Average Deviation Angle Research Articles

Unit Operation Combination and Flow Distribution Scheme of Water Pump Station System Based on Genetic Algorithm

Pump station engineering is a water conservancy project that utilizes water pump units for energy transfer and conversion, and safe water transportation. This study ensures the safe and efficient operation of the pumping station system by taking a pump station project containing seven water pump units as the research object. Under the premise that the total water intake of the pumping station is certain, the flow distribution of the pumping station is optimized with the working flow and head as the constraint function, and the minimum operating cost as the objective function, and the required number of operating units is determined to obtain the optimal combination of flow distribution and the corresponding working flow of each operating unit. Compared with previous studies, the novel feature of this study is that a genetic algorithm is used to optimize the power-up combination and rationally distribute the flow, which can minimize the energy consumption and maximize the operation efficiency of the pumping station. Then, a genetic-algorithm-based optimization method is constructed for unit operation combination and flow distribution. The optimized combination of units is evaluated by using the uniformity of flow velocity at the inlet section of the water pump and the average deviation angle of the section as indicators. The results indicate that, when each operating unit in the pump station has the same working flow distribution, the total input power of the pump station is at maximum. As the differences increase in the working flow rates allocated to each operating unit, the total input power of the pump station decreases. Through the proposed schemes, the optimal operating combination and flow distribution of the pump station system can be achieved when the total water intake is constant, thereby enabling efficient operations and creating maximum economic and social benefits.

Research on surface normal prediction based on kriging interpolation in aircraft assembly

The accuracy of the drilling position in aircraft assemblies significantly impacts the quality of the final assembly. However, there is a deviation in the workpiece due to various factors such as machining errors and workpiece deformation, and therefore there is a need to correct deviations in the drilling position and normal direction. For these reasons, a method of kriging interpolation model was proposed. First, a new method of normal direction measurement was proposed and used to obtain the normal vector of the reference point in the subsequent study. Secondly, a CAD model of finite element displacement simulation including 30 reference drilling positions as samples and 10 drilling positions to be measured was established. The position deviations of the reference point and the normal vector end point were obtained as outputs, and the coordinates of each point were used as the input to establish a kriging interpolation model. The simulation results show that the average deviation angle between the normal vector predicted by the interpolation model and the initial normal vector of the drilling position was about 0.06°.

Clinical efficacy of botulinum toxin type A on acute acquired comitant esotropia.

To investigate the effects of micro-injection of botulinum toxin A (BTXA) on acute acquired comitant esotropia (AACE). A total of 33 AACE patients who underwent BTXA micro-injection at Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University from September 1st, 2019 to July 1st, 2021 were retrospective analyzed. Esotropia, eye alignment, stereopsis, and complications were examined at baseline (except complications), 1wk, 1, 3, and 6mo after injection. The average angle of deviation before injection was (+20.24±6.80)Δ at near and (+24.76±6.43)Δ at distance, while (+5.15±5.85)Δ at near and (+7.30±6.17)Δ at distance 6mo after treatment (P<0.05). Six months after injection, the stereopsis of patients had improved. The number of patients having no stereopsis (>800 seconds of arc) decreased from 11 to 3. The number of patients having peripheral stereopsis (300-800 seconds of arc), macular stereopsis (70-200 seconds of arc) and central concave stereopsis (≤60 seconds of arc) increased from 10 to 11, 10 to 12, and 2 to 7, respectively. At the follow-ups at 1wk, 1, 3, and 6mo after injection, success rates were 96.97%, 96.97%, 93.94% and 87.88%, respectively. One week after injection, two patients (6.07%) showed subconjunctival hemorrhage; three patients (9.09%) showed limited eye movement and one patient (3.03%) showed mild vertical strabismus. All the symptoms disappeared by the final follow-up. Micro-injection of BTXA can reduce diplopia and improve binocular vision function of AACE patients. Furthermore, the operation is relatively safe with few complications, making it an ideal treatment modality for AACE.

