The function of the elbow is to be subservient to the hand in the sense that the elbow enables the hand and fingers to be placed at desired distances from the body. Two types of motion are required to position the hand. The first, and principal one, is the shortening and lengthening of the distance the hand is positioned from the body. The hand may be brought out at full arm's length, as when t...

We report a long-term follow-up of abduction-extension osteotomy of the first metacarpal, performed for painful trapeziometacarpal osteoarthritis. Of a consecutive series of 50 operations, 41 thumbs (82%) were reviewed at a mean follow-up of 6.8 years. Good or excellent pain relief was achieved in 80%, and 93% considered that surgery had improved hand function, while 82% had normal grip and pin...

A neck scar contracture can severely and negatively affect the function of mastication, phonic, or breathing and result in neck pain and issues with esthetics. The best way is of course to avoid such contracture by means of non-surgical treatment such as use of a growth factor. The basic fibroblastic growth factor is clinically well proven in decreasing scar formation and improving healing. The...

We investigated the roles of sodium-calcium exchange, sarcoplasmic reticulum, and mitochondria in Cai homeostasis in cultured chick ventricular cells. Specifically, the influence of low sodium medium on contractile state, calcium fluxes, and cytosolic free [Ca] [( Ca]i) was examined. [Ca]i was measured using fura-2. Mean [Ca]i in control medium was 126 +/- 14 nM. Exposure of cells to sodium-fre...

Suxamethonium induced a contracture in caffeine pretreated human muscle in vitro. The contracture was significantly greater (P less than 0.001) with MHS muscle compared with muscle from normal subjects. This reaction is now used as an additional screening test for the MHS phenotype. The contracture was prevented by pretreatment with dantrolene.

abstract   background: dupuytren's disease is a fibroproliferative disorder of the palmar fascia   that can result in disabling contractures of the digits. when function is impeded or deformity is disabling, surgical intervention can be considered, wherein a major problem is recurrence ( reported up to 74%). although, the disease occurs predominantly in men of northern european, there are ...

Contracture of the iliotibial band leading to flexion and abduction deformity at the hip is common in residual paralysis after polio. Ober's test has been used to detect this, but it is unreliable and cannot determine the degree of contracture. We describe a new test which quantifies this contracture and can be used for comparative purposes.

BACKGROUND Severe postoperative knee contractures after arthroplasty or megaprosthesis reconstruction occur rarely, but are devastating complications. Management of preoperative flexion contractures is well-described, but there is a paucity of literature for surgical treatment of postoperative contractures. A retrospective chart review was performed for a single surgeon of cases between 1996 an...