Biomedical subjects

G L Garcés

Publications and source records attributed to G L Garcés.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1999

Early diagnosis of stress fracture of the lumbar spine in athletes.

Thirty-three athletes complaining of back pain of more than 1 months' duration and with normal radiography of the lower spine were all studied by scintigraphy and in 24 of them with single photon emission computerized tomography. A stress fracture was considered present if localized increased uptake was seen at a vertebral level. Scintigraphy showed increased uptake in 17 of 33 patients and single photon emission computerized tomography in 16 of 24 patients.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1997

Longitudinal overgrowth of bone after osteotomy in young rats: influence of bone stability.

One hundred and five 5-week-old male rats were used to study the influence of the stability of an osteotomy on longitudinal overgrowth of the bone. In 45 rats (Group 1) a transverse diaphyseal osteotomy of the right tibia was made; the left tibia was left untreated. In the second 45 rats (Group 2) the right tibia was osteotomized after applying an external fixator; the left tibia underwent a sham operation without osteotomy. Fifteen further rats (Group 3) were used as a nonoperated control group. After being measured at different periods up to 20 weeks, the osteotomized tibiae of the Group 1 (unstable) were 16-25% longer than those of their nontreated limbs (P < 0.001). The osteotomized tibiae of the Group 2 (stable) were 6-11% longer than those of the sham-operated opposite limbs (P < 0.001). The osteotomized and unstable tibiae were 9-17% longer than the osteotomized and stable tibiae (P < 0. 001) throughout the whole study. Although several factors have been considered to be responsible for longitudinal bone overgrowth after fracture in young animals, this work suggests that bone's stability plays a decisive role in the final outcome.

Animals↗

PubMed1995

Stress radiography in the diagnosis of anterior cruciate ligament deficiency.

A prospective study was carried out to test the sensitivity and specificity of stress radiography in detecting anterior cruciate ligament deficiency in both knees of 116 patients using the Telos device. In 47 of these a total or partial rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament was diagnosed by arthroscopy, while the ligament was intact in the remaining 69 patients. The mean difference in radiological translation between the injured and the normal knee was greater than 5 mm (p < 0.001) in those with anterior cruciate deficiency, and less than 3 mm in the others. A differential displacement of up to 3 mm was considered normal. The sensitivity of the method was less than 67% and the specificity was 100%. Clinical diagnosis had a sensitivity of 70.2% and a specificity of 98.5%. Our findings suggest that, although a differential translation of more than 3 mm can be diagnostic, smaller differences do not rule out anterior cruciate deficiency.

Anterior Cruciate Ligament↗

PubMed1995

Surgical stabilization of spondylolisthesis in a wrestler.

Sporting activity in wrestlers operated on for spondylolisthesis is not well documented in the literature. We present the case of a wrestler with a grade I L5-S1 spondylolisthesis who was L4-S1 arthrodesed due to pain not relieved by conservative methods. One year after surgery he had returned to full wrestling activity, including competitions. Two years later, he continues to wrestle at the same level of competition.

Adult↗

PubMed1991

Bone growth after periosteal stripping in rats.

The effect on bone growth after stripping of the periosteum of the middle third of the femur was investigated in 70 rats. Seventy further animals were used as controls. The animals were serially killed at 1, 2, 4, 8, 12, 16 and 20 weeks after operation. The femoral length, intertrochanteric diameter, diameter of the distal epiphysis of the femur, diameter of the femoral diaphysis and the tibial length were measured. Significant lengthening of the femur was noted only after 4 weeks, when it was 1.5% longer than the opposite side (p 0.001), but this was not maintained. The diameter of the distal epiphysis and the tibial length were not significantly affected. The intertrochanteric diameter was significantly shorter on the stripped side at the 2nd week and significantly longer at the 12th. The diaphyseal diameter of the stripped bones was progressively more narrow than the contralateral from the 2nd week. Differences remained significant at all stages of this study. Periosteal stripping yields only a temporary slight increase in bone length with a definite decrease in diaphyseal diameter.

Animals↗

PubMed1988

Longitudinal bone growth after sciatic denervation in rats.

The right sciatic nerve of 50 one-month-old male rats was cut under general anaesthesia. Groups of animals were sacrificed at intervals of up to 12 weeks after operation and the length of the femora, tibiae and first and fifth metatarsals were measured with a caliper accurate to 0.05 mm. From the first week, both metatarsals were between 3% and 5% shorter on the denervated side, but there was no further increase of the discrepancy. The femora were less than 1% longer in the denervated limb at the second and eighth week. No difference was found between the lengths of the tibiae. The various factors which could possibly be responsible for these findings are discussed.

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Growth-plate modifications after drilling.

Thirty 5-week-old male rats were used to discern the local modifications of the growth plate after drilling. A 1-mm wide drill hole was made on the right femur from the intercondylar notch to the diaphysis crossing the growth plate, with the left femur acting as a sham-operated control. Animals were killed in four five-unit groups at 1, 2, 8, and 16 weeks, respectively, after the surgical procedure. Soft tissues were removed and bone length measured. Distal growth plates of both femora were histologically, histomorphometrically, and histochemically studied. There were no significant differences in length or growth-plate height between drilled bones and their controls. Drill holes were filled by bony trabeculi formed progressively from metaphyses and adjacent cartilage metaplasia. This bone bridge grew wider as time passed after the surgical procedure. These experimental findings suggest that caution should be taken when pinning fractures through the growth plate. Failed attempts can produce permanent epiphysiodesis bridges.

Animals↗