Muography for Inspection of Civil Structures

Aging infrastructure is a threatening issue throughout the world. Long exposure to oxygen and moisture causes premature corrosion of reinforced concrete structures leading to the collapse of the structures. As a consequence, real-time monitoring of civil structures for rust becomes critical in avoiding mishaps. Muon scattering tomography is a non-destructive, non-invasive technique which has shown impressive results in 3D imaging of civil structures. This paper explores the application of advanced machine learning techniques in identifying a rusted reinforced concrete rebar using muon scattering tomography. To achieve this, we have simulated the performance of an imaging prototype setup, designed to carry out muon scattering tomography, to precisely measure the rust percentage in a rusted rebar. We have produced a 2D image based on the projected 3D scattering vertices of the muons and used the scattering vertex density and average deviation angle per pixel as the distinguishing parameter for the analysis. A filtering algorithm, namely the Pattern Recognition Method, has been employed to eliminate background noise. Since this problem boils down to whether or not the material being analyzed is rust, i.e., a classification problem, we have adopted the well-known machine learning algorithm Support Vector Machine to identify rust in the rusted reinforced cement concrete structure. It was observed that the trained model could easily identify 30% of rust in the structure with a nominal exposure of 30 days within a small error range of 7.3%.

Cluster analysis of kitchen cabinet operation posture based on OpenPose technology

With the help of OpenPose technology, the key data of the user's operating posture when using the kitchen cabinet during cooking are obtained. The second-order clustering method is used to cluster the obtained data, and the relationship between the characteristics of human operating behavior posture and height among different categories is analyzed, to provide a scientific basis for the design of high adaptability customization scheme of the kitchen cabinet table in the later stage. The clustering results show that the deviation angle of the parts beyond the health threshold is different under different task states. The average deviation angle of the neck was more than 45°. In Category 3, the average waist deviation angle was 3–9 times of the other categories, and 68.05% of the operation time exceeded the health threshold. Therefore, in the design of the kitchen cabinet, the sizes of the cleaning area and preparation area need to be adjusted according to the sight distance to ensure that users maintain a healthy operation behavior. In addition, it is found that the user sight distance range of 160–180 cm is [419,621] mm under the operation state, which can be used as a reference for design evaluation.

Unified End-to-End YOLOv5-HR-TCM Framework for Automatic 2D/3D Human Pose Estimation for Real-Time Applications.

Three-dimensional human pose estimation is widely applied in sports, robotics, and healthcare. In the past five years, the number of CNN-based studies for 3D human pose estimation has been numerous and has yielded impressive results. However, studies often focus only on improving the accuracy of the estimation results. In this paper, we propose a fast, unified end-to-end model for estimating 3D human pose, called YOLOv5-HR-TCM (YOLOv5-HRet-Temporal Convolution Model). Our proposed model is based on the 2D to 3D lifting approach for 3D human pose estimation while taking care of each step in the estimation process, such as person detection, 2D human pose estimation, and 3D human pose estimation. The proposed model is a combination of best practices at each stage. Our proposed model is evaluated on the Human 3.6M dataset and compared with other methods at each step. The method achieves high accuracy, not sacrificing processing speed. The estimated time of the whole process is 3.146 FPS on a low-end computer. In particular, we propose a sports scoring application based on the deviation angle between the estimated 3D human posture and the standard (reference) origin. The average deviation angle evaluated on the Human 3.6M dataset (Protocol #1–Pro #1) is 8.2 degrees.

Quantifying Order during Field-Driven Alignment of Colloidal Semiconductor Nanorods.

Aligning large populations of colloidal nanorods (NRs) into ordered assemblies provides a strategy for engineering macroscopic functional materials with strong optical anisotropy. The bulk optical properties of such systems depend not only on the individual NR building blocks but also on their meso- and macroscale ordering, in addition to more complex interparticle coupling effects. Here, we investigate the dynamic alignment of colloidal CdSe/CdS NRs in the presence of AC electric fields by measuring concurrent changes in optical transmission. Our work identifies two distinct scales of interaction that give rise to the field-driven optical response: (1) the spontaneous mesoscale self-assembly of colloidal NRs into structures with increased optical anisotropy and (2) the macroscopic ordering of NR assemblies along the direction of the applied AC field. By modeling the alignment of NR ensembles using directional statistics, we experimentally quantify the maximum degree of order in terms of the average deviation angle relative to the field axis. Results show a consistent improvement in alignment as a function of NR concentration─with a minimum average deviation of 36.2°─indicating that mesoscale assembly helps facilitate field-driven alignment of colloidal NRs.

