Bracing

A flat plate is a reinforced concrete slab supported directly by concrete columns without the use of beams, column flares or drop panels. Flat plate system has been adopted in many buildings constructed recently taking advantage of the reduced floor height to meet the economical and architectural demands. However, In Multistoried structures the flat plate floor system has week resistance to lateral loads like wind and earthquake hence this paper is concerned to increase lateral stiffness of flat plate structure and to minimize the displacement of the structure under lateral loading. This paper is also concerned about column axial load and to review our structure with special features like shear walls & diagonal bracing. In present work, a 15 storied flat plate garments building have been modeled using software package "STAAD Pro" for earthquake zone II in Bangladesh .This model is considered in most vulnerable situation where we took wind speed as 260 kmph and Earthquake load has been taken as per Bangladesh National Building Code(BNBC)

The present study assesses the seismic performance of steel moment resisting frames (MRFs) retrofitted with different bracing systems. Three
structural configurations were utilized: special concentrically braces (SCBFs), buckling-restrained braces (BRBFs) and mega-braces (MBFs). A
9-storey steel perimeter MRF was designed with lateral stiffness insufficient to satisfy code drift limitations in zones with high seismic hazard. The
frame was then retrofitted with SCBFs, BRBFs and MBFs. Inelastic time-history analyses were carried out to assess the structural performance
under earthquake ground motions. Local (member rotations) and global (interstorey and roof drifts) deformations were employed to compare
the inelastic response of the retrofitted frames. It is shown that MBFs are the most cost-effective bracing systems. Maximum storey drifts of
MBFs are 70% lower than MRFs and about 50% lower than SCBFs. The lateral drift reductions are, however, function of the characteristics
of earthquake ground motions, especially frequency content. Configurations with buckling-restrained mega-braces possess seismic performance
marginally superior to MBFs despite their greater weight. The amount of steel for structural elements and their connections in configurations with
mega-braces is 20% lower than in SCBFs. This reduces the cost of construction and renders MBFs attractive for seismic retrofitting applications.

The current design of supporting structure of Elevated water tanks is tremendously vulnerable under lateral forces due to an earthquake. Water tanks and especially the elevated water tanks are structures of high importance which are considered as main lifeline elements that should be capable of keeping the expected performance i.e. operation during and after earthquakes. Thus researchers, in recent years, have focused on studying seismic behaviors of these tanks, particularly ground tanks, while only few of these researches have concerned with the elevated tanks and even less with the reinforced concrete elevated tanks. In this research, a sample of a concrete elevated water tank with 400 m3 have been studied and analyzed by linear dynamic method and seismic response such as base shear, tank displacement, max Bending Moment at the base of column under tank reinforced empty condition, tank full condition and tank half full condition for different type of bracing arrangements have been calculated and then results have been compared.

Pounding between adjacent structures is commonly observed phenomenon during major earthquakes which may cause both architectural and structural damages. To satisfy the functional requirements, the adjacent buildings are constructed with equal and unequal heights, which may cause great damage to structures during earthquakes. During earthquake, the buildings vibrate out of phase and at rest separation is deficient to accommodate their relative motions. Such buildings are usually separated by expansion joint which is insufficient to provide the lateral movements of the buildings during earthquakes. It can be prevented by providing safe separation distances, sometimes getting of required safe separations is not possible in metropolitan areas due to high land value and limited availability of land space. If building separations is found to be deficient to prevent pounding, then there should be some secure and cost effective methods to prevent structural pounding between adjacent buildings. There are many buildings which are constructed very nearly to one another in Metropolitan cities, because everyone wants to construct up to their property line due to high cost of land. This study compare the seismic pounding of framed RC as well as soft story RC buildings, and evaluates the prevention techniques of pounding between adjacent buildings during earthquakes. Constructing new RC walls, cross bracing system and combined RC wall & bracing, with proper placement are proposed as possible prevention techniques for pounding between adjacent buildings. ETABS software is used for modeling and analysis of buildings. After analysis results shows that seismic pounding is more severe in the case of adjacent soft-storey building compared to framed buildings, that is displacement of soft-storey buildings are larger than framed buildings, and also displacement of buildings with different floor level is less than that of buildings with same floor level. The mitigation methods such as use of shear wall, bracings and combination of shear wall & bracings are proved to be effective in all cases.

