Tendons are unique forms of connective tissue aiming to transmit the mechanical force of muscle contraction to the bones. Tendon injury may be due to direct trauma or might be secondary to overuse injury and age-related degeneration, leading to inflammation, weakening and subsequent rupture. Current traditional treatment strategies focus on pain relief, reduction of the inflammation and functional restoration. Tendon repair surgery can be performed in people with tendon injuries to restore the tendon’s function, with re-rupture being the main potential complication. Novel therapeutic approaches that address the underlying pathology of the disease is warranted. Scaffolds represent a promising solution to the challenges associated with tendon tissue engineering. The ideal scaffold for tendon tissue engineering needs to exhibit physiologically relevant mechanical properties and to facilitate functional graft integration by promoting the regeneration of the native tissue.

Although strokes have been documented since about 3 millennia, they remain today as one of the leading causes of mortality, as well as of subsequent serious long-term physical and mental morbidity, among patients in many different countries all over the world. Greece presents an increase in mortality rates according to World Health Organization, and this fact underlines the need for early diagnosis and treatment, as well as, the need to implement effective prevention strategies for strokes. This review makes an effort to describe the current status of stroke epidemiological features, as well as to present the risk factors prevalent in Greece. The incidence rate is 261-319/100,000 based on the recent population based registry. Stroke appears to be more prevalent in men than in women, and the mean age of stroke onset in Greece is at 70 years of age. Hypertension, atrial fibrillation, dyslipidaemia and diabetes mellitus are the major risk factors of stroke in the Greek population, while smoking is the most commonly documented modifiable risk factor in young adults with ischemic stroke. Similar to other parts of the world, ischemic stroke is the most common stroke type. The 28-day case fatality rate for men and women was 26.5%. The mean in-hospital cost per stroke patient was 3624.9 € and the mean rehabilitation cost of outpatients with stroke was 5553.3 €, while the cost proportion of hemorrhagic stroke is higher when compared to ischemic stroke. Stroke is a devastating condition with recognized challenges in identifying effective prevention programs. In Greece, limited data exists regarding the epidemiology of strokes. As a result, the need to conduct new studies and researches across the country is well documented.

The finite element method (FEM) represents a computer simulation method, originally used in civil engineering, which dates back to the early 1940s. Applications of FEM have also been used in numerous medical areas and in orthopedic surgery. Computing technology has improved over the years and as a result, more complex problems, such as those involving the spine, can be analyzed. The spine is a complex anatomical structure that maintains the erect posture and supports considerable loads. Applications of FEM in the spine have contributed to the understanding of bone biomechanics, both in healthy and abnormal conditions, such as scoliosis, fractures (trauma), degenerative disc disease and osteoporosis. However, since FEM is only a digital simulation of the real condition, it will never exactly simulate in vivo results. In particular, when it concerns biomechanics, there are many features that are difficult to represent in a FEM. More FEM studies and spine research are required in order to examine interpersonal spine stiffness, young spine biomechanics and model accuracy. In the future, patient-specific models will be used for better patient evaluations as well as for better pre- and inter-operative planning.