Factors Affecting the Efficacy of Botulinum Toxin Injection in the Treatment of Infantile and Partially Accommodative Esotropia.

We aimed to investigate the effect of botulinum toxin (BT) injection on the treatment of infantile and partially accommodative esotropia (PAET). This retrospective cohort study included patients who received BT injections for infantile and PAET between January 2015 and December 2018. Treatment was considered successful if orthotropia, consecutive exotropia, or esotropia within 10 prism diopters (PD) was achieved. The overall success rate was 47.4%, with a mean follow-up period of 27.8 months in 403 children. BT treatment was considered successful in 37.1% of cases of infantile esotropia and 53.1% of cases of partially accommodative esotropia. The average deviation angle before starting treatment was 35.5 ± 13.9 PD. Side effects 1 week after BT injections included transient overcorrection (63.8%) and transient ptosis (41.7%). There were no significant differences in the success rates between the different doses of BT (P = 0.69). The angle of deviation at presentation was significantly associated with the success rate of BT injection (failed group, mean: 38.1 ± 15.3 PD vs. success group, mean: 32.6 ± 11.6 PD; P < 0.001). Other factors associated with higher success rates were overcorrection at 1 week and PAET, while multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that a smaller angle of deviation and overcorrection (1 week after injection) were associated with a higher success rate. A smaller angle of deviation and transient overcorrection were associated with a higher success rate, and no significant difference was observed in the success rates of different BT doses.

Binocular Visual Rehabilitation in Paralytic Strabismus by Botulinum A Toxin Chemodenervation.

PurposeTo investigate the effect of botulinum A toxin (BTXA) chemodenervation in paralytic strabismus patients without surgical correction.MethodsA retrospective chart review of 51 patients who were diagnosed as paralytic strabismus and underwent BTXA chemodenervation was performed. The patients were divided into four groups according to the cause of paralytic strabismus of vasculopathy, neoplasm, trauma, and idiopathic. They were also divided into two groups of early and late treatment according to the initiation time of BTXA chemodenervation after the onset of strabismus (3 months), and of the initial strabismus type of exotropia and esotropia. We investigated the changes of angle of deviation and diplopia after BTXA chemodenervation.ResultsThe average deviation of angles decreased by 25.2 prism diopter (PD) (35.1 to 9.9 PD) in total patients, and the overall success rate was 64.7% (33 by 51), and the there was no statistically significant difference in success rate between each group divided by the cause of paralytic strabismus. According to the treatment timing, the deviation of the angle decreased by 28.0 PD (36.8 to 8.8 PD) in the early treatment group, and 21.3 PD (33.5 to 12.2 PD) in late treatment group at the time of the last postinjective follow-up. According to the initial strabismus type, the average angle of deviation decreased by 20.3 PD (35.6 to 15.3 PD) in exotropia group by cranial nerve 3 palsy, and 24.4 PD (32.5 to 8.1 PD) in esotropia by cranial nerve 6 palsy.ConclusionsBTXA chemodenervation reduced the angle of deviation and the number of patients with diplopia regardless of the cause of paralytic strabismus. Early BTXA chemodenervation can be considered as the first treatment of choice in paralytic strabismus, especially in esotropia patients.

Application and Evaluation of an Independent Robotic Arm System in K-wire Placement for Lumbar Fusion.

