Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Automation Of Orthodontic Wire Tester For Performing Three Point Bending Tests, Adithya Venkatesan

Master's Theses

Abstract

Understanding the biomechanical factors in orthodontics is important in order to improve the overall effectiveness of actual clinical treatment. An accurate method to study the threedimensional (3D) force systems and the resulting movements of teeth during orthodontic treatment is needed along with the understanding of the material properties of any orthodontic wire. Until recently, most of the orthodontic biomechanics literature was limited to twodimensional experimental studies. Recent advances in threedimensional computer modeling have also been developed but have been limited to the manual control of tooth movement. Overall, there is very little published evidence in the literature on the …

Ischemia Impairs Vasodilation In Skeletal Muscle Resistance Artery, Kyle Remington Struthers

Master's Theses

Functional vasodilation in arterioles is impaired with chronic ischemia. We sought to examine the impact of chronic ischemia and age on skeletal muscle resistance artery function. To examine the impact of chronic ischemia, the femoral artery was resected from young (2-3mo) and adult (6-7mo) mice and the profunda femoris artery diameter was measured at rest and following gracilis muscle contraction 14 days later using intravital microscopy. Functional vasodilation was significantly impaired in ischemic mice (14.4±4.6% vs. 137.8±14.3%, p<0.0001 n=8) and non-ischemic adult mice (103.0±9.4% vs. 137.8±14.3%, p=0.05 n=10). In order to analyze the cellular mechanisms of the impairment, a protocol was developed to apply pharmacological agents to the experimental preparation while maintaining tissue homeostasis. Endothelial and smooth muscle dependent vasodilation were impaired with ischemia, 39.6 ± 13.6% vs. 80.5 ± 11.4% and 43.0 ± 11.7% vs. 85.1 ± 10.5%, respectively. From this data, it can be supported that smooth muscle dysfunction is the reason for the observed impairment in arterial vasodilation.

The Use Of Motion Analysis Technology As An Alternative Means Of Assessing Spinal Deformity In Patients With Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis, Matthew J. Solomito

Master's Theses

Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS) is a three dimensional deformity of the spine that causes abnormal curvatures in the coronal and sagittal planes and abnormal vertebral rotations. The gold standard for diagnosing and tracking the progression of the deformity is through the use of repeated radiography and a patient can receive upwards of fifteen radiographic series over the course of treatment, which exposes this population to an increased risk of radiation-dependent complications.

This thesis presents the necessary calculations and the marker set required to make the motion capture technology a viable alternative to radiographs, in an effort to reduce the patient’s …

Laser Etched Pmma Microfluidic Chip Design And Manufacture With Applications In Capillary Zone Electrophoresis, Evan Allen Barbre

Master's Theses

This thesis encompasses a feasibility study of using low-cost materials to manufacture microfluidic chips that can perform the same functions as chips manufactured using traditional methods within an acceptable range of efficiency of chips created with more exotic methods and materials. The major parts of the project are the selection and characterization of the fabrication methods for creating the channels for fluid flow, the methods for sealing the channels to create a usable chip and the electrophoretic separations of carboxylated microspheres of different potentials. In this work we seek to answer the question if laser-etched PMMA microfluidic chips are comparable …