[An experimental study of the coagulating properties of a laser beam applied to fix titanium prostheses of auditory ossicles with the use of platelet-rich plasma].

The displacement of prostheses of auditory ossicles at the concluding stage of surgery and in the early postoperative period is one of the factors influencing the functional outcome of stapedoplasty. The objective of the present experimental study was to estimate the effectiveness of the use of platelet-rich plasma as an alloy for the laser welding in order to improve fixation of titanium prostheses employed in ossiculoplastic surgery. The results of a series of experiments undertaken to assess the possibility of stabilization of titanium prostheses in the desired position with the help of laser welding indicate that this technique with the use of platelet-rich plasma as an alloy may be a reliable method for the fixation of the reconstructed chain of ossicles in the desired position.

[The application of laser beam welding of biological tissues for the purpose of ossiculoplasty].

The objective of the present work was to estimate the functional outcome of ossiculoplasty in the patients presenting with chronic suppurative otitis media and treated by means of laser beam welding of biological tissues. In order to obtain a good functional result of tympanoplasty including ossiculoplasty, it is necessary to conserve the elements of the sound-conducting system in the positions to which they were set during surgery. We reached this goal by fixing individual elements of the chain of the auditory ossicles by means of the laser beam welding of biological tissues with the use of platelet-rich plasma as a solder alloy. The audiometric examination of the patients within 1, 3, and 12 months after surgery showed that this technique improves the functional outcome of the treatment of the patients with chronic suppurative otitis media using prostheses for the substitution of the auditory ossicles.

[A new method for the fixation of sound-conducting elements of the middle ear during ossiculoplasty].

The objective of the present work was to estimate the possibilities of the application of platelet-enriched plasma as a filtering material for ossiculoplasty. The results of surgical interventions on 120 patients presenting with chronic suppurative otitis media are reported. All the patients underwent closed-type sanation surgery (differential atticoanthrotomy) including either complete or partial restoration of the sound conduction mechanism in the middle ear. Platelet-enriched plasma was applied into the tympanic cavity of 55 patients as a fixing material for the reconstruction of the chain of the auditory ossicles. Ossiculoplasty without additional fixation was performed in 65 patients comprising the control group. The results of the study indicate that a clot of platelet-enriched plasma may be a good fixing material for the reconstruction of the entire chain of auditory ossicles and can be used for all types of ossiculopasty.

[Morphological and functional changes in the tympanic cavity after its filling with platelet-enriched plasma (an experimental study)]. / Morfologicheskie i funktsional'nye izmeneniia v barabannoi polosti posle zapolneniia ee obogashchennoi trombotsitami plazmoi (éksperimental'noe issledovanie).

This experimental study had the objective to estimate the functional state of the sound-conducting system of the middle ear and morphological changes in the tympanic cavity after its filling with platelet-enriched plasma (PEP) obtained by one-step centrifugation of the whole venous blood. The experiments were made on 6 pigs of the Large White breed. Tympanotomy performed under general anesthesia was followed by the introduction of a clot of platelet-enriched plasma into the tympanic cavity. The results of the study indicate that the ventilation function of the pharyngotympanic tube was fully preserved. The PEP clot was completely eliminated from the tympanic cavity within the first month after filling. Neither scars nor adhesions were recorded after the treatment with PEP. The study confirms the beneficial effect of using PEP for the support of the sound-conducting structures of the middle ear and stimulation of the regeneration processes after tympanoplasty.

[The efficacy of sinuforte in the starting monotherapy of the patients presenting with acute rhinosinusitis].

The present randomized open study included 30 patients with acute suppurative rhinosinusitis. The efficacy of the treatment was estimated from the dynamics of the patients' subjective sensations and the objective assessment of clinical manifestations of the disease on days 1, 3, 5, and 7 after the onset of therapy. All the patients were prescribed treatment with sinuforte (one dose administered daily into each half of the nasal cavity at one and the same time). It was shown that monotherapy with sinuforte for the treatment of patients presenting with acute suppurative rhinosinusitis of moderate severity ensured the recovery in 73% of the cases.

[Evaluation of clinical efficiency of viferon gel for the treatment of acute rhinopharyngitis].

Because numerous studies have demonstrated that the majority of acute inflammatory diseases of the upper respiratory tract are associated with viral infection, interferon-based medicines are being extensively developed for non-specific therapy and prevention of acute respiratory viral infections (ARVI). The objective of the present study was to evaluate the efficiency of local application of viferon gel for the treatment of acute rhinopharyngitis from the results of examination and treatment of a group of outpatients with this pathology (n = 90). Viferon gel was introduced into each half of the nose at a dose of 0.5 ml 4-5 times daily. It was shown that timely prescription of this preparation accelerates the achievement of positive results of AVRI therapy and thereby reduces duration of the disease and prevents the development of bacterial complications in the upper respiratory tract.

Radiation shielding estimates for manned Mars space flight.

In the analysis of the required radiation shielding protection of spacecraft during a Mars flight, specific effects of solar activity (SA) on the intensity of galactic and solar cosmic rays were taken into consideration. Three spaceflight periods were considered: (1) maximum SA; (2) minimum SA; and (3) intermediate SA, when intensities of both galactic and solar cosmic rays are moderately high. Scenarios of spaceflights utilizing liquid-propellant rocket engines, low- and intermediate-thrust nuclear electrojet engines, and nuclear rocket engines, all of which have been designed in the Soviet Union, are reviewed. Calculations were performed on the basis of a set of standards for radiation protection approved by the U.S.S.R. State Committee for Standards. It was found that the lowest estimated mass of a Mars spacecraft, including the radiation shielding mass, obtained using a combination of a liquid propellant engine with low and intermediate thrust nuclear electrojet engines, would be 500-550 metric tons.