A single-center randomized controlled study. The objective of this study was to introduce a novel robotic system with an independent arm ("Orthbot Intelligent Orthopedic Minimally Invasive System"; Xin Junte Surgical Technologies) that has been developed and tested as a surgical assistant for autoplacement of the Kirschner wire (K-wire) in lumbar fusion, and to evaluate its accuracy by comparing it with the conventional free-hand instrumentation. Robotic technology has performed excellently in spine surgeries and has demonstrated high clinical value and potential. Robot-assisted spinal surgery is now being promoted as a paradigm for technology-led advancement. A total of 24 patients were recruited and assigned randomly to the robotic arm group (RG) or the free-hand group (FG). Deviation distance and deviation angle (DA) of K-wire placement were measured and compared between the RG and the FG. The average deviation distance was 0.88±0.08 mm in the RG and 5.13±1.68 mm in the FG (P<0.001). In both coronal and sagittal radiographs, the average DA of K-wire placement was smaller in the RG (P<0.05), and in both axial and sagittal computed tomography scans, the average DA of pedicle screw placement was also lower in the RG (P<0.05), which indicated higher accuracy of the robotic system. The novel robotic system in this study has shown certain advantages over the conventional free-hand approach in K-wire placement for lumbar fusion, including being more accurate in K-wire placement, fully automatic, and more adaptive to preoperative plans. Although the robotic arm proves to be promising in our results, the small sample size in this clinical study necessitates further multicenter, large sample follow-up studies to verify its advantages.

Radiological Evaluation of Inferior Turbinate in Patients with Deviated Nasal Septum using Computed Tomography

Introduction: Compensatory hypertrophy of inferior turbinate in the contralateral side of the deviated nasal septum is a known phenomenon. The objective of this study was to establish the relationship between the nasal septum and inferior turbinate and to determine the dimension and composition of inferior turbinate hypertrophy.Methods: This prospective, cross-sectional study was performed on 52 patients who were referred for Computed tomography of PNS with deviated nasal septum having compensatory hypertrophy of contralateral inferior turbinate. Non-hypertrophied inferior turbinate on the side of deviation was taken as a control group. Deviation angle, mucosal thickness including medial and lateral and bone thickness were evaluated using three-dimensional CT scan and compared to the control group.Result: Dimensions of the bony and mucosal components of the inferior turbinate were significantly greater than those of the control group. This study included 52 patients (M- 30, F- 22) having a mean age of 37 years. Out of 52, the septum deviated to the left side in 56% and 44% to the right side. The average angle of deviation was 10.12°. There was a statistically significant correlation (p&lt;0.05) between total turbinate thickness and angle of deviation. A statistically significant correlation (p&lt;0.05) was also observed between medial mucosa and bone thickness.Conclusion: Compensatory hypertrophy of inferior turbinate in patients with deviated nasal septum not only involves the mucosal component but also the bone itself. Pre-operative CT scan of PNS helps evaluate dimension and composition of inferior turbinate and assists to decide on surgical technique to fix turbinate.

Evaluation of a new spinal surgical robotic system of Kirschner wire placement for lumbar fusion: A multi-centre, randomised controlled clinical study.

To introduce a novel robotic system 'Orthbot' that has been developed and tested as a surgical assistant for auto-placement of the K-wire in lumbar fusion. This is a multi-centre, randomized controlled clinical study that includes 56 patients (robot group, RG: 27, free-hand group, FG: 29). Following the pre-operative planning and intra-operative fluoroscopic images, the 'Orthbot' automatically completed registration and K-wire placement under the supervision of the surgeon. Deviation distance (DD) and deviation angle (DA) were used as the primary parameters to evaluate the accuracy of the robotic system. The average DD was 0.95±0.377mm and 4.35±2.01mm, respectively in the RG and FG (p<0.001). The average DA of the K-wire in the coronal plane and the sagittal plane in X-Ray was respectively 6.80±7.79° and 1.27±2.32° in the RG (p<0.001), and 22.22±16.85° and 4.57±3.86° in the FG (p<0.001), which showed a higher accuracy rate in the robotic-assisted cases compared to the free-hand cases. The novel robotic system could achieve accurate K-wire insertions as indicated by the radiological results.

