manufacturing flexibility for intricate components and also allows for precise control over the microstructure. This review paper explores the current state of the art in additive manufacturing techniques for Alnico permanent magnets, emphasizing the notable advantages and challenges associated with this innovative approach. Both the LPBF and L-DED processes have demonstrated promising results in fabricating Alnico with magnetic properties comparable with conventionally processed samples. The optimization of process parameters successfully reduced porosity and cracking in the LPBF processing of Alnico. The review further explored the significance of additive manufacturing process parameter optimization in managing the temperature gradient and solidification rate for a desired microstructure and enhanced magnetic properties. Other potential additive manufacturing methods suitable for the fabrication of Alnico were discussed, along with the challenges associated with the process. The insights provided also highlight how additive manufacturing holds the potential to replace post-processing techniques like solutionization, magnetic annealing, and tempering often necessary in Alnico production.

FeCrAl alloys exhibit outstanding high-temperature oxidation resistance and impressive mechanical strength, rendering them as forefront materials with broad applicability across various engineering domains, notably in the nuclear field. In addition to their unique properties, they are likely to continue to hold important place in these applications due to tremendous potential in their fabrication through versatile additive manufacturing techniques. In light of this, current review article conducts an exhaustive examination of recent research, providing a comprehensive overview of the progress made in the additive manufacturing of FeCrAl alloys. The exploration entails a thorough analysis of the challenges encountered in fusion-based fabrication, a detailed scrutiny of their microstructural characteristics, assessments of their mechanical and oxidation properties, and an exploration of their potential utility in applications related to irradiation. Some of the recent results on performance of AM based FeCrAl alloys increase the confidence on deploying AM for fabrication of these challenging materials. For instance, the laser welded FeCrAl alloy, irradiated at 560 °C up to 1.9 dpa showed no degradation of the mechanical performance and exhibited mechanical properties comparable to the wrought alloys.

A 70-year-old female presented with left sided low back pain. There was no history of any co-morbidities or immunocompromised state. Skeletal cryptococcosis was confirmed bsaed on culture and histopathology, along with pulmonary involvement. After a month of oral antifungal therapy, the patient's symptoms resolved, but an abscess relapsed at the same site, which was treated with a combination of IV Amphotericin B and 5-flucytosine followed by oral fluconazole, with no recurrence or complaints reported in subsequent follow-up.

Iatrogenic bladder injuries are a cause of morbidity in pelvic surgeries. Bladder perforation could be extraperitoneal or intra-peritoneal. Clinicaly, extraperitoneal bladder perforation is diagnosed by suprapubic pain, extravasation of urine into scrotum, perineum and thighs and difficulty in voiding whereas intraperitoneal bladder injury is diagnosed by signs of lower abdominal pain resembling acute abdomen. The diagnosis of bladder injury is confirmed by Computerised Cystography. The management of extraperitoneal bladder injury is catheter drainage while intraperitoneal bladder injury is managed by open repair. We present a case of Extraperitoneal iatrogenic bladder injury in a patient who underwent exploratory laparotomy for Appendicular perforation.

Congenital anomalies of Kidney and Urinary Tract (CAKUT) present with interesting challenges to a urologist in his practice. The incidence of CAKUT is 4.2 per 10,000 births. CAKUT are one of the major risk factors in adults requiring renal replacement therapy. Although children with CAKUT are often asymptomatic, CAKUT are estimated to be implicated in 30% to 60% of cases of childhood-onset chronic kidney disease (CKD) in different populations. We hereby present a rare case of a patient with Supernumerary Kidneys in which both bilateral native kidneys showed evidence of Pelvi-ureteric junction obstruction and ectopic pelvic kidney with normal function.

Horseshoe kidney (HSK) has an incidence of about 1 in 400 or 0.25% of the general population and is seen more commonly in males as compared to women in a ratio of 2:1. Usually, Horseshoe kidney would have two normal ureters each draining separately into the bladder. We present a rare and interesting case of Horseshoe kidney with unilateral single ureter and associated anorectal malformation.

Kidney lying outside renal fossa is referred as ectopic kidney. Hereby we are presenting a rare case of Pelviureteric junction obstruction in a malrotated ectopic kidney with concomitant lithiasis in a 16 year male. He presented with pain in lower abdomen intermittently. On CT scan, a left malrotated ectopic kidney was located in the pelvis near the midline with a 10 mm stone in the lower pole, and having obstructed pattern drainage with moderate hydronephrosis. Open Anderson-Hynes dismembered pyeloplasty was done. Thorough clinical approach with delineating aberrant anatomy of ectopic kidneys and their vascular supply with consideration of unusual functional data on conventional functional renogram is necessary for intervening in malrotated ectopic kidney with concomitant lithiasis.

