Total hip arthroplasty (THA) is the treatment of choice to relieve joint pain and loss of mobility as a result of advanced stage osteoarthritis or other hip pathologies. Despite their general success, THAs do fail, with revision rates estimated near 5% per year. Instability, defined as the complete subluxation (dislocation) of the femoral head from the acetabular socket - which usually occurs due to implant impingement - has recently supplanted wear-induced osteolytic aseptic loosening as the leading cause of failure in THA. Soft tissue integrity has long been recognized as influencing joint stability, and therefore there has been great interest recently in improving soft tissue restoration following THA. However, there is little quantitative information related to the degree of soft tissue repair necessary to restore joint stability. Additionally, impingement events, besides their role in prelude to frank dislocation, hold potential to damage new-generation hard-on-hard bearings, due to the relatively unforgiving nature of the materials and designs. Despite the largely biomechanical nature of these impingement-related complications, they remain under-investigated relative to their burden of morbidity. In addition to impingement, failure modalities unique to hard-on-hard bearings merit careful biomechanical scrutiny. This includes investigation of catastrophic fracture in ceramic-on-ceramic bearings, as well as analysis of patient, implant and surgical variables associated with increased wear and adverse soft tissue engagement potential for metal-on-metal implants. Toward the goal of improving current biomechanical understanding of failure modalities in THA and to provide an objective basis for orthopaedic surgeons to choose the most favorable implants and to identify optimal intraoperative parameters which minimize failure propensity, a novel, anatomically-grounded finite element model was developed, and used to perform multiple parametric finite element investigations of these failure modes.

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Japan is currently undergoing a subtle but pervasive social upheaval, a period of broad structural reform and soul-searching triggered by the rigors of the collapse of the hyperinflated "Bubble Economy" of the late 1980s. As the nation confronts the irretrievable loss of that economic mass delusion, it is turning instead to the reclamation of a quality of life sacrificed for much of the 20th century to national ambition for first military, and then economic pre-eminence. Historian Jeff Kingston has claimed that the ongoing changes, ranging from the reduction of working hours to the institution of freedom of information laws, have been equal in magnitude to those following the Meiji Restoration and Japan's defeat in World War II. Arguably, they represent the long-delayed fruition of postwar democratizing reforms. This dissertation examines the role of American popular music, and particularly hip hop, in reflecting and shaping these changes. Starting with the 1920s and 1930s, when jazz-loving "modern girls" stood for the alluring and threatening decadence of urbanization, the influence of American music on Japan has been strong for decades. This influence came to full flower during and after Japan's surrender and subsequent occupation, as exemplified by successive trends for everything from rockabilly to country and western to folk. Though obviously the condition of occupation enhanced the exchange of musical texts, and did exercise particularly economic pressure on Japanese musicians to adopt American styles, it is not simply a case of cultural adaptation motivated by domination of force. The central testament to this is the eventual role African-American music - not just jazz, but rock, funk, and soul - took on as the 'music of resistance,' initially in connection with the student protests that marked Japan in the 1960's. Such an articulation shows the powerful role of Japanese desire, particularly on the part of youth, for the America represented by popular music. Most recently, hip hop has shown the continued attraction African-American music holds for Japanese people, and youth in particular. Hip hop reached Japan in the early 1980s and entered the mainstream with East End X Yuri's million-selling pop-rap singles of the mid-1990s. Its prominence continues to this day, in many cases embodied in Japanese artists who imitate African-American styles and sounds wholesale. Such imitation has been roundly criticized by international critics and commentators, condemned as contextless cultural theft and a testament to Japanese insensitivity on matters of race. In my study I examine a cadre of contemporary musicians who, while equally dedicated to hip hop, firmly resist such uncritical imitation of blackness, instead emphasizing their own unique musical and cultural innovations. I argue that this transition from imitation to innovation mirrors a broader cultural shift away from widespread deference to authority and towards a greater openness to innovation and change, and is just one way that the work of Japan's underground hip hop artists resonates with the ongoing 'quiet revolution.' Hip hop has encountered a few particularly important ongoing social changes: that from a lifetime employment system to one increasingly characterized by temporary and part-time labor; from a self-declared homogenous society to a multicultural one; and, more generally, from one defined by elite emphasis on social compliance and loyalty to a wider acceptance of iconoclasm and individuality. It is tempting to classify this as the transition from an 'oppressive' system to a 'free' one - from bad to good. But there are complexities and ambivalence inherent in the emergent situation. For example, while the new employment model provides much greater flexibility for individuals and frees them from the past tyranny of the corporate system, it also exposes them to much greater financial uncertainty. The rising sense of self-worth among minorities, for which hip hop is an important channel, simultaneously threatens to transform these identities into objectified fetishes. Individuality is not without its costs. Meanwhile, hip hop is also being deployed in ways that reinforce the old model of deference and authoritarianism, particularly by artists who promote revisionist histories and the revival of militarism. The significance of hip hop for social change derives from a long history of interaction between Japanese and African-American culture. This history resurfaces in hip hop recordings, as well as in the lifestyle of urban musicians and fans. This dissertation follows the daily lives and viewpoints of hip hop artists in Tokyo and throughout Japan, from some of its most successful to those just starting their careers. It tracks their music-making processes and their practices of cultural adaptation, and places them within the larger context of Japanese society. It ultimately describes how an art form derided as imitative and derivative has come to reflect the very unique contours of the new soil to which it has been transplanted.