Increased myofiber size and reduced satellite cell numbers in medial rectus muscle of patients with intermittent exotropia

ABSTRACT Purpose To elucidate the differences in muscle bundle and satellite cells in medial rectus muscle through histological and Immunofluorescence studies of intermittent exotropia patients and normal controls. Materials and Methods: From January 2015 to December 2017, 15 patients who underwent medial rectus resection surgery at Kosin University Gospel Hospital were enrolled. Four medial recti muscles collected from two brain-dead men without strabismus were used as controls and compared with the intermittent exotropia group. Hematoxylin and eosin (HE) staining were performed, and all muscle bundle diameters were measured with the Image J program and compared to the mean value. Immunological staining for MyoHC (Myosin Heavy Chain), PAX7 (Transcription Factor), and PCNA (Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen) were performed to analyze the distribution of myocytes and PAX7-positive and PCNA-positive cells. Results: The mean ages of the strabismus and control groups were 17.33 ± 13.05 and 22.0 ± 5.85 years, respectively, and the male to female ratio was 7:2 and 2:0. The average angle of deviation in the exotropia patients was 36.0 ± 16.83 prism diopters. The mean muscle bundle diameter under light microscopy was 60.21 ± 1.48 in the exotropia group and 52.27 ± 0.74 in the control group. The exotropia group showed significantly greater mean muscle bundle diameter (p < .001) and diameter regularity than the control group. The PAX7(+)/muscle bundle number ratio was 0.016 ± 0.014 and 0.056 ± 0.015 in the exotropia group and control group, respectively (p < .001), and the PCNA(+)/muscular bundle number ratio was 0.015 ± 0.017 and 0.182 ± 0.102 (p < .001). Both were significantly higher in the control group compared to that in the exotropia patients. Conclusion: In the exotropia group, mean diameter of medial rectus muscle bundle was significantly larger than that of control group. The ratios of PAX7 and PCNA to muscle bundle number were significantly higher in the control group than intermittent extropia group. We found the negative relationship between activation of satellite cells and muscle bundle diameter, and it might take one step forward to elucidate the pathogenesis of intermittent extropia.

Multi-scale modeling of liquid-metal cooling directional solidification and solidification behavior of nickel-based superalloy casting

Liquid-metal cooling (LMC) process can offer refinement of microstructure and reduce defects due to the increased cooling rate from enhanced heat extraction, and thus an understanding of solidification behavior in nickel-based superalloy casting during LMC process is essential for improving mechanical performance of single crystal (SC) castings. In this effort, an integrated heat transfer model coupling meso grain structure and micro dendrite is developed to predict the temperature distribution and microstructure evolution in LMC process. An interpolation algorithm is used to deal with the macro-micro grids coupling issues. The algorithm of cells capture is also modified, and a deterministic cellular automaton (DCA) model is proposed to describe neighborhood cell tracking. In addition, solute distribution is also considered to describe the dendrite growth. Temperature measuring, EBSD, OM and SEM experiments are implemented to verify the proposed model, and the experiment results agree well with the simulation results. Several simulations are performed with a range of withdrawal rates, and the results indicate that 12 mm·min-1 is suitable for LMC process in this work, which can result in a fairly narrow and flat mushy zone and correspondingly exhibited fairly straight grains. The mushy zone length is about 4.8 mm in the steady state and the average deviation angle of grains is about 13.9° at the height 90 mm from the casting base under 12 mm·min-1 withdrawal process. The competitive phenomenon of dendrites at different withdrawal rates is also observed, which has a great relevant to the temperature fluctuation.

Topical Anesthesia in Children With Intraoperative Adjustable Strabismus Surgery.