The current work explored additive friction stir deposition of AZ31B magnesium alloy with the aid of MELD® technology. AZ31B magnesium bar stock was fed through a hollow friction stir tool rotating at constant velocity of 400 rpm and translating at linear velocity varied from 4.2 to 6.3 mm/s. A single wall consisting of five layers with each layer of 140×40×1 mm3 dimensions was deposited under each processing condition. Microstructure, phase, and crystallographic texture evolutions as a function of additive friction stir deposition parameters were studied with the aid of scanning electron microscopy including electron back scatter diffraction and X-ray diffraction. Both feed material and additively produced samples consisted of the α-Mg phase. The additively produced samples exhibited a refined grain structure compared to the feed material. The feed material appeared to have a weak basal texture, while the additively produced samples experienced a strengthening of this basal texture. The additively produced samples showed a marginally higher hardness compared to the feed material. The current work provided a pathway for solid state additive manufacturing of Mg suitable for structural applications such as automotive components and consumable biomedical implants.

Abstract Background Spongioplasty alone or in combination with local tissue flaps can be used as a second layer for the prevention of complications of tubularised incised plate urethroplasty (TIPU) of hypospadias repair. It can be used when wide urethral plate and well-developed robust spongiosum are present. This study aims to review the success rate and complications of TIPU performed utilising spongioplasty alone as a second layer in Type 3 well-developed robust spongiosum. Methods This is a retrospective observational study conducted between January 2015 and December 2019 at a tertiary care centre. A total of 21 patients aged 4–15.4 years with primary hypospadias having a Type 3 well-developed robust spongiosum, Glans score ≤ 2, Meatal score ≤ 4, and Shaft score ≤ 3 underwent TIPU using spongioplasty alone as a second layer. The hospital stay ranged from 10 to 14 days and follow-up from 12 to 36 months. Results Hypospadias was distal in 12 (57.1%), mid in 5 (23.8%), and proximal penile in 4 (19.1%) patients. The mean Glans Meatus Shaft score was 6.1 (G = 1.25, M = 2.95, S = 1.9) with a range of 3–9. An early post-operative complication of preputial oedema and bladder spasm developed in 1 (4.7%) patient each. Meatal stenosis developed in 1 (4.7%) patient. None developed urethrocutaneous fistula. At 3 months all patients had good urinary flow (> 15 ml/s) and good cosmesis. All the patients/parents (in case of minors) were satisfied with the result. Conclusion Spongioplasty alone as the second layer after TIPU for primary penile hypospadias in patients with well-developed robust spongiosal tissue is associated with minimal, easily manageable complications.

Abstract Current work explored solid-state additive manufacturing of AZ31B-Mg alloy using additive friction stir deposition. Samples with relative densities ≥ 99.4% were additively produced. Spatial and temporal evolution of temperature during additive friction stir deposition was predicted using multi-layer computational process model. Microstructural evolution in the additively fabricated samples was examined using electron back scatter diffraction and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. Mechanical properties of the additive samples were evaluated by non-destructive effective bulk modulus elastography and destructive uni-axial tensile testing. Additively produced samples experienced evolution of predominantly basal texture on the top surface and a marginal increase in the grain size compared to feed stock. Transmission electron microscopy shed light on fine scale precipitation of Mg $$_{17}$$ 17 Al $$_{12}$$ 12 within feed stock and additive samples. The fraction of Mg $$_{17}$$ 17 Al $$_{12}$$ 12 reduced in the additively produced samples compared to feed stock. The bulk dynamic modulus of the additive samples was slightly lower than the feed stock. There was a $$\sim\,$$ ∼ 30 MPa reduction in 0.2% proof stress and a 10–30 MPa reduction in ultimate tensile strength for the additively produced samples compared to feed stock. The elongation of the additive samples was 4–10% lower than feed stock. Such a property response for additive friction stir deposited AZ31B-Mg alloy was realized through distinct thermokinetics driven multi-scale microstructure evolution.

