Search Results (255)

Background and Objectives: Presurgical infant orthopedics aims to reduce cleft severity and facilitate primary surgical repair during the early neonatal period, when increased tissue plasticity enhances molding. Nasoalveolar molding is widely used but requires intraoral appliances, laboratory support, specialized training, and frequent follow-up visits, which may limit accessibility and adherence. This case series reports the clinical application of presurgical lip–alveolus–nose approximation (PLANA), an extraoral technique for early presurgical cleft management, and describes the clinical changes observed during treatment in four infants. Materials and Methods: A prospective case series conducted in neonates with non-syndromic unilateral or bilateral cleft lip and/or palate referred within the first 10 days of life to the Alabama Cleft Center. Treatment consisted of a prefabricated silicone nasal aligner combined with hydrocolloid lip adhesive taping. No intraoral plates or dental impressions were used. Devices were worn 20 to 22 h daily. Follow up occurred every 2 to 4 weeks, with remote monitoring used when appropriate. Qualitative clinical observations focused on apparent changes in nasal symmetry, columellar length, septal alignment, nasal tip projection, premaxillary position, nostril dimensions, alar base width, cleft width, and lip approximation, as well as feeding tolerance, skin tolerance, and treatment adherence. These observations were assessed qualitatively through serial clinical examinations and clinical photographs; no standardized quantitative morphometric measurements were performed. Results: Four infants with complete unilateral or bilateral cleft lip and palate received PLANA treatment. Serial clinical examinations and photographs documented qualitative changes in nasolabial morphology over the course of treatment in all four patients. Qualitative clinical assessment of serial photographs and examinations suggested greater apparent nasal symmetry, apparent columellar elongation, more central-appearing nasal alignment, increased apparent nasal tip projection, apparent cleft-width reduction, and progressive lip approximation. In unilateral clefts, changes were observed in both the cleft and non-cleft nasal sides, while bilateral clefts demonstrated changes in nasal morphology bilaterally. No device-related complications or clinically significant skin intolerance were documented during the reported treatment periods. Parent-reported device wear was approximately 20–22 h per day. Conclusions: In this four-patient prospective descriptive case series, PLANA was applied clinically, with no clinically significant treatment-related complications documented during the reported treatment periods. Serial clinical observations suggested changes in nasolabial morphology during treatment. Given the small sample size, absence of a contemporaneous control group, and qualitative nature of the assessments, these findings should be interpreted as preliminary and hypothesis-generating rather than as evidence of treatment efficacy or comparative effectiveness. Larger prospective, multicenter comparative studies incorporating standardized quantitative measurements, objective adherence assessment, and long-term surgical and aesthetic outcomes are needed to evaluate the effectiveness, reproducibility, and clinical applicability of the PLANA approach. Full article

Rapid corrosion and poor coating adhesion continue to limit the use of magnesium alloys as temporary orthopedic implants. The two-stage laser process was developed to separate the high-temperature melting of 45S5 bioactive glass (BG) from the low-melting-point AZ31 substrate. Femtosecond-laser grids with spacings of 100, 200, and 300 μm were first produced on AZ31 to provide anchoring sites. Then, the target 45S5 BG was suspended above the substrate, locally melted with CO₂ laser, and transported onto the textured surface by gas jet. The 200 μm grid texture for Mg substrate with lowest water contact angle could give the highest tape-test adhesion rating (4B). At the selected deposition conditions of 20 W and 20 L·min⁻¹, two coating cycles produced a continuous layer approximately 50.5 μm thick. Relative to bare Mg alloy, this double-layer coating increased polarization resistance from 1.20 × 103 to 1.39 × 10⁵ Ω·cm² and decreased corrosion current density from 8.70 × 10⁻⁴ to 5.33 × 10⁻⁶ A·cm⁻². It also limited alkalization and mass loss during 28 days in simulated body fluid. As such, the double-layer surface coating supported apatite formation and improved MC3T3-E1 proliferation and alkaline phosphatase activity. These findings indicated that suspended-target deposition was able to form adherent, bioactive glass coatings on magnesium while limiting direct thermal damage to the substrate. Full article