Lateral hip pain (LHP), characterised by non-specific symptoms in the region of the greater trochanter, is a condition frequently encountered by physiotherapists and other health professionals. However, the pathogenesis of LHP is not well understood. Although pathology of the gluteal tendons and their associated bursae have long been implicated in the cause of this problem, trochanteric bursitis has emerged as the primary clinical diagnosis. In order to determine a differential diagnosis, clinicians are reliant on information collated from the patient history and physical examination, yet the validity of many of the tests used to diagnose LHP has not been established. Abnormalities of the gluteal bursae may give rise to LHP and therefore to ensure precision of clinical assessment and treatment techniques, knowledge of bursal morphology is essential. However, a review of the literature revealed that there are no complete morphological accounts of all the bursae in this area. Therefore, the main purposes of this study were (a) to determine the morphology of the bursae associated with the greater trochanter and (b) to examine the physiotherapy and radiological diagnoses of LHP, and the validity of selected tests used in the diagnosis of LHP. In the anatomical study, the bursae deep to each of the layered gluteal tendons were examined in 21 embalmed human hips (9 male, 12 female; mean age 79 years, SD 9.4 years) using macro-dissection and histological techniques. Morphological associations, size, positions and histological characteristics of the bursae were recorded. A total of 121 bursae were identified in ten different locations, with an average of six bursae per hip. Variation was evident, but it was typical that at least two bursae were found deep to gluteus maximus (GMax) and the fascia lata, and gluteus medius (GMed). In approximately two-thirds of specimens a single bursa was situated deep to the tendon of gluteus minimus (GMin). All of these bursae demonstrated a synovial lining, which was predominantly areolar in type. This study revealed that numerous bursae are intimately associated with the greater trochanter, and provides new morphological detail which is of significance when considering clinical and biomechanical models of LHP. A clinical study was undertaken whereby 40 consecutive patients (37 female, 3 male; mean age 54.4 years, SD 9.5 years) with unilateral LHP were recruited prospectively. Each eligible participant underwent a standardised physiotherapy assessment followed by a magnetic resonance (MR) imaging study of the pelvis and both hips. The MR images were analysed in random order by three radiologists blinded to clinical findings and symptomatic side, and the intra-and inter-observer reliability for image analysis was examined using the kappa statistic. To determine the validity of selected clinical tests as evaluated against MR imaging, sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative likelihood ratios (LRs) were calculated, and the chi-squared test was used to determine association. As demonstrated by MR imaging, GMed tendon pathology, bursitis, osteoarthritis (OA) and gluteal muscle atrophy are all associated with the report of LHP. Interestingly, these various pathologies were identified in asymptomatic as well as symptomatic limbs. However, while bursitis was equally prevalent in symptomatic and asymptomatic hips, GMed tendon pathology and OA were observed more frequently on the symptomatic side. Furthermore, muscle atrophy which predominantly affected GMin, was specific to symptomatic hips. Large variation was evident in the strength of agreement between radiologists and there was little agreement between physiotherapy and radiological diagnoses of pathology. Physiotherapists frequently diagnosed trochanteric bursitis as a cause of LHP and while palpation was identified as the most provocative test for reproducing patients complaint of LHP, it was not shown to be a valid technique. Instead, the outcomes pertaining to the validity of the clinical tests indicate that attention should be focused towards the assessment and treatment of gluteal tendon pathology. The two tests that appeared to be most useful for diagnosing gluteal tendon pathology were pain reproduction with passive hip abduction and resisted testing of GMed and GMin. While these findings demonstrate that various pathologies are associated with the report of LHP, they also highlight some problems associated with the use of MR imaging as a reference standard. Before further clinical validation studies of LHP are undertaken in larger populations, it is recommended that verification of MR imaging outcomes are performed against surgical and histological findings.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Delaware, 2007. / Principal faculty advisor: Irene S. Davis, Dept. of Physical Therapy. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.M.E)--University of Delaware, 2006. / Principal faculty advisors: Michael Santare and Suresh G. Advani, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering. Includes bibliographical references.

