In sports medicine, neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) has been used for muscle strengthening, maintenance of muscle mass and strength during prolonged periods of immobilisation, selective muscle retraining, and the control of oedema. A wide variety of stimulators, including the burst-modulated alternating current ('Russian stimulator'), twin-spiked monophasic pulsed current and biphas...

BACKGROUND In patients with head-neck cancer treated with IMRT, immobility of the upper part of the body during radiation is maintained by means of customised immobilisation devices. The main purpose of this study was to determine how the procedures for preparation of customised immobilisation systems and the patients characteristics influence the extent of setup errors. METHODS A longitudina...

Immobilisation of the cervical spine is a common procedure following traumatic injury. This is often precautionary as the actual incidence of spinal injury is low. Nonetheless, stabilisation of the head and neck is an important part of pre-hospital care due to the catastrophic damage that may follow if further unrestricted movement occurs in the presence of an unstable spinal injury. Currently ...

Cervical immobilisation is commonly applied following trauma, particularly blunt head injury, but current methods of immobilisation are associated with significant complications. Semi-rigid disposable cervical collars are known to cause pressure ulcers, and impede effective airway management. These collars may also exacerbate a head injury by increasing intracranial pressure as a result of exte...

We present a method of manipulative reduction, immobilisation and fixation using a U-shaped plaster with the elbow in extension for extension-type supracondylar fractures of the humerus in children. When the elbow is in full extension, both the extensor and the flexor muscles are neutralised during manipulative reduction and the carrying angle can be easily assessed thus preventing cubitus varu...

BACKGROUND Handling of common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) usually requires chemical restraint. Ketamine has been associated with muscle damage in primates, while common marmosets, compared to other primates, additionally display an exceptional high sensitivity to ketamine-associated side-effects. Notably, muscle twitching movements of limbs and hands, and a marked increase in salivation are o...

The surgical correction of mandibular protrusion and retrusion has been a subject of absorbing interest since Hullihen, in 1849, described a case of osteotomy of the horizontal ramus. Since that time many surgeons have developed techniques in regard to the site of election, the method of approach, the instrumentation and the mechanics of immobilisation. The fact that in the published results th...

Although Portland cement is the most widely used binder in the stabilisation/solidification (S/S) processes, slag-based binders have gained significant attention recently due to their economic and environmental merits. In the present study, a novel binder, reactive MgO activated slag, is compared with hydrated lime activated slag in the immobilisation of lead and zinc. A series of lead or zinc-...

Maintaining wild animals in captivity often requires chemical immobilisation to achieve various diagnostic, surgical and management interventions. Four dholes, two Indian grey wolves and four Indian jackals were immobilised using ketamine-xylazine combination for either medical or management interventions. Based on the estimated body weight, canids were darted upon with 6-8 mg kg-1 ketamine and...

In this study, the potential of alkali activated fly ash cements to immobilise metals that are generally not well immobilised in Portland cements was examined. A class F fly ash was activated with a solution of 8M NaOH to form a hardened cementitious paste. Prior to activation, fly ashes were doped with either: i) 5000 mg/kg (0.5%) Hg 2+ as HgCl2, ii) 10000 mg/kg (1.0%) Cs + as CsOH.H2O or iii)...