Malassezia spp. are commensal yeasts of canine skin that may act as opportunistic pathogens. The aim of this study was to assess the presence, distribution and numbers of Malassezia spp. on the skin and external ear canal in clinically healthy Golden Retrievers and Bernese Mountain Dogs, to evaluate the influence of breed, age and sex, and to compare the findings with previously published cytological reference values. Fifty clinically healthy Golden Retrievers and 50 Bernese Mountain Dogs were included in the study. Both external ear canals and six body sites (perioral region, chin, axilla, interdigital spaces, inguinal region and dorsum) were sampled. The external ear canals were sampled using a sterile cotton swab, while the skin sites were sampled using the adhesive tape technique. The slides obtained were microscopically examined, and the number of Malassezia spp. was recorded. All data were statistically analyzed. Malassezia spp. were observed in all dogs, with different distributions in ear and skin areas. Malassezia spp. counts were significantly higher in Golden Retrievers than in Bernese Mountain Dogs at all skin sites. No significant difference was observed between breeds in the external ear canal. Forty-nine (98%) Golden Retrievers and 35 (74%) Bernese Mountain Dogs showed a mean skin number of Malassezia spp. per oil immersion field (OIF) above the 1 yeast/OIF literature threshold commonly used in the presence of clinical signs. No relationship was found between the mean value of Malassezia spp. per microscopic field and sex or age in either breed. The results show that Golden Retrievers have higher Malassezia spp. counts across all evaluated skin sites compared with Bernese Mountain Dogs. Whether higher baseline Malassezia spp. populations contribute to clinical yeast overgrowth requires further investigation. No significant difference in external ear canal Malassezia spp. counts was observed between breeds; however, the mean values recorded in both populations exceeded cytological reference values for healthy dogs. These findings indicate that cytological Malassezia spp. counts in clinically healthy dogs may vary according to breed and anatomical site. Diagnostic interpretation should therefore integrate cytological findings with clinical signs, breed, site, and sampling method. Further studies are required to establish normal reference intervals for Malassezia spp. per microscopic field based on breed and anatomical site. Full article

Adhesive tape strip cytology at 1000× magnification is the recommended method for the presumptive diagnosis of canine Malassezia overgrowth and/or dermatitis. This study aimed to determine the minimum number of microscopic fields required to achieve optimal intraobserver repeatability and interobserver reproducibility. Two groups of cytology slides were evaluated: 12 slides paired with photographs of pruritic dogs, in which a presumptive diagnosis of Malassezia dermatitis was defined by the detection of at least one yeast organism, and eight slides paired with photographs of non-pruritic dogs, in which a presumptive diagnosis of Malassezia overgrowth and dermatitis was defined by the detection of an average of at least one yeast organism per microscopic field. Twelve investigators examined each slide twice, and results from the first 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50 oil immersion fields were recorded and used for statistical analysis. Regardless of the number of microscopic fields examined, overall intraobserver repeatability and interobserver reproducibility were clinically non-acceptable for both slide groups and did not substantially increase in parallel with the number of the fields examined. Consequently, negative adhesive tape strip cytology results may not exclude Malassezia overgrowth and/or dermatitis in dogs with compatible clinical signs. Full article

Background/Objectives: Distal radius and carpal fractures are common injuries in emergency radiology, where accurate lateral wrist positioning is essential for diagnostic image quality. Maintaining a true lateral position can be challenging, often requiring manual support and increasing occupational radiation exposure. This pilot phantom study aimed to design, fabricate, and evaluate a novel 3D-printed wrist immobilization device and compare its performance with adhesive tape and sandbag stabilization. Methods: A wrist immobilization device was designed using computer-aided design software and fabricated by fused deposition modeling with polylactic acid. A wrist phantom was imaged using three stabilization techniques: the 3D-printed device, adhesive tape, and sandbag support. Image quality was independently assessed by two blinded observers using an eight-point scoring system. Inter-rater reliability was evaluated using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Positioning time was recorded, and radiopacity was assessed using pixel intensity measurements within predefined regions of interest. Results: No significant differences in image quality were observed among the three stabilization techniques (p = 0.263). Inter-rater reliability was excellent (ICC = 0.877). Positioning time differed significantly among techniques (p = 0.036), with sandbag stabilization requiring the shortest time. Radiopacity analysis demonstrated minimal attenuation (8.6–20.8%) in regions adjacent to the anatomical area of interest, while higher attenuation was limited to non-diagnostic regions. Conclusions: The 3D-printed wrist immobilization device produced image quality comparable to conventional stabilization methods with minimal radiographic interference. These findings support its feasibility as a low-cost positioning aid and warrant further evaluation in larger clinical studies. Full article

