Background: Optoelectronic plethysmography (OEP) is a non-invasive motion capture method to measure chest wall movements and estimate lung volumes. Objectives: To provide an overview of the clinical findings and research applications of OEP in the assessment of breathing mechanics across populations of healthy and diseased individuals. Methods: A bibliographic research was performed with the terms “opto-electronic plethysmography,” “optoelectronic plethysmography,” and “optoelectronic plethysmograph” in 50 digital library and bibliographic search databases resulting in the selection of 170 studies. Results: OEP has been extensively employed in studies looking at chest wall kinematics and volume changes in chest wall compartments in healthy subjects in relation to age, gender, weight, posture, and different physiological conditions. In infants, OEP has been demonstrated to be a tool to assess disease severity and the response to pharmacological interventions. In chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients, OEP has been used to test if patients can dynamically hyperinflate or deflate their lungs during exercise. In neuromuscular patients, respiratory muscle strength and chest kinematics have been analyzed. A widespread application of OEP is in tailoring post-operative pulmonary rehabilitation as well as in monitoring volume increases and muscle contributions during exercise. Conclusions: OEP is an accurate and validated method of measuring lung volumes and chest wall movements. OEP is an appropriate alternative method to monitor and analyze respiratory patterns in children, adults, and patients with respiratory diseases. OEP may be used in the future to contribute to improvements in the therapeutic strategies for respiratory conditions.

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Secondary heart failure induced by organ siderosis is the main cause of death in patients affected by thalassemia major. At present it cannot be predicted whether heart siderosis is correlated with iron overload and little is known about the real cardiac histological pattern of post transfusional hemochromatosis in patients with thalassemia major and intermedia. The study aim was to evaluate cardiac iron overload by non invasive and invasive techniques. Fifteen thalassemic patients were investigated and endomyocardial biopsy performed in ten revealed different grades of endomyocardial iron overload with histochemical positivity. Non invasive techniques are not able to furnish an exact picture of the cardiac hemochromatosis. There was a significant correlation between serum ferritin and myocardial iron grade. Patients with elevated ferritin levels and poor compliance to chelating therapy are at high risk of severe heart hemochromatosis. It was seen that endomyocardial biopsy is a useful tool in studying myocardial iron.

Background. Rotator cuff tendinopathy (RoCT) is a common pathology among adults. Kinesio-taping (KT) represents a possible rehabilitative treatment. The aim of the present study is to investigate the efficacy of a combination of three different applications of KT combined with a standardized protocol of rehabilitative exercises in reducing pain and in functional recovery in patients affected by RoCT. Materials and methods. 21 patients were enrolled in a real group (RG) and 19 in a sham group (SG). RG received a real KT application and SG received a sham KT application. Both groups received the same rehabilitative protocol. A Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) for shoulder pain, Medical Research Council (MRC) Scales for shoulder strength assessment and Costant Murley Score (CMS) were administered before (T0) and at the end of treatment (T1). Results. Within-group analysis for RG at T1 showed significant improvement in: NRS at-rest (p=0.002), during-movement (p<0.001); CMS (p<0.001); MRC shoulder flexion (p=0.003), extension (p=0.005), abduction (p=0.003), adduction (p=0.007), external rotation (p=0.011), internal rotation (p=0.002), elbow flexion (p=0.008) and extension strength (p=0.011). Within-group analysis for SG at T1 showed significant improvement in: during-movement NRS (p=0.010); CMS (p<0.001). Conclusions. 1. KT application combined with conventional rehabilitative treatment can facilitate immediate pain reduction during rehabilitative treatment. 2. KT application combined with conventional rehabilitative treatment can increase function recovery. 3. KT application combined with conventional rehabilitative treatment can increase strength recovery. 4. Our findings however are not strong enough to recommend the application of KT during rehabilitative treatment for RoCT. 5. These results are the basis for future prospective, randomized controlled trials of larger samples of patients

