Changes in the manubrio-sternal articulation (MSA) were examined radiologically in 87 patients with rheumatoid arthritis and in a control group comprised of 23 patients with osteoarthritis and 72 subjects without joint disease. Erosions, reactive sclerosis and ankylosis were encountered in 70% of the rheumatoid arthritis group and in 27% of controls. There was no difference in the incidence of changes in persons with osteoarthritis and in the other control subjects.
Electromagnetic field-focusing (EFF) probe is a precision surgical and interventional tool. Use of the device produces maximum temperature in excess of 1800 degrees C by convergence of radio-frequency (RF) induced eddy currents in biological tissues. Applications of the EFF probe in angioplasty, aneurysm thrombosis, and neurosurgery have been previously reported. In the present work, the EFF probe was guided under fluoroscopic control and used to occlude renal, splenic, and vertebral arteries in dogs. The occlusion was typically accomplished with about one minute of RF power application. Histology of the treated vessel three to six weeks posttreatment showed total occlusion consisting of intimal and subintimal changes and organized thrombus in the lumen. This suggests that the EFF probe in comparison with other procedures is an inexpensive, relatively safe precision interventional tool for performing an occlusion for experimental and therapeutic purposes.
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