Design and fabrication of the radial and ulnar wrist articulating control orthoses.

STUDY DESIGN: Case series. INTRODUCTION: Pain and injury at the radial and ulnar aspects of the wrist due to overuse or trauma are commonly treated in hand therapy clinics. PURPOSE OF STUDY: Describe two orthoses that allow targeted rest and recovery of involved anatomical structure(s) while preserving function of surrounding uninvolved structures in patients who have sustained overuse or traumatic injury at the radial or ulnar aspect of the wrist. METHODS: Outline the fabrication of the Ulnar-Wrist Articulating Control Orthosis (U-WACO) and Radial-Wrist Articulating Control Orthosis (R-WACO) as well as presents case examples for each orthosis. RESULTS: The U-WACO and R-WACO designs may improve comfort, compliance, and functional ability to complete daily tasks while allowing targeted rest and recovery of involved anatomical structure(s) at the radial and ulnar aspects of the wrist due to overuse or trauma. CONCLUSION: Dynamic orthoses that allow for movement in one plane while restricting movement in another may overcome the shortcomings of some static orthotic designs.

Micropatterned surfaces with controlled ligand tethering.

Microcontact printing (micro-CP) is a facile, cost-effective, and versatile soft-lithography technique to create two-dimensional patterns of domains with distinct functionalities that provides a robust platform to generate micropatterned biotechnological arrays and cell culture substrates. Current micro-CP approaches rely on nonspecific immobilization of biological ligands, either by direct printing or adsorption from solution, onto micropatterned domains surrounded by a nonfouling background. This technique is limited by insufficient control over ligand density. We present a modified micro-CP protocol involving stamping mixed ratios of carboxyl- and tri(ethylene glycol)-terminated alkanethiols that provides for precise covalent tethering of single or multiple ligands to prescribed micropatterns via standard peptide chemistry. Processing parameters were optimized to identify conditions that control relevant endpoint pattern characteristics. This technique provides a facile method to generate micropatterned arrays with tailorable and controlled presentation of biological ligands for biotechnological applications and analyses of cell-material interactions.