Objective assessment of low back pain (LBP) is challenging due to subtle, task-dependent movement impairments that are poorly captured by existing sensing technologies. Motion Tape (MT), which is a self-adhesive elastic fabric skin strain sensor, enables skin-conforming measurement of localized biomechanical strain during functional movement, but its discriminative utility for LBP remains unclear. We examine this question in a multi-sensor, multi-movement setting and analyze whether MT signals encode discriminative structure that distinguishes individuals with LBP from healthy controls. Using data from 20 participants performing 19 functional movements with six sensors, we evaluate movement-specific classification under a leave-pair-out protocol and examine which movements, sensor placements, and features are most informative. Our analysis reveals that group separation is highly selective: only a small subset of movements, most notably forward flexion, consistently supports accurate classification, while many movements remain at near-chance level. We find that temporal dynamics features help in resolving difficult cases that global strain statistics fail to separate, and that informative signals are spatially localized to the lower lumbar spine. In contrast, pretrained time-series foundation models show negligible sensitivity to participant-level structure in MT signals. Overall, the findings from this exploratory study establish when and how MT sensing can effectively differentiate individuals with LBP from healthy controls, providing a principled foundation for larger-scale validation. Full article

This study evaluated how silicone release liners come away from butyl hot-melt pressure-sensitive adhesive (HMPSA) sealants. An application-specific integration peel test was conducted based on FINAT FTM 10 geometry. It kept the 180° geometry, the 300 mm/min crosshead speed, and the cN/25 mm reporting convention, but used 90 mm butyl-sealant strips in place of a standard reference adhesive tape. The reported values are therefore apparent/effective separation forces for the tested liner–butyl constructions, not standard FINAT datasheet release-force values. Three double-sided silicone-coated PET liners (Rossella, Dolpap, Crosil 42) and seven commercial butyl sealants (C1E, U2E, C1EN, T1E, T2E, T1EN, T2EN) were tested on both liner sides. Two descriptors summarized each force–displacement trace: the mean apparent separation force and an operational slip-stick peak count based on positive residual-force excursions. Most combinations stayed below about 18 cN/25 mm. An increase was observed for T1EN, and a much larger one for Rossella/U2E. In both cases, high, diffuse stress was accompanied by volumetric deformations, fibrillation, and unstable detachment, rather than clean detachment at the phase boundary. Dolpap was the most stable and the most symmetric. Crosil 42 stayed in the low-force range but showed a few material-specific side differences. Taken together, the mean force and the peak count form a reproducible relative screen for selecting actual liner–butyl pairs, one that complements rather than replaces standard release-liner datasheet testing. Full article

Silver conductive structures were fabricated on 96% alumina ceramic substrates by selectively irradiating a silver nitrate precursor liquid film using a 355 nm Nd:YAG nanosecond laser under ambient conditions, without the use of external reducing agents. The effects of laser energy density, scan number, precursor concentration, plasma pretreatment, and PVP-30 addition on the morphology, composition, electrical conductivity, and adhesion of the deposited structures were investigated using XRD, SEM, EDS, contact angle measurements, resistance measurements, and tape-peeling tests. XRD confirmed the formation of metallic Ag in the laser-scanned regions. Insufficient laser energy density led to incomplete Ag⁺ reduction and discontinuous conductive paths, whereas excessive energy input caused hollow formation and Ag edge accumulation. A laser energy density of 12.03 J/cm² provided a favorable balance among structural integrity, Ag enrichment, and electrical conductivity. Increasing the scan number promoted particle coalescence and conductive network formation, while 1000 scanning cycles provided a suitable balance between structural continuity and dimensional precision. As the AgNO₃ concentration increased, the deposited structures evolved from isolated particles into continuous and compact layers, with 5 mol/L showing favorable deposition performance. Plasma pretreatment combined with PVP-30 addition reduced the contact angle of the ceramic surface from 48.25° to 19.05°, thereby improving the continuity, uniformity, and compactness of the deposits. After the scan spacing was reduced to form continuous silver films, the samples retained more than 98% of their conductivity after five tape-peeling cycles, with a resistivity of 6.14 × 10⁻⁸ Ω·m. These results demonstrate that laser-induced deposition is a controllable strategy for fabricating conductive silver structures on ceramic surfaces. Full article