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In this study, a novel wearable system for the identification of compensatory trunk movements (CTMs) in post-stroke hemiplegic patients is presented. The device is composed of seven soft sensing elements (SSEs) based on fiber Bragg grating (FBG) technology. Each SSE consists of a single FBG encapsulated into a flexible matrix to enhance the sensor’s robustness and improve its compliance with the human body. The FBG’s small size, light weight, multiplexing capability, and biocompatibility make the proposed wearable system suitable for multi-point measurements without any movement restriction. Firstly, its manufacturing process is presented, together with the SSEs’ mechanical characterization to strain. Results of the metrological characterization showed a linear response of each SSE in the operating range. Then, the feasibility assessment of the proposed system is described. In particular, the device’s capability of detecting CTMs was assessed on 10 healthy volunteers and eight hemiplegic patients while performing three tasks which are representative of typical everyday life actions. The wearable system showed good potential in detecting CTMs. This promising result may foster the use of the proposed device on post-stroke patients, aiming at assessing the proper course of the rehabilitation process both in clinical and domestic settings. Moreover, its use may aid in defining tailored strategies to improve post-stoke patients’ motor recovery and quality of life.

Rationale:Jaw metastasis is a very rare condition associated with lung cancer evolution. In this paper we present two cases of patients who underwent different approach.Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer related death worldwide. Survival depends on the staging and biology of tumor. Smoking may affect the prognosis.Patient concerns:There are herein reported the cases of two patients affected by squamous cell lung cancer with spread to mandibular bone.Diagnoses:In the first case a computed tomography (CT scan) showed a large mass located in upper right lung , then bronchoscopy was performed with biopsies and the histology revealed a squamous cell carcinoma P63+ and TTF-. In the second case upper right lung mass with metastases to mediastinal bilateral lymph nodes was found at CT scan. A bronchial biopsy revealed a squamous cell carcinoma p63 positive and TTF-1 negative.Interventions:The first, a 65-years old man, current heavy smoker who quit and relapsed, at initial stage of IIa (T2aN1M0), after initial neo-adjuvant chemotherapy underwent lung lobectomy and lymph nodes resection. Three months later a metastasis located on mandibular bone was found out. The second case, a 68-years old female heavy smoker, at initial stage IIIb not available for surgery because of involvement of bilateral lymph nodes, underwent first line course chemotherapy with cisplatin and vinorelbine and second line with erlotinib.Outcomes:The first patient underwent hyperthermia and radiotherapy but a sepsis developed and patients died. In the second case, after two months from the beginning of II line the patient developed a jaw metastasis and underwent surgery with resection of hemi-mandible, but soon after she died because of pulmonary embolism.Lessons:These cases highlight the poor prognosis of patients current smokers affected by squamous cell lung cancer. The jaw bone localization is very rare and different approach could be applied.

Inappropriate posture and the presence of spinal disorders require specific monitoring systems. In clinical settings, posture evaluation is commonly performed with visual observation, electrogoniometers or motion capture systems (MoCaps). Developing a measurement system that can be easily used also in non-structured environments would be highly beneficial for accurate posture monitoring. This work proposes a system based on three magneto-inertial measurement units (MIMU), placed on the backs of seventeen volunteers on the T3, T12 and S1 vertebrae. The reference system used for validation is a stereophotogrammetric motion capture system. The volunteers performed forward bending and sit-to-stand tests. The measured variables for identifying the posture were the kyphosis and the lordosis angles, as well as the range of movement (ROM) of the body segments. The comparison between MIMU and MoCap provided a maximum RMSE of 5.6° for the kyphosis and the lordosis angles. The average lumbo-pelvic contribution during forward bending (41.8 ± 8.6%) and the average lumbar ROM during sit-to-stand (31.8 ± 9.8° for sitting down, 29.6 ± 7.6° for standing up) obtained with the MIMU system agree with the literature. In conclusion, the MIMU system, which is wearable, inexpensive and easy to set up in non-structured environments, has been demonstrated to be effective in posture evaluation.