Objective To evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of leflunomide (L) added to the standard-of-care (SOC) treatment in COVID-19 patients hospitalised with moderate/critical clinical symptoms.Design Prospective, open-label, multicentre, stratified, randomised clinical trial.Setting Five hospitals in UK and India, from September 2020 to May 2021.Participants Adults with PCR confirmed COVID-19 infection with moderate/critical symptoms within 15 days of onset.Intervention Leflunomide 100 mg/day (3 days) followed by 10–20 mg/day (7 days) added to standard care.Primary outcomes The time to clinical improvement (TTCI) defined as two-point reduction on a clinical status scale or live discharge prior to 28 days; safety profile measured by the incidence of adverse events (AEs) within 28 days.Results Eligible patients (n=214; age 56.3±14.9 years; 33% female) were randomised to SOC+L (n=104) and SOC group (n=110), stratified according to their clinical risk profile. TTCI was 7 vs 8 days in SOC+L vs SOC group (HR 1.317; 95% CI 0.980 to 1.768; p=0.070). Incidence of serious AEs was similar between the groups and none was attributed to leflunomide. In sensitivity analyses, excluding 10 patients not fulfilling the inclusion criteria and 3 who withdrew consent before leflunomide treatment, TTCI was 7 vs 8 days (HR 1.416, 95% CI 1.041 to 1.935; p=0.028), indicating a trend in favour of the intervention group. All-cause mortality rate was similar between groups, 9/104 vs 10/110. Duration of oxygen dependence was shorter in the SOC+L group being a median 6 days (IQR 4–8) compared with 7 days (IQR 5–10) in SOC group (p=0.047).Conclusion Leflunomide, added to the SOC treatment for COVID-19, was safe and well tolerated but had no major impact on clinical outcomes. It may shorten the time of oxygen dependence by 1 day and thereby improve TTCI/hospital discharge in moderately affected COVID-19 patients.Trial registration numbers EudraCT Number: 2020-002952-18, NCT05007678.

Additive friction stir deposition has been proposed as a disruptive manufacturing process; involving complex thermo-mechanical mechanisms during multilayer material deposition. The current efforts have attempted to develop a FEM based pseudo-mechanical thermal model accounting for heat generation due to friction and plastic dissipation during multilayer additive friction stir deposition. The primary motivation for development of the model was to seek an understanding of thermo-mechanical mechanisms and their impact on microstructural evolution during additive friction stir deposition. The predicted temperature–time profiles agreed well with the experimentally derived ones. The computational predictions indicate rise of the peak temperatures up to 0.8 times the melting temperature of Mg-alloy. In addition, the Zener-Holloman parameter, Ze evaluated using the computational model was correlated with the microstructural evolution during the deposition process. The unique thermo-mechanical processing conditions during additive friction stir deposition led to dynamic recrystallization followed by grain coarsening. A significant extent of texture strengthening was observed in the AFSD processed samples. The already established phenomenological relationship between Ze and grain size was used to predict the grain size in the present work. The computational predictions indicate that the recrystallized grain size ranged from 4 to 6 µm, and the post deformation grain coarsening varied in the range of 4–24 µm, thereby providing reasonable agreement with the experimental observations.

Supra-pubic catheterization of bladder is used as a short or long term alternative to per-urethtral catheterization. Some catheter materials are more resistant to encrustation than others. If kept indwelling for longer duration, sooner or later all catheters cause complications like urinary tract infection (UTI), trauma, peri-catheter leakage, non-deflation of balloon, encrustations and stone formations resulting into retained catheter. Stone formation over neglected indwelling catheter is not an unusual clinical scenario and its management depends on etiology of catheter retention and complication. This article discusses etiopathogenesis, clinical presentations, diagnosis and varied management options used for the neglected retained supra-pubic catheter in three cases

Proximal focal femoral deficiency (PFFD) is a rare congenital anomaly resulting in limb shortening and disability in young. The exact cause of the disease is not known and it may present as varying grades of affection involving the proximal femur and the acetabulum. Recognition of this rare abnormality on radiographs can help manage these cases better since early institution of therapy may help in achieving adequate growth of the femur.

Environmental pollution of heavy metals from automobiles has attained much attention in the recent past. The present research was conducted to study Pb and Cd level concentrations in soil and vegetations along a major highway with high traffic density. Soil and vegetable samples along highway were collected from 10 sites in Agra district (India) and analyzed for two heavy metals (lead and cadmium) using flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS). The soil physicochemical properties were also determined. The general decrease in concentrations of these metals with distance from the highway indicates their relation to traffic. Higher accumulations of metals have been observed on vegetation and soil samples near to the highway (0-5 m) than on vegetation and soil samples from sites a little farther away ( at 5-10 m & 10-15 m). This is attributed mainly to aerial deposition of the metal particulates from motor vehicles. The values of heavy metals were compared with results found by other investigators in various countries worldwide.

Differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry (DPASV) was applied for the simultaneous determination of zinc and copper in multivitamin tablet (supradyn and centrum). Determination of the metals was made in ammonium acetate buffer (pH 4.5) with a scan rate of 0.01 V/s by Hanging Mercury Dropping Electrode (HMDE).The solution was stirred during electrolysis at -1.3 V for 300 s in the potential range of -1.3 to + 0.1 V. Concentrations of zinc and copper in supradyn drug sample were found to be 1.80 and 2.9 mg/tablet and for centrum drug sample were found to be 4.6 and 0.94 mg/tablet respectively.