With the rise of First Nations owned and created television content at the turn of the century, came a demand to see an accurate representation of Aboriginality that could look at Aboriginals as both here and modern. From 2003-2006, the first Aboriginal made and produced television series entitled Moccasin Flats, I argue, used modern day hip-hop discourse to both engage and dissect a host of complex issues facing modern day urban Aboriginal society. This research project mobilizes multiple methodologies; including: 1.) Eco’s code and sign function semiotic analysis, which operates to identify various hip-hop codes in the text; 2.)Hall’s method of articulation to look at how meaning is fixed in the discourse surrounding the show; and finally 3) Deleuze’s rhizomic approach to identity to see how the shows main characters are constructed in a way to highlight the paradoxical and undercut certain flirtations with essentialization. This three-tiered methodological process paints a picture of a new complex use of discourse to accentuate different facets of aboriginality that had previously been the sole product of dominant hegemonic institutions which relied on racist stereotypes. By dissecting how identity is formed on Moccasin Flats, I will show how aboriginal filmmakers construct a self-reflexive space where the character is perpetually in the process of ‘becoming’ and identity is always a site of negotiation.

The external skeletons, Exoskeletons, are not a new research area in this highly developed world. They are widely used in helping the wearer to enhance human strength, endurance, and speed while walking with them. Most exoskeletons are designed for the whole body and are powered due to their applications and high performance needs. This thesis introduces a novel design of a three-degree of freedom parallel robotic structured hip exoskeleton, which is quite different from these existing exoskeletons. An exoskeleton unit for walking typically is designed as a serial mechanism which is used for the entire leg or entire body. This thesis presents a design as a partial manipulator which is only for the hip. This has better advantages when it comes to marketing the product, these include: light weight, easy to wear, and low cost. Furthermore, most exoskeletons are designed for lower body are serial manipulators, which have large workspace because of their own volume and occupied space. This design introduced in this thesis is a parallel mechanism, which is more stable, stronger and more accurate. These advantages benefit the wearers who choose this product. This thesis focused on the analysis of the structure of this design, and verifies if the design has a reasonable and reliable structure. Therefore, a series of analysis has been done to support it. The mobility analysis and inverse kinematic solution are derived, and the Jacobian matrix was derived analytically. Performance of the CAD model has been checked by the finite element analysis in Ansys, which is based on applied force and moment. The comparison of the results from tests has been illustrated clearly for stability iii and practicability of this design. At the end of this thesis, an optimization of the hip exoskeleton is provided, which offers better structure of this design. / UOIT

No description available.

Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2002. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vii, 79 p. : ill. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 71-79).