The existing shortage of therapists and caregivers assisting physically disabled individuals at home is expected to increase and become serious problem in the near future. The patient population needing physical rehabilitation of the upper extremity is also constantly increasing. Robotic devices have the potential to address this problem as noted by the results of recent research studies. However, the availability of these devices in clinical settings is limited, leaving plenty of room for improvement. The purpose of this paper is to document a review of robotic devices for upper limb rehabilitation including those in developing phase in order to provide a comprehensive reference about existing solutions and facilitate the development of new and improved devices. In particular the following issues are discussed: application field, target group, type of assistance, mechanical design, control strategy and clinical evaluation. This paper also includes a comprehensive, tabulated comparison of technical solutions implemented in various systems.

Long-term and stable fixation of implants is one of the most important points for a successful orthopedic surgery in the field of endoprosthesis. Osseointegration (OI), functional connection between bone and implants, is considered as a pivotal process of cementless implant fixation and integration, respectively. OI is affected by various factors of which the property of implants is of high significance. The modification of implants surface for better OI has raised increasing attention in modern orthopedic medicine. Here, the process of OI and the interactions between implants and ambient bone tissues were emblazed. The knowledge regarding the contemporary surface modification strategies was systematically analyzed and reviewed, including materials used for the fabrication of implants, advanced modification techniques, and key factors in the design of porous implants structure. We discussed the superiority of current surface modification programs and concluded that the problems remain to be solved. The primary intention of this systematic review is to provide comprehensive reference information and an extensive overview for better fabrication and design of orthopedic implants. K E Y W O R D Sbiomaterials, orthopedic implants, osseointegration, surface modification

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The Co-based alloy ASTM (Co -28.5 wt.-% Cr -6.3 wt.-% Mo) is widely used for medical implants, e.g. knee prostheses, and is commonly processed by investment casting. Selective laser (SLM) melting is supposed to be an efficient alternative for the production of individually designed knee implants regarding production time and production costs. The mechanical properties, in particular the fatigue strength, of the material have been studied in different states of the material. The mechanical properties of investment casted ASTM F75 and PM-SLM produced ASTM F75 were investigated. The focus in this study was on the PM-SLM material, the specimens were initially produced by selective laser melting and a part of the specimens were further processed by hot isostatic pressing (HIP). The PM-SLM material was mechanically tested in the as-SLM state as well as in the SLM þ HIP state. It was found that the mechanical properties of the as-SLM material did not reach the level of the fatigue strength of as cast material. The post-densification treatment by HIP offers distinct improvements regarding the fatigue strength compared to the as-SLM material.