Using a Kastle-Meyer (KM) technique, the following equipment from the emergency departments of six UK hospitals (four trusts) and three regional ambulance services was tested for blood contamination: extrication ("spinal") boards, cervical collars, straps, box splints, head blocks, and headboards. Only equipment ready for patient use was tested. Over half of trauma equipment (57%) tested positi...

BACKGROUND Cervical orthoses are commonly used for extrication, transportation, and definitive immobilization for cervical trauma patients. Various designs have been tested frequently in young, healthy individuals. To date, no one has reported the effectiveness of collar immobilization in the presence of an unstable mid-cervical spine. STUDY OBJECTIVES To determine the extent to which cervica...

Cervical halter traction has been a method of gentle traction used in home care settings for selected patients with cervical radiculopathy. An active management program with cervical halter traction was initiated for patients with cervical spine injury admitted to Choma General Hospital in Zambia during the years 2000–2009. The surgical consultant on call was available to assist with early radi...

Background The incidence of infection after posterior cervical spine surgery ranges from 0 to 18%. Higher rates have been reported after posterior procedures compared with anterior procedures, but these studies have been for small series. We report on our rate of surgical site infection (SSI) after posterior cervical spine surgery and the risk factors that influence these infections. Methods We...

Effective and safe monitoring techniques are needed by U.S. land managers to understand free-roaming horse behavior and habitat use and to aid in making informed management decisions. Global positioning system (GPS) and very high frequency (VHF) radio collars can be used to provide high spatial and temporal resolution information for detecting free-roaming horse movement. GPS and VHF collars ar...

A small (30-ml 1080 solution) livestock protection (LP) collar has been registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to help control coyote (Canis latrans) predation on sheep and goats. However, the small collar does not adequately cover the throats of large livestock. We pen tested large (60-ml 1080 solution) LP collars on large sheep for effectiveness against coyotes and deter...

The scour phenomenon around bridge piers causes great quantities of damages annually all over the world. Collars are considered as one of the substantial methods for reducing the depth and volume of scour around bridge piers. In this study, the experimental and numerical methods are used to investigate two different shapes of collars, i.e, rectangular and circular, in terms of reducing scour ar...

Background: Favorable surgical results had been reported in cervical posterior foraminotomy using endoscopy; however, the learning curve for the surgeon is steep. We therefore developed a procedure that can be performed more easily and with small incision, called “Mini Open Foraminotomy (MOF)”, using a tubular retractor (22mm diameter) under direct vision. The purpose of this study was to demon...

BACKGROUND Central venous access is often necessary for the administration of fluids, blood products, and medications. Several approaches to supraclavicular subclavian venous access have been described. This study examines the effectiveness of central venous catheter placement utilizing an alternative set of anatomic landmarks for supraclavicular subclavian vein access. METHODS This was a two...