To evaluate strabismus surgery with intraoperative adjustment of sutures under topical anesthesia in children. Nineteen children with horizontal deviation underwent a one-stage surgical technique performed under topical anesthesia. Surgery consisted of unilateral or bilateral recession and/or resection of horizontal muscles or the medial or lateral rectus muscles, with intraoperative adjustment of sutures based on alternate prism cover test. Follow-up was done at 1 day and 1, 3, and 6 months postoperatively. Mean age at surgery was 12.68 ± 2.50 years (range: 8 to 16 years). Mean preoperative angle of deviation was 24.21 ± 11.20 prism diopters (PD) (range: -50 to +30 PD) at distance. Mean postoperative angle of deviation at 6 months was 4.11 ± 2.87 PD (range: -10 to +10 PD) at distance. In esotropic patients, the average angle of deviation decreased from +23.80 ± 5.89 PD preoperatively to +4.80 ± 3.35 PD at 6 months, whereas in exotropic patients it decreased from -24.36 ± 12.76 to -3.86 ± 2.77 PD. Seventeen of 19 patients (89%) remained comfortable during surgery, whereas 2 needed an intravenous injection of propofol. The success rate, defined by a postoperative residual angle of deviation of ±8 PD or less, was 89% at 6 months. Strabismus surgery with intraoperative suture adjustment under topical anesthesia in children is a tolerable procedure with encouraging outcomes, representing an alternative to general anesthesia in well-selected children. Clinical evaluation of children and parents is fundamental to predict a likely poor collaboration of the child during surgery, which, if present, would require surgery under general anesthesia. [J Pediatr Ophthalmol Strabismus. 2019;56(3):173-177.].

Le vissage du scaphoïde perpendiculaire au plan de la fracture : comparaison des voies d’abord dorsale et palmaire

IntroductionTo percutaneously fixate a midwaist scaphoid fracture, both volar and dorsal approaches are considered valid options although they may have different screw insertion angles relative to the scaphoid fracture plane influencing fixation stability. In this virtual simulation study, we investigated the accessibility of placing a screw perpendicular to the fracture plane in transverse and horizontal oblique scaphoid midwaist fracture models and compared standard volar and dorsal approaches. Material and methodsComputed tomography scans of 38 healthy wrists were used to obtain virtual 3-dimensional wrist models in flexion and extension. In case the trapezium in volar approach or the distal radius in dorsal approach obstructed the screw axis perpendicular to the fracture plane, an alternative non-obstructed screw axis was chosen as close as possible to the perpendicular axis. The deviation angle between the best possible non-obstructed screw placement and true perpendicular screw placement was quantified. ResultsFor transverse fractures, the average deviation angle (±standard deviation) was 8° (±5°) in volar approach and 0° (±0°) in dorsal approach. For horizontal oblique fractures, these angles were 40° (±6°) and 14° (±8°), respectively. DiscussionIn our simulations, compared to the volar approach, the dorsal approach provided the most precise screw placement perpendicular to the fracture plane, with the largest differences for horizontal oblique fractures. When taken in addition to screw purchase, thread engagement and protrusion risk, information about screw orientation may help surgeons in deciding between percutaneous approaches in scaphoid surgery on which there is currently no consensus. Level of evidenceN/A.

Multi-crop-row detection algorithm based on binocular vision

Pathway determination is an important process in vision-based navigation. The pathway is very difficult to determine simply using 2D image processing, because fields are often infested with weeds, and images contain shadows, illumination variation, irregular backgrounds and other unexpected noise. Stereo vision techniques can be used to locate the spatial positions of crop rows for pathway determination. However, the stereo matching of field images is generally time-consuming and insufficiently accurate. To solve this problem, a multi-crop-row detection algorithm based on binocular vision is proposed in this paper. The algorithm is composed of the modules of image preprocessing, stereo matching and centreline detection of multiple crop rows. An accurate stereo matching method was put forward to locate the 3D position of crop rows based on the rank transformation, Harris detector and random sample consensus methods. A new method for detecting the centrelines of multiple crop rows was proposed according to their spatial distribution. The proposed algorithm was validated by comparative experiments. Regarding the proposed algorithm in situations without turnrows, the correct detection rate is greater than 92.78%; for the average deviation angle, the absolute average value is less than 1.05°, and the average standard deviation is less than 3.66°; for the processing time, the average value is less than 634 ms, and the average standard deviation is less than 101 ms. The results indicate that the proposed algorithm can satisfy the requirements of accuracy and real-time execution in field operation.