The identification of dyes in ancient textiles is crucial for provenance research and scientific conservation. However, the extremely significant value of these cultural relics necessitates the use of non-destructive analytical techniques. To establish a non-destructive, in-situ, accurate, and rapid method for identifying natural dyes in ancient silk fabric samples, we employed desorption electrospray ionization high-resolution mass-spectrometry imaging (DESI-MSI). By optimizing key instrumental parameters—including sample pretreatment method, DESI spray solvent composition, and DESI heated transfer line (HTL) temperature—we determined the optimal mass-spectrometry imaging conditions. The optimal conditions for achieving the highest mass-spectrometry ion peak signal intensity and the best imaging quality were as follows: employing sample pretreatment using double-sided adhesive tape; a spray solvent composed of methanol (100%, v/v) with 0.1% formic acid and 0.1 μg/mL of leucine enkephalin; and an HTL temperature of 400 °C. The characteristic compound in the G42 silk fabric sample was successfully separated. Based on the characteristic mass-to-charge ratio of the major component, the compound was preliminarily identified as berberine. This result was further verified by tandem mass-spectrometry imaging and tandem mass spectra and finally confirmed by comparison with the mass spectrum of a reference standard. Consequently, the source of the dye in the sample was determined to be amur cork tree. The experiments confirmed the applicability and accuracy of the DESI-MSI method for the non-destructive analysis of precious textiles. This work underscores the urgent need to use such non-destructive techniques to provide technical support for the identification of high-value, inaccessible, or fragile silk artifacts and guide the historical tracing and preservation of these cultural relics. Full article

Silicone pressure-sensitive adhesives are a prominent group of adhesive materials used in many contemporary industrial sectors. This is due to their high resistance to difficult operating conditions, especially high temperatures. They are used, among other areas, in the automotive industry or in power engineering, as fastening or insulation systems operating at high temperatures. Previous studies have demonstrated the beneficial effect of mineral fillers on further increases in thermal resistance and dimensional stability of silicone pressure-sensitive adhesives. This paper presents the results of research on the effect of adding rose quartz as a filler to silicone pressure-sensitive adhesives based on polydimethylsiloxanes, on the adhesion parameters of the obtained adhesives and their thermal resistance and dimensional stability at elevated temperatures. The self-adhesive tapes obtained showed increased resistance and thermal stability while maintaining the required performance parameters. Among the tested compositions, optimal PSA parameters were achieved for Q2-7358 resin filled with 0.5 pph of rose quartz particles: adhesion exceeded industrial requirements by more than 15%, and tack met those requirements. Furthermore, low (and consistent) shrinkage (0.4% after one week) and cohesion—evaluated as hold time > 72 h—were recorded. As the most important parameter for studied compositions, thermal resistance (SAFT) substantially increased (>225 h) in comparison to neat resin (150 h). Full article

Physically unclonable functions (PUFs) are critical security primitives used in authentication and cryptographic key generation. Among these, structural color-based PUFs offer distinct advantages, including fade resistance and the ability to conceal multi-dimensional information. However, current fabrication methods rely heavily on wet processes and laser ablation. Consequently, there is a significant need for flexible PUF labels capable of being produced through a facile and dry process. Here, we present stress-relief modulated photonic crystal PUF labels designed for multi-level dynamic encryption. We achieve random patterning of nanograting-based photonic crystals by leveraging curved pinning edge-induced interruptions and the uncontrolled bulking of the polymeric elastomer due to the uneven adhesion force from the tape. Using artificial intelligence-based deep learning algorithms, we authenticate the labels by extracting structural color, brightness, and saturation, which are determined by the grating periodicity, depth, and orderliness of each pixel. Furthermore, we integrated these photonic crystal patterns with dynamically modulated optical erasure to extend encryption capacity from the spatial to the temporal dimension. We anticipate this approach will enable advanced wearable anti-counterfeiting labels and multi-level digital encryption systems. Full article

