Infections often compromise the healing of open fractures. While local antibiotic delivery from PMMA beads is an established clinical treatment of infected fractures, surgical removal of the beads is required before implanting a bone graft. A more ideal therapy would comprise a scaffold and antibiotic delivery system administered in one procedure. Biodegradable polyurethane (PUR) scaffolds have been shown in previous studies to promote new bone formation in vivo, but their potential to control infection through release of antibiotics has not been investigated. In this study, injectable PUR scaffolds incorporating tobramycin were prepared by reactive liquid molding. Scaffolds had compressive moduli of 15-115 kPa and porosities ranging from 85-93%. Tobramycin release was characterized by a 45-95% burst (tuned by the addition of PEG), followed by up to 2 weeks of sustained release, with total release 4-5-times greater than equivalent volumes of PMMA beads. Released tobramycin remained biologically active against Staphylococcus aureus, as verified by Kirby-Bauer assays. Similar results were observed for the antibiotics colistin and tigecycline. The versatility of the materials, as well as their potential for injection and controlled release, may present promising opportunities for new therapies for healing of infected wounds.

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The ultimate decision of when to order specific test rests with the physician and is one where the expected benefit exceeds the negative consequences. This publication outlines the recommendations of appropriateness-AUC for 12 tests used in dermatopathology. Importantly, these recommendations may change considering new evidence. Results deemed "uncertain appropriateness" and where consensus was not reached may benefit from further research.

Muir-Torre syndrome is a clinical variant of Lynch syndrome defined by the synchronous or metachronous occurrence of at least one sebaceous neoplasm and at least one Lynch syndrome-related internal cancer. Although screening guidelines for patients with colorectal carcinomas have been established, screening guidelines for cutaneous Muir-Torre associated neoplasms are not currently available. As such, we reviewed the current evidence for the use of MLH1, MSH2, MSH6 and PMS2 immunohistochemistry when cutaneous Muir-Torre associated neoplasms are encountered. We identified weak to moderate support overall for the global use of these assays, with some evidence suggesting a tailored approach using clinical parameters as an adjunct. We also assessed the current utilization patterns of attendees of the American Society of Dermatopathology Annual Meeting (Chicago, 2016). We found that 91% of respondents utilize mismatch repair immunohistochemistry, with the majority utilizing these tests only when requested by the submitting clinician.