Rehabilitation of Total Knee Arthroplasty by Integrating Conjoint Isometric Myodynamia and Real-Time Rotation Sensing System

Effect of Family-Centered Empowerment Model in Home Care of Older Adult Patients After Total Knee Arthroplasty

PURPOSE

In the present study, we investigated the effect of the family-centered empowerment model (FCEM) in the home care of older adult patients after total knee arthroplasty (TKA).

DESIGN

The current study was a randomized controlled study.

METHODS

Two hundred eighty older adult patients who underwent TKA in our hospital from December 2020 to December 2022 were selected. They were divided into intervention and control groups using the random number table method, with 140 cases in each group. After follow-up and attrition, 133 patients were assigned to the intervention group and 130 to the control group. The control group received conventional care, and the intervention group received the care provided using the FCEM. The general characteristics of the study subjects were compiled using a general information questionnaire designed by the researcher. The chi-square test and t-test were used to compare the changes in self-care efficacy, knee function, and the occurrence of postoperative complications in the two groups before and after the intervention.

FINDINGS

The results suggest that the adoption of FCEM improved patient motivation and self-care efficacy, promoted the recovery of knee function in the short term after surgery, and reduced the likelihood of occurrence of complications.

CONCLUSION

The present study highlights the importance of extending the FCEM to multiple domains to fill the gaps in the currently available medical care system for older adults. In addition, the study provides a reference basis for reducing the occurrence of complications and improving patient prognosis.

CLINICAL EVIDENCE

The FCEM model is an effective strategy to improve the effectiveness of home nursing for older adults.

How Do Muscle Function and Quality Affect the Progression of KOA? A Narrative Review

Knee osteoarthritis (KOA) is widely recognized as a chronic joint disease characterized by degeneration of knee cartilage and subsequent bone hyperplasia. However, it is important to acknowledge the significant role of muscles in the development and progression of KOA. Muscle function (MF) and muscle quality (MQ) are key factors in understanding the involvement of muscles in KOA. Quantitative indices such as muscle mass, muscle strength, muscle cross-sectional area, muscle thickness, and muscle fatigue are crucial in assessing MF and MQ. Despite the growing interest in KOA, there is a scarcity of studies investigating the relationship between muscles and this condition. This review aims to examine the commonly used indices and measurement methods for assessing MF and MQ in clinical settings, while also exploring the association between muscles and KOA. Furthermore, this article highlights the importance of restoring MF and MQ to enhance symptom management and improve the quality of life for patients with KOA.

Self-Powered Sensing in Wearable Electronics─A Paradigm Shift Technology

With the advancements in materials science and micro/nanoengineering, the field of wearable electronics has experienced a rapid growth and significantly impacted and transformed various aspects of daily human life. These devices enable individuals to conveniently access health assessments without visiting hospitals and provide continuous, detailed monitoring to create comprehensive health data sets for physicians to analyze and diagnose. Nonetheless, several challenges continue to hinder the practical application of wearable electronics, such as skin compliance, biocompatibility, stability, and power supply. In this review, we address the power supply issue and examine recent innovative self-powered technologies for wearable electronics. Specifically, we explore self-powered sensors and self-powered systems, the two primary strategies employed in this field. The former emphasizes the integration of nanogenerator devices as sensing units, thereby reducing overall system power consumption, while the latter focuses on utilizing nanogenerator devices as power sources to drive the entire sensing system. Finally, we present the future challenges and perspectives for self-powered wearable electronics.

High-Precision Wearable Displacement Sensing System for Clinical Diagnosis of Anterior Cruciate Ligament Tears

An anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear is a common musculoskeletal injury with a high incidence. Traditional diagnosis employs magnetic response imaging (MRI), physical testing, or other clinical examination, which relies on complex and expensive medical instruments, or individual doctoral experience. Herein, we propose a wearable displacement sensing system based on a grating-structured triboelectric stretch sensor to diagnose the ACL injuries. The stretch sensor exhibits a high resolution (0.2 mm) and outstanding robustness (over 1,000,000 continuous operation cycles). This system is employed in clinical trial to diagnose ACL injuries. It measures the displacement difference between the affected leg and the healthy leg during Lachman test. And when such a difference is greater than 3 mm, the ACL is considered to be at risk for injury or tear. Compared with the gold standard of arthroscopy, the consistency rate of this wearable diagnostic system reached about 85.7%, which is higher than that of the Kneelax3 arthrometer (78.6%) with a large volume. This shows that the wearable system possesses the feasibility to supplement and improve existing arthrometers for facile diagnosing ACL injuries. It may take a promising step for wearable healthcare.

Adaptive Triboelectric Nanogenerators for Long-Term Self-Treatment: A Review

Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) were initially invented as an innovative energy-harvesting technology for scavenging mechanical energy from our bodies or the ambient environment. Through adaptive customization design, TENGs have also become a promising player in the self-powered wearable medical market for improving physical fitness and sustaining a healthy lifestyle. In addition to simultaneously harvesting our body's mechanical energy and actively detecting our physiological parameters and metabolic status, TENGs can also provide personalized medical treatment solutions in a self-powered modality. This review aims to cover the recent advances in TENG-based electronics in clinical applications, beginning from the basic working principles of TENGs and their general operation modes, continuing to the harvesting of bioenergy from the human body, and arriving at their adaptive design toward applications in chronic disease diagnosis and long-term clinical treatment. Considering the highly personalized usage scenarios, special attention is paid to customized modules that are based on TENGs and support complex medical treatments, where sustainability, biodegradability, compliance, and bio-friendliness may be critical for the operation of clinical systems. While this review provides a comprehensive understanding of TENG-based clinical devices that aims to reach a high level of technological readiness, the challenges and shortcomings of TENG-based clinical devices are also highlighted, with the expectation of providing a useful reference for the further development of such customized healthcare systems and the transfer of their technical capabilities into real-life patient care.

Tapping-Actuated Triboelectric Nanogenerator with Surface Charge Density Optimization for Human Motion Energy Harvesting

In this article, triboelectric effect has been used to harvest mechanical energy from human motion and convert it into electrical energy. To do so, different ways of optimizing the energy generated have been studied through the correct selection of materials, the design of new spacers to improve the contact surface area, and charge injection by high-voltage corona charging to increase the charge density of dielectric materials. Finally, a triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) has been manufactured, which is capable of collecting the mechanical energy of the force applied by hand tapping and using it to power miniaturized electronic sensors in a self-sufficient and sustainable way. This work shows the theoretical concept and simulations of the proposed TENG device, as well as the experimental work carried out.

Triboelectric nanogenerators as wearable power sources and self-powered sensors

Smart wearable technologies are augmenting human bodies beyond our biological capabilities in communication, healthcare and recreation. Energy supply and information acquisition are essential for wearable electronics, whereas the increasing demands in multifunction are raising the requirements for energy and sensor devices. The triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG), proven to be able to convert various mechanical energies into electricity, can fulfill either of these two functions and therefore has drawn extensive attention and research efforts worldwide. The everyday life of a human body produces considerable mechanical energies and, in the meantime, the human body communicates mainly through mechanical signals, such as sound, body gestures and muscle movements. Therefore, the TENG has been intensively studied to serve as either wearable sources or wearable self-powered sensors. Herein, the recent finding on the fundamental understanding of TENGs is revisited briefly, followed by a summary of recent advancements in TENG-based wearable power sources and self-powered sensors. The challenges and prospects of this area are given as well.