OBJECTIVE To describe a new surgical technique to treat pectus excavatum utilizing low hardness solid silicone block that can be carved during the intraoperative period promoting a better aesthetic result. METHODS Between May 1994 and February 2013, 34 male patients presenting pectus excavatum were submitted to surgical repair with the use of low hardness solid silicone block, 10 to 30 Shore ...

Salt marsh die-off is a Western Atlantic conservation problem that has recently spread into Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, USA. It has been hypothesized to be driven by: 1) eutrophication decreasing plant investment into belowground biomass causing plant collapse, 2) boat wakes eroding creek banks, 3) pollution or disease affecting plant health, 4) substrate hardness controlling herbivorous cr...

Cross-shore sediment transport is one of the effective factors in erosion and sedimentation, and affects dynamics of the beach profile in coastal areas. Furthermore, sandbar migration due to cross-shore sediment transport mostly effects beach nourishment, displacement of pollutions trapped in sediments, and organism and plants’ lives.  In this manuscript, sandbar migration due to cro...

Background Special insoles and shoes designed to prevent foot ulcers caused by repetitive high pressures are recommended for patients with diabetes who have any of the following risk factors: neuropathy; peripheral vascular disease; foot deformities; previous ulcers; amputation; and skin pathologies. However, there is a need for increased knowledge regarding: a) differences in the peak pressure...

Background: Although most of the physical and mechanical properties of denture base resin polymerized by the conventional heat polymerization have been studied, the effect of autoclave processing in these properties has not been fully determined. The aim of the present study is to investigate the effect of two different cycles of autoclave processing on the transverse strength, impact strength,...

Natural-fiber-reinforced composites offer various advantages over synthetic composites, including low density, useful mechanical properties and environmental friendliness. In spite of the progress achieved in field, performance these composite materials has yet to be fully characterized, particularly terms impact resistance. this study, we measured drop weight impact, Izod strength, hardness, t...

This work aimed to investigate the biopolyethylene (BioPE)/wood powder (WP) composites compatibilized with polyethylene-grafted maleic anhydride (PE-g-MA), using macaíba oil (OM) as a processing aid. The were prepared, fist, in an internal mixer and, later, crushed flakes molded by injection. Mechanical properties (impact, tensile, flexural and Shore D hardness), heat deflection temperature (HD...

Polyjet, a material jetting 3D printing technique, has been widely used for the fabrication of patient-specific anatomical models owing to toolless technique and its ability print multiple materials in single part. Although with high dimensional accuracy demonstrated, printed tissue-mimicking properties have not realized. In this study, composite layering design was tune shore hardness compress...