Hypersensitivity Reactions to Implanted Metal Devices: Facts and Fictions

Hypersensitivity Reactions to Implanted Metal Devices: Facts and Fictions.

The use of metals in the medical field has become increasingly prevalent over the past few decades. Patients find themselves being exposed to metals in a variety of ways, ranging from external exposure to instruments such as the stainless steel in surgical blades to internal exposure via medical devices being implanted in their bodies. There has been growing interest in the possibility of devel...

Cloning Facts and Fictions

Facts and fictions

"We must always think about things, and we must think about things as they are, not as they are said to be"-George Bernard Shaw "Every man has a right to his opinion, but no man has a right to be wrong in his facts."-Bernard M. Baruch "The fact that an opinion has been widely held is no evidence whatever that it is not utterly absurd, indeed, in view of the silliness of the majority of mankind,...

Systematic Errors: Facts and Fictions

The treatment of systematic errors is often mishandled. This is due to lack of understanding and education, based on a fundamental ambiguity as to what is meant by the term. This note addresses the problems and offers guidance to good practice. 1 RIVAL DEFINITIONS: UNCERTAINTY AND MISTAKE 1.1 Random Uncertainties and Mistakes The word error is used in several ways. The everyday dictionary defin...

Hypersensitivity reactions to metal implants: laboratory options

BACKGROUND All implant compounds undergo an electrochemical process when in contact with biological fluids, as well as mechanical corrosion due to abrasive wear, with production of metal debris that may inhibit repair processes. None of the commonly-used methods can diagnose implant allergies when used singly, therefore a panel of tests should be performed on allergic patients as pre-operative ...