Sports performance could be affected by placebo and nocebo effects. The last literature review on placebo and nocebo effects on sports and exercise performance was published in 2019. In the past five years, several new studies have been published. This review aimed to update the previous synthesis and evaluate the results of new studies focusing on placebo or nocebo interventions in sports and exercise by determining the form and magnitude of their effect. Hence, we searched for empirical studies published from 2019 until the end of May 2024 indexed in PubMed, Medline, Web of Science, EBSCO, and Google Scholar databases. The search yielded 20 eligible studies with control or baseline-control conditions, focusing on nutritional, mechanical, and other mixed ergogenic aids. They yielded small to large placebo effects (Cohen\'s d) for nutritional (d = 0.86), mechanical (d = 0.38), cream and gel (d = 0.05), and open-label placebo (d = 0.16) interventions. The pooled effect size for placebo effects was moderate to large (d = 0.67), larger than in the earlier review, suggesting that placebo effects can improve motor performance even more than previously reported. However, based on five measures from three studies, the nocebo effects were almost twice as large (d = 1.20). Accordingly, the current findings support and expand the last review in the field by yielding additional support for placebo and nocebo effects in sports and exercise.

The utilization of high-strength materials that can retain their strength after successive use under high mineral moisture (maximum weight of 1098 kg) for aerospace, automotive, and electromagnetic devices is challenging. Generally, coatings of nickel (Ni) and its alloys are utilized in the aforementioned applications, but the continuous use of the system degrades its mechanical stability and structural integrity. For the automotive and aerospace uses, the material should have high mechanical strength, wear tolerance, corrosion resistance, and magnetism. The bare Ni coatings can be altered with enhanced mechanical, tribological and electrochemical performances by using various reinforcements in the coatings. The abundantly used reinforcing agents are mainly carbonaceous nanoallotropes (such as graphene, carbon nanotubes, and diamond) for the fabrication of composite coatings. The current review unfolds the introduction of nickel and the major cause of damage to bare nickel coatings. Moreover, the review sheds light on how to mitigate the damage of nickel coatings with an emphasis on giving a flavor of distinct carbonaceous nanoallotropes. The conjugated studies on mechanical, wear, corrosion, and magnetic behavior of electrodeposited Ni-carbonaceous composite coatings are embraced in the review. Therefore, the present review can be endorsed by the readers for the protection of aircraft, automotive, and electromagnetic appliances.

Natural fiber composites are receiving more and more attention because of their greenness and low cost. Among natural fibers, bamboo is characterized by fast growth, a short cultivation period, high strength and good toughness, and is one of the strongest natural fibers in the world. A bamboo-fiber-reinforced polymer composite (BFRPC) has the characteristics of high mechanical strength, low density, degradability, etc. It has the industrial applicability comparable to metal materials, the same strong corrosion resistance as composites such as glass and carbon fibers, and the same immunity to electromagnetic interference and low thermal conductivity as natural materials. Its unidirectional specific strength and unidirectional specific modulus is higher than that of glass fiber, second only to the extremely high price of carbon fiber, which is playing an increasingly important role in the field of composite materials, and can be widely used in the fields of wind power, construction, aviation, automotive, medical care and so on. At present, it has been initially used in packaging, automotive and transportation fields, and is expected to replace petroleum-based plastics in various fields. In addition to their environmental protection and green production, they have excellent physical properties. This paper provides an overview of the mechanical properties of bamboo-fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites and thermoset composites that have been developed so far, such as tensile strength, flexural properties and impact strength. In addition, the prospects of bamboo-fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites for automotive, packaging and agricultural applications are presented.

Cardiovascular disorders have always been the top contributors to the number of mortality occurring worldwide. But the last few decades have seen a drop in those numbers as the lives of millions of people have been saved due to ground-breaking advances in both therapeutic and surgical treatment modalities. Achieving this level of scientific glory in cardiology was a challenging feat. The credit goes to the scientists and physicians of the previous century who, despite their time\'s technological limitations, made discoveries and laid a solid foundation for modern medicine. Valvular complications are a major part of the global burden of cardiac diseases. The ongoing development of heart valve replacements remains a fascinating subject, as it continues to progress. Valve replacements comprise either mechanical heart valves or bioprosthetic heart valves. Both types of valves have their merits and demerits; their usage depends mostly on individual patient requirements. This article aims to review the evolution of the implantation of heart valves, and it is the objective of this article to give credit to scientists and physicians for their contributions. The article highlights the research gaps in finding more durable materials and the scope of further research in creating a heart valve that can be universally used for better patient outcomes.

Biomechanical engineers and physicists commonly employ biological bone for biomechanics studies, since they are good representations of living bone. Yet, there are challenges to using biological bone, such as cost, degradation, disease, ethics, shipping, sourcing, storage, variability, etc. Therefore, the Synbone® company has developed a series of synthetic bones that have been used by biomechanical investigators to offset some drawbacks of biological bone. There have been a number of published biomechanical reports using these bone surrogates for dental, injury, orthopedic, and other applications. But, there is no prior review paper that has summarized the mechanical properties of these synthetic bones in order to understand their general performance or how well they represent biological bone. Thus, the goal of this article was to survey the English-language literature on the mechanical properties of these synthetic bones. Studies were included if they quantitatively (a) characterized previously unknown values for synthetic bone, (b) validated synthetic versus biological bone, and/or (c) optimized synthetic bone performance by varying geometric or material parameters. This review of data, pros, cons, and future work will hopefully assist biomechanical engineers and physicists that use these synthetic bones as they develop experimental testing regimes and computational models.