Alignment and Diameter of Electrospun PEO Fibers

The method of electro-spinning fibers is useful, due to the extreme similarities to fibers in the body, and knowledge about electrospun fiber properties can be implemented in such research areas as tissue engineering, tissue scaffolding, and intracellular matrices. Here we report the alignment and diameter determination of PEO fibers following research by Liu and Dzenis (2008 Nanotechnology). We used a two-collector plate method to align fibers and examined the diameter and alignment of fibers formed from various percentages of PEO and working distances from tip to collector, holding the collector plate separation fixed. We found the greatest fiber alignment using a working distance of 40 cm from tip to collector. An 8% PEO in water solution with a working distance of 40 cm formed aligned fibers with an average angle of deviation from the alignment direction of 1.9 +/- 1.2 degrees and the narrowest distribution. The smallest angle and narrowest distribution of angles was also seen with a working distance of 40 cm using 6 % PEO in water. The diameter of electrospun PEO fibers showed a subtle non-significant increase in diameter as working distance increased from 20 cm to 40 cm. However, the diameter was significantly dependent on the PEO concentration with 8 % PEO producing fibers with diameters of 245 nm +/- 50 nm and 6 % PEO producing fibers with diameters of 181 nm +/- 40 nm.In the future we will use these result to compare the mechanical properties of individual aligned electrospun fibers with their nonaligned counterpart.

False reaching movements in localization test and effect of auditory feedback in simulated ultra-low vision subjects and patients with retinitis pigmentosa.

To determine the accuracy of reaching movements with localization tests in subjects with simulated ultra-low vision, and to examine the effectiveness of auditory feedback training in improving the accuracy of the reaching movements. Twenty-one subjects with simulated ultra-low vision and three patients with advanced retinitis pigmentosa (RP) were studied with the localization tester. The localization tester had white square targets with a visual angle of 10° that were projected randomly on a computer monitor screen. The subjects or RP patients were instructed to touch the center of the target. Each subject was tested 20 trials. The distance from the center of the target to the point where subjects touched, the deviation, was calculated automatically by the computer. We also examined the effect of auditory feedback on improving the accuracy of reaching movements. The average angle of deviation in the subjects was not significantly correlated with visual acuity. The points touched by subjects with simulated low vision were located downward and horizontally toward the hand they used. They were condensed around the barycenter of the touched points (paired t tests; *p = 0.037). The touched points of the patients also deviated downward and condensed around the barycenter. The deviations decreased significantly with auditory feedback when trained over 100 trials. The subjects with simulated ultra-low vision and the advanced RP patients had false orientations against the position of localized target systematically. An auditory feedback system may help to correct the false orientations for reaching movements in patients with very low vision.

A novel approach for evaluating acceptable intra-operative correction of lower limb alignment in femoral and tibial malunion using the deviation angle of the normal contralateral knee

BackgroundA simple and appropriate approach for evaluating an acceptable alignment of bone around the knee during operation has not yet been reported. MethodsThirty-five men and 35 women presenting with nonunion or malunion of the unilateral femoral shaft were included in the first study. Using the standing scanograph, the contralateral normal lower extremity was measured to determine the normal deviation angle (DA) of the medial malleolus when the medial aspect of the knee was placed in the midline of the body. In the second study, the normal DA from individual patients was used as a reference to evaluate knee alignment during operation in 40 other patients presenting with distal femoral or proximal tibial nonunion or malunion. The clinical and knee functional outcomes of these 40 patients were investigated. ResultsThe average normal DA was 4.2° in men and 6.0° in women (p<0.001). Thirty-four of the 40 patients presenting with disorders around the knee were followed up for an average of 3.6years (range, 1.1–6.5years). Thirty fractures healed with a union rate of 88% and an average union period of 4.2months (range, 2.5–6.5months). Ideal knee alignment was maintained in all 30 patients with fracture union. Satisfactory function of the knee was achieved in 28 patients (82%, p<0.001). ConclusionsUsing a normal DA as a reference may be a feasible and effective technique for evaluating an acceptable alignment of bone around the knee during operation. Levels of evidenceLevel IV, Case series.