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H Holstein

Publications and source records attributed to H Holstein.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

A mathematical model of forces in the knee under isometric quadriceps contractions.

OBJECTIVE: To predict the knee's response to isometric quadriceps contractions against a fixed tibial restraint.Design. Mathematical modelling of the human knee joint. BACKGROUND: Isometric quadriceps contraction is commonly used for leg muscle strengthening following ligament injury or reconstruction. It is desirable to know the ligament forces induced but direct measurement is difficult. METHODS: The model, previously applied to the Lachmann or 'drawer' tests, combines an extensible fibre-array representation of the cruciate ligaments with a compressible 'thin-layer' representation of the cartilage. The model allows the knee configuration and force system to be calculated, given flexion angle, restraint position and loading. RESULTS: Inclusion of cartilage deformation increases relative tibio-femoral translation and decreases the ligament forces generated. For each restraint position, a range of flexion angles is found in which no ligament force is required, as opposed to a single flexion angle in the case of incompressible cartilage layers. CONCLUSIONS: Knee geometry and ligament elasticity are found to be the most important factors governing the joint's response to isometric quadriceps contractions, but cartilage deformation is found to be more important than in the Lachmann test. RELEVANCE: Estimation of knee ligament forces is important when devising exercise regimes following ligament injury or reconstruction. The finding of a 'neutral zone' of zero ligament force may have implications for rehabilitation of the ligament-injured knee.

Cartilage

The effect of cartilage deformation on the laxity of the knee joint.

In this paper, deformation of the articular cartilage layers is incorporated into an existing two-dimensional quasi-static model of the knee joint. The new model relates the applied force and the joint displacement, as measured in the Lachmann drawer test, and allows the effect of cartilage deformation on the knee joint laxity to be determined. The new model augments the previous knee model by calculating the tibio-femoral contact force subject to an approximate 'thin-layer' constitutive equation, and a method is described for finding the configuration of the knee under a specified load, in terms of a displacement from a zero-load reference configuration. The results show that inclusion of deformable cartilage layers can cause a reduction of between 10 and 35 per cent in the force required to produce a given tibial displacement, over the range of flexion angles considered. The presence of cartilage deformation was found to be an important modifier of the loading response but is secondary to the effect of ligamentous extension. The flexion angle dependence of passive joint laxity is much more strongly influenced by fibre recruitment in the ligaments than by cartilage deformation.

Biomechanical Phenomena

A study of the effect of cyproheptadine on gait in hemiplegic children.

The properties of cyproheptadine as an anti-spastic agent have been reported since 1980. In this study we sought to investigate whether gait function, as specified by stride length, cadence, heart rate, and also by questionnaire, correlated with cyproheptadine medication during a double-blind matched-placebo cross-over trial, undertaken on a group of 16 hemiplegic spastic patients aged 4-18 years. We found that neither qualitative nor quantitative analyses suggested any systematic change in gait parameters dependent on cyproheptadine medication. We conclude that our study on 16 patients showed no statistical evidence of improvement in spasticity due to the action of cyproheptadine. An effect was, however, found in the case of mean patient heart rate, which was 10% higher (P<0.003) at the end of the cyproheptadine medication period. Copyright 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.

Journal Article

Quantitative neutron capture radiography for studying the biodistribution of tumor-seeking boron-containing compounds.

Biodistribution of two compounds presently considered for use in neutron capture therapy has been studied in mice carrying a transplantable Harding-Passey melanoma. A method is described by which quantitative assessment can be made of the boron distribution in whole-body sections of such animals. An alpha-particle-sensitive film is placed in close contact with a freeze-dried section of an animal and exposed to neutrons. The tracks visible after etching are analyzed optoelectronically in fields of 0.6 X 0.6 mm2 and compared to standards of boron homogeneously distributed in liver homogenates. The dynamic range of this method is about two orders of magnitude in concentration, with a lower detection limit of 0.1 to 0.01 ppm 10B, depending on the rate of induction of spurious tracks by fast neutrons present in the neutron beam chosen. In a transplantable Harding-Passey melanoma in mice, it was found that the sulfhydryl boron hydride Na2B12H11SH presently used for therapy of glioblastoma clears blood, muscle, and brain very rapidly. Its accumulation in tumors was persistent for more than three days. A higher tumor accumulation was observed with its disulfide, which has been suggested for neutron capture therapy. For both compounds, a marked heterogeneity of boron distribution within one tumor was found.

Animals

The MDR rule.

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Commerce