Chronic ankle instability (CAI) is common, disabling, and represents a significant socioeconomic burden. Current treatment options are not adequately efficacious. CAI is multifaceted, yet it is commonly addressed in terms of either mechanical instability or functional impairment. Both are inherently linked. Basic research must be conducted to foster reliable translational research encompassing both mechanical and functional aspects. A review was conducted to identify CAI risk factors for inclusion in future studies, and we offer here opinions and perspectives for future research.

In the context of globalization, individuals have an increased chance of being infected by multiple viruses simultaneously, thereby highlighting the importance of developing multiplexed devices. In addition to sufficient sensitivity and rapid response, multi-virus sensing techniques are expected to offer additional advantages including high throughput, one-time sampling for parallel analysis, and full automation with data visualization. In this paper, we review the optical, electrochemical, and mechanical platforms that enable multi-virus biosensing. The working mechanisms of each platform, including the detection principle, transducer configuration, bio-interface design, and detected signals, are reviewed. The advantages and limitations, as well as the challenges in implementing various detection strategies in real-life scenarios, were evaluated. Future perspectives on multiplexed biosensing techniques are critically discussed. Earlier access to multi-virus biosensors will efficiently serve for immediate pandemic control, such as in emerging SARS-CoV-2 and monkeypox cases.

OBJECTIVE: It is unclear whether a difference in functional outcome exists between kinematically aligned (KA) and mechanically aligned (MA) knee replacements. The aim of this study is to perform a comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis of the available level I-IV evidence.
METHODS: A meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials and observational studies comparing patient reported outcome measures (PROMs), range of motion (ROM), gait analysis and complications in TKA with KA and MA was performed. Quality assessment was performed for each study using the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) critical appraisal tools.
RESULTS: Twelve randomised controlled trials and fourteen observational studies published between 2014 and 2022 were included in the final analysis. Meta-analysis revealed KA to have significantly better Oxford Knee Score (OKS) (p = 0.02), Forgotten Joint Score (FJS) (p = 0.006), Knee Society Score (KSS) Objective Knee (p = 0.03) and KSS Functional Activity (p = 0.008) scores. However, these improvements did not exceed the minimum clinically important difference (MCID) values reported in the literature. Subgroup analysis showed robotic assisted KA-TKA to have a clinically superior FJS (p = 0.0002) and trend towards KSS Objective Knee score (p = 0.10), compared to PSI. Gait and plantar pressure distribution of KA cohorts more closely represented healthy cohorts, and KA showed a weak association of a decreased knee adduction moment (KAM) compared to MA. Differences in Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS), range of motion and complications were not significant between groups.
CONCLUSIONS: Although KA results in several improved functional outcomes, these do not reach clinical significance. Further standardised large-scale randomised studies are required to improve the quality of evidence. As it stands, it is difficult to recommend one philosophy over the other.

The aim of this systematic review was to provide an overview of the technical and clinical outcomes of conventional, speed sintering and high-speed sintering protocols of zirconia in the dental field. Data on precision, mechanical and optical parameters were evaluated and related to the clinical performance of zirconia ceramic. The PICOS search strategy was applied using MEDLINE to search for in vitro and in vivo studies using MeSH Terms by two reviewers. Of 66 potentially relevant studies, 5 full text articles were selected and 10 were further retrieved through a manual search. All 15 studies included in the systematic review were in vitro studies. Mechanical, precision and optical properties (marginal and internal fit, fracture strength and modulus, wear, translucency and opalescence, aging resistance/hydrothermal aging) were evaluated regarding 3-, 4- and 5-YTZP zirconia material and conventional, high- and high-speed sintering protocols. Mechanical and precision results were similar or better when speed or high-speed sintering methods were used for 3-, 4- and 5-YTZP zirconia. Translucency is usually reduced when 3 Y-TZP is used with speed sintering methods. All types of zirconia using the sintering procedures performed mechanically better compared to lithium disilicate glass ceramics but glass ceramics showed better results regarding translucency.

The safety and benefit of mechanical thrombectomy (MT) in the treatment of acute ischemic stroke (AIS) patients with M2 segment middle cerebral artery occlusions remain uncertain.
To investigate the benefit of mechanical thrombectomy for M2 occlusion compared with M1 occlusion in patients with AIS.
The PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases were searched from inception to April 2021 to identify relevant articles. The main results comprised 90-day functional independence (modified Rankin Score from 0-2), successful recanalization (thrombectomy in cerebral infarction [TICI] 2b/3), mortality, and rates of symptomatic intracerebral hemorrhage after using modern thrombectomy devices. Odds ratios (ORs) were generated for binary variants. ReviewManager 5.3 software was used.
Ultimately, a total of 14 trials were included, with 3454 participants enrolled. MT for M2 occlusion had a higher rate of 3-month functional independence than M1 occlusion, but the difference was nonsignificant (OR: 1.19, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.98 to 1.46). The TICI2b/3 scores (OR: 0.71, 95% CI: 0.58-0.88) in M2 occlusion were remarkably lower than those in M1. The mortality and symptomatic intracerebral hemorrhage rates were comparable between the 2 groups. When comparing M2 and M1 occlusions, we found that there was no significant difference between stent retriever and aspiration in the modified Rankin Score (0-2) after AIS, but aspiration exerted an eminently higher recanalization rate with regard to TICI2b/3 (OR: 0.77, 95% CI: 0.61-0.96).
Compared with M1 occlusion, patients with M2 occlusion treated by MT demonstrated similar clinical outcomes in this study. Moreover, there was no difference between stent retriever and aspiration in treating M2 occlusion in terms of functional independence at 90 days. However, aspiration exerted a conspicuously higher recanalization rate in M2 occlusion than in M1 occlusion.