OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS Injury to the recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) is a dreaded complication of endocrine surgery. Intraoperative neural monitoring (IONM) has been increasingly utilized to assess the functional status of the RLN. Although the posterior cricoarytenoid muscle (PCA) is innervated by the RLN as the abductor of the larynx, PCA electromyography (EMG) is infrequently recorded during ...

Despite the evidence suggesting that between 8% and 55% of manual labourers experience thoracic pain, research on spinal loading during occupational tasks has been almost invariably limited to the lumbar spine. In this study, we determined the ratio of thoracic to lumbar compression force and the relative risk of injury to each region in various postures. Compressive forces on the spine were ca...

This study explores the inertial effects of the head and torso on cervical spine dynamics with the specific goal of determining whether the head mass can provide a constraining cervical spine end condition. The hypothesis was tested using a low friction impact surface and a pocketing foam impact surface. Impact orientation was also varied. Tests were conducted on whole unembalmed heads and cerv...

STUDY DESIGN In vivo strain techniques were used in an animal radiculopathy model. OBJECTIVE To quantify the severity of compressive nerve root injury and characterize its effect on resultant mechanical allodynia in a lumbar radiculopathy model. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA Clinical and experimental work indicate many factors contributing to radicular pain mechanisms, including mechanical inj...

Neurological degeneration can occur after compression of the spinal cord. It is widely accepted that spinal cord compression leads to ischemic lesions and ultimately neurological dysfunction due to a narrowed spinal canal. Therefore, an in-depth understanding of the pathogenesis of spinal cord compression injury is required to help develop effective clinical interventions. In the present study,...

Preventing cartilage injury is important in minimizing the long term debilitating effects of osteoarthritis. Accurate subfracture injury prediction must take into account the possible effects that freeze thaw cycles may have on the mechanical properties of cartilage tissue. This paper addresses this concern with matched pair testing of various low temperature storage techniques against fresh co...

INTRODUCTION: Intervertebral disc experiences large complex deformations including compression, rotation, and bending under daily activity. For example, twisting while carrying a weight, loads the disc under axial compression and axial rotation. Previous work showed that the rate of degeneration and disc injury is higher for in workers that experience repetitive twisting and lifting [1]. Disc d...

INTRODUCTION Foot and ankle impact injury is common in geriatric trauma and often leads to fracture of rearfoot, including calcaneus and talus. The objective of this study was to assess the influence of foot impact on the risk of calcaneus and talus fracture via finite element analysis. METHODS A three-dimensional finite element model of foot and ankle was constructed based on magnetic resona...

Background Non-traumatic myelopathy is common in Africa and there are geographic differences in etiology. Clinical management is challenging due to the broad differential diagnosis and the lack of diagnostics. The objective of this systematic review is to determine the most common etiologies of non-traumatic myelopathy in sub-Saharan Africa to inform a regionally appropriate diagnostic algorith...