Two commercial adhesive tape strips (Fungi-Tape^TM and Filmoplast^® P) and a polyvinyl alcohol–borax (PVA-B) gel were tested as novel physical cleaning alternatives to micro-aspiration for removing visible fungal colonisation from a cotton canvas. In addition, clove essential oil (CEO) and Cyrene™ were incorporated in the PVA-B gel for testing the potential of each to improve fungal cleaning. For the trials, canvas mock-ups were separately inoculated with two fungal species identified as Penicillium chrysogenum and Aspergillus westerdijkiae. Removal of fungi and related impacts were evaluated by DOM, FESEM, ATR-FTIR and ImageJ software. Inhibition of fungal spores and residual growth were assessed by in vitro growth tests and CLSM. Removal of A. westerdijkiae was more effective than removal of P. chrysogenum, especially for dense coverage. Both tape strips removed slightly more fungus than micro-aspiration, except for dense coverage of P. chrysogenum. The PVA-B gel, both with and without CEO or Cyrene™, yielded the best (similar) results, removing the fungal material found on the surface and subsurface of canvas without damaging the canvas fibres. Although further testing is required, the antifungal activity of PVA-B gel+ Cyrene™ seems comparable to that of PVA-B gel+ CEO, the former being especially effective against A. westerdijkiae. Full article

Magnesium has attracted attention as an orthopedic implant material due to its excellent biocompatibility and biodegradability; however, rapid corrosion in physiological environments remains a major limitation. In this study, a polydopamine (PDA) intermediate layer and alginate/chitosan multilayer coating were formed on pure magnesium surfaces, with dexamethasone incorporation to simultaneously improve corrosion resistance and bioactivity. SEM observation revealed that uniform coating layers were formed on alginate/chitosan multilayer coated specimens, and the chemical structure of the coating layers was confirmed through FT-IR and XRD analyses. Electrochemical analysis revealed that the PDA/alginate/chitosan coating group exhibited higher corrosion potential (Ecorr: −0.7514 ± 0.022 V vs. −1.706 ± 0.001 V) and lower corrosion current density (icorr: 2.275 ± 0.15 × 10⁻⁷ A/cm² vs. 1.528 ± 0.47 × 10⁻⁴ A/cm²) compared to pure magnesium, with the highest impedance indicating superior corrosion resistance. In tape peel testing, the polydopamine-coated group demonstrated superior adhesion compared to the non-coated group, and sustained release of dexamethasone was confirmed. MC3T3-E1 cell culture results confirmed cell proliferation in all specimens, with the PDA/alginate/chitosan group exhibiting the highest ALP activity compared to other surface-treated groups. Based on these results, the PDA/alginate/chitosan multilayer coating was confirmed to be an effective surface modification method for corrosion control and promotion of osteoblast differentiation on magnesium. Full article

This study aimed to evaluate the impact of sterilization of low-adhesive films with ethylene oxide (EO) or accelerated electrons (radiation sterilization) on their performance in the context of their use to protect forensic traces. It was hypothesized that the implementation of the sterilization process made it possible to obtain functional tools for securing traces. The analysis showed that changes in surface density, density, tensile strength, and adhesion strength do not significantly affect the functional performance of the tapes. Additionally, no alterations in chemical resistance were observed following either sterilization method. The results confirm that both sterilization techniques are suitable for obtaining sterile tapes for forensic applications. Full article

Laser-induced breakdown spectrometry (LIBS), known as an express analysis technique, is for the first time applied in this study for determining selenium in soil. Modern agriculture requires elemental analysis methods to perform the continuous automated online control of microelement content in soil. However, selenium has never been quantitatively determined in soil by LIBS so far. Different sample preparation techniques (loose soil powder, mounted on adhesive tape and tableted soil) are employed here for LIBS determination of selenium in soil. The optimal choice of analytical line is challenging for selenium because of spectral interference with the minor and major soil components (Fe, Si, Zn, Al, Sb), but the Se I 196.09 nm line has the lowest spectral interference. A limit of detection of 3 mg/kg for selenium in soil is achieved in the present study using LIBS. The analytical performance of tape-mounted and loose soil powder samples with appropriate data averaging is found to be comparable to that achieved for tablets. Full article