Leo Geeraedts

Intravenous administration of interleukin-1β induces Fos-like immunoreactivity in corticotropin-releasing hormone neurons in the paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus of the rat

It has been shown that acute administration of recombinant human interleukin 1 beta (IL-1) to rats elicits an activation of the pituitary-adrenal axis. In the present study we investigated immunohistochemically the expression of Fos-like immunoreactivity (Fos-LI) in the hypothalamus of rats following intravenous injection of IL-1. One, 2 and 4 h after IL-1 or physiological saline injections, rats were killed and perfused, and the brains processed for Fos-immunohistochemistry. Dense populations of neurons containing Fos-LI-positive nuclei were found in the paraventricular hypothalamic nuclei (PVH) of IL-1-treated rats. In particular, the dorsal medial parvocellular part, but also some of the other parvocellular subdivisions contained many Fos-LI neurons. Maximal induction of staining was found at a dose of 5 micrograms/rat after 1 or 2 h survival, while immunostaining had decreased to almost control levels after 4 h. No Fos-LI was found in the PVH of control animals. Double immunocytochemical staining for Fos and corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) revealed that Fos-LI was predominantly present in parvocellular CRH-containing neurons of the PVH. The finding that peripherally injected IL-1 induces Fos-LI in hypothalamic CRH neurons strengthens the hypothesis that these neurons are part of the circuitry mediating IL-1-induced activation of the pituitary-adrenal axis.

Management of Thyroid Gland Hemorrhage After Blunt Trauma: A Case Report and Review of the Literature.

Background:Thyroid hemorrhage is a rare injury in patients suffering from blunt trauma to the neck. The case of a 60-year-oldwoman is describedwho developed increasing swelling in the neck with a mild inspiratory stridor after a fall from her bed. The fall had resulted in hemorrhage within a previously existing goiter. Further analysis by means of a CT scan revealed severe tracheal compression and active bleeding, which prompted immediate operative intervention. The patient recovered without complications. The decision-making process in this case is outlined, and other reports describing patients with thyroid hemorrhage after blunt cervical trauma are reviewed.Conclusion:Although blunt thyroid injury is an uncommon condition, failure to consider the diagnosis or failure to anticipate complications of thyroid hemorrhage may result in progressive bleeding and airway compromise. Decision making is based on the patient’s vital signs and, if possible, the findings on a contrastenhanced CT scan of the neck.

Twente spine model: A complete and coherent dataset for musculo-skeletal modeling of the thoracic and cervical regions of the human spine.

Musculo-skeletal modeling could play a key role in advancing our understanding of the healthy and pathological spine, but the credibility of such models are strictly dependent on the accuracy of the anatomical data incorporated. In this study, we present a complete and coherent musculo-skeletal dataset for the thoracic and cervical regions of the human spine, obtained through detailed dissection of an embalmed male cadaver. We divided the muscles into a number of muscle-tendon elements, digitized their attachments at the bones, and measured morphological muscle parameters. In total, 225 muscle elements were measured over 39 muscles. For every muscle element, we provide the coordinates of its attachments, fiber length, tendon length, sarcomere length, optimal fiber length, pennation angle, mass, and physiological cross-sectional area together with the skeletal geometry of the cadaver. Results were consistent with similar anatomical studies. Furthermore, we report new data for several muscles such as rotatores, multifidus, levatores costarum, spinalis, semispinalis, subcostales, transversus thoracis, and intercostales muscles. This dataset complements our previous study where we presented a consistent dataset for the lumbar region of the spine (Bayoglu et al., 2017). Therefore, when used together, these datasets enable a complete and coherent dataset for the entire spine. The complete dataset will be used to develop a musculo-skeletal model for the entire human spine to study clinical and ergonomic applications.

Twente spine model: A complete and coherent dataset for musculo-skeletal modeling of the lumbar region of the human spine

Musculo-skeletal modeling can greatly help in understanding normal and pathological functioning of the spine. For such models to produce reliable muscle and joint force estimations, an adequate set of musculo-skeletal data is necessary. In this study, we present a complete and coherent dataset for the lumbar spine, based on medical images and dissection measurements from one embalmed human cadaver. We divided muscles into muscle-tendon elements, digitized their attachments at the bones and measured morphological parameters. In total, we measured 11 muscles from one body side, using 96 elements. For every muscle element, we measured three-dimensional coordinates of its attachments, fiber length, tendon length, sarcomere length, optimal fiber length, pennation angle, mass, and physiological cross-sectional area together with the geometry of the lumbar spine. Results were consistent with other anatomical studies and included new data for the serratus posterior inferior muscle. The dataset presented in this paper enables a complete and coherent musculo-skeletal model for the lumbar spine and will improve the current state-of-the art in predicting spinal loading.