The behaviour of buildings during strong seismic waves will depend on the overall shape, size and geometry of the building. In general, building with simple geometry in plan will perform well during strong earthquake motions as compared to complex geometry building with re-entrant corners. To overcome the deficiency of re-entrant shaped corners building (T), the lateral force resisting systems called shear wall, braced frame and in-filled frame are provided to the re-entrant shaped corner building (T) to reduce the damage due to seismic waves. Most of the high-rise buildings in India consist of flexure resisting frames with brick infill. But the brick in-fill is considered to be non-structural element and therefore all the lateral loads are assumed to be resisted by the frame itself. Compared to reinforced concrete frame, a brick infill is brittle and this fails during an earthquake. The lateral failure of the structure can be controlled by using masonry infill such as shear wall, strut and bracings. In the present study, G+ 28 storey building on medium type soil is considered in seismic zones II, III, IV and V for the analysis. In total, four models are used for the analysis using structural software package ETABS 2013.The response parameters of four models such as Base shear, Mode period, Storey displacement and Storey accelerations are studied. Their comparisons are made with both the methods of Equivalent static lateral force and response spectrum.

The present study assesses the seismic performance of steel moment resisting frames (MRFs) retrofitted with different bracing systems. Three structural configurations were utilized: special concentrically braces (SCBFs), buckling-restrained braces (BRBFs) and mega-braces (MBFs). A 9-storey steel perimeter MRF was designed with lateral stiffness insufficient to satisfy code drift limitations in zones with high seismic hazard. The frame was then retrofitted with SCBFs, BRBFs and MBFs. Inelastic time-history analyses were carried out to assess the structural performance under earthquake ground motions. Local (member rotations) and global (interstorey and roof drifts) deformations were employed to compare the inelastic response of the retrofitted frames. It is shown that MBFs are the most cost-effective bracing systems. Maximum storey drifts of MBFs are 70% lower than MRFs and about 50% lower than SCBFs. The lateral drift reductions are, however, function of the characteristics of earthquake ground motions, especially frequency content. Configurations with buckling-restrained mega-braces possess seismic performance marginally superior to MBFs despite their greater weight. The amount of steel for structural elements and their connections in configurations with mega-braces is 20% lower than in SCBFs. This reduces the cost of construction and renders MBFs attractive for seismic retrofitting applications.

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Structures are classified as rigid and flexible. Tall structures are more flexible and susceptible to vibrations by wind induced forces. In the analysis and design of high-rise structures estimation of wind loads and the inter storey drifts are the two main criteria to be positively ascertained for the safe and comfortable living of the inhabitants. Estimation of wind loads is more precise with gust factor method. Inter storey drift can be controlled through suitable structural system. The present investigation deals with the calculation of wind loads using static and gust factor method for a sixteen storey high rise building and results are compared with respect to drift. Structure is analyzed in STAAD Pro, with wind loads calculated by gust factor method as per IS 875-Part III with and without X-bracings at all the four corners from bottom to top.

Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the effects of taping and preventive bracing on functional
balance, jumping performance, multi-joint coordination and proprioception on comparison to
barefoot and each other.
Design: Controlled trial as an experiment with the independent variable testing in 3 trials: control (barefooted),
preventive bracing, and taping.
Setting: The sports physiotherapy research laboratory.
Participants: Twenty physically active male university students aged between 20 and 28 who had been
free from lower extremity pathology for 12 months and had no previous history of ankle sprain served
as participants.
Main outcome measures: Single leg balance (s), jumping performance (cm), coordination and proprioception
assessments by the Functional Squat System. The software automatically calculated the absolute
average error (cm) and the standard deviation (SD) of the average error. Average errors were independently
quantified as a function of the action mode (concentric versus eccentric) and of the lower limb
(dominant versus non-dominant).
Results: There was no significant difference among the groups for balance tests (p > 0.05). For vertical jump
performance of bilateral and the dominant leg there were significant differences that the barefoot group
had better results compared to the other groups (p = 0.059; 0.017). According to the coordination results
of Functional Squat System participants were better in brace and tape situations since the deviations
were less for all concentric and eccentric positions. Deviation results for the proprioception test were
different for first visual and non-visual deviations for dominant leg (p < 0.05).
Conclusion: In conclusion, bracing and taping may play an important role in preventing injury or rehabilitation
of the injured ankle by improving concentric and eccentric coordination, proprioception with
the ability of reproducing motion in closed kinetic chain while decreasing vertical jump performance. No
superiority of brace over tape or vice versa was found in this study.

High rise structure thanks to its exposure to varied gravity loads, lateral loads and therefore the exponential height of structure has become a costlier solution. The increasing cost of concrete structure and therefore the time interval of construction in concrete high rise structure has given chance to explore and research new technologies and new materials to form the structure more stable and economical. One among the solutions is to supply bracings to the member. There are many conveniences of the bracing systems in order that they're widely used. These are: Braced frames are accessible to all or any sorts of structures like bridges, aircrafts, and cranes. There's no need of highly skilled laborers if the bolted connections are utilized and plus there's no deformation problem at the connection. The paper also includes the various sorts of braces which may be used appropriately and therefore the comparison between buildings with members without braces and buildings with braces. I.

Basically in case of tall building lateral loads i.e. earthquake and wind always governing the design. So, to counteract these loads, a proper lateral load resisting system should be used to fulfill design and serviceability criteria. Lateral bracing and fluid viscous damper are among those system which can be used to fulfill strength and latera stiffness criteria. In this paper a 20 story reinforced concrete building has been modeled in standard package ETABS 2016 for the purpose of study. Total of 6 models have been made, bare frame, bracing with its type and fluid viscous damper. Also equivalent static and linear response spectrum analysis have been performed to capture accurate response of structure. For seismic efficiency base shear, time period and lateral deflection of each model have found and compared with each other.

The civil Engineering industry particularly in India has taken a new mode in construction of high rise structures. High rise structures became a need and new trend to accommodate the people’s requirements. As steel structures can be fabricated and erected in no-time compared to R.C.C structures, modern technologies and construction industries are focusing towards the construction of high rise structures using steel. In designing the high rise structures, the effect of lateral loads like wind and earthquake forces are attaining increasing importance and stability against lateral loads because of high height of buildings. For this reason in0recent years wind and earthquake loads have become0determining factors in designing tall structures To attain the resistance against these lateral loads, bracing system is used with different patterns. Bracing system are such structural system which0form an integral part0of frame. The structure has to0be analysed before0arriving the best type0or effective arrangement0of bracing. A 20 storied, irregular 3D framed structure with 3m each story depth is selected for the present study. The columns and beams are designed0to withstand dead load and live load0adequately. The bracings are designed to withstand against lateral load coming in that particular stories. For better results, the various forms of bracing systems are analysed using STAAD Pro software. An attempt has been made to study the behaviour of high rise steel structures for lateral loads by considering Knee and Y bracing systems and also for other bracing systems like X brace, V brace and combination of X and Y braces. Various models thus generated were analysed for different zones, different wind speeds and compared with unbraced0reference model with respect0to criteria’s like base shear, axial force, bending moment, shear force, drift index,0inter story drift and also to have maximum0reduction in inter storey0drift and drift index0per unit quantity0of steel consumed for0bracing configuration which0improves the lateral load0resisting capacity of the tall structures.

Basically in case of tall building lateral loads i.e. earthquake and wind always governing the design. So, to counteract these loads, a proper lateral load resisting system should be used to fulfill design and serviceability criteria. Lateral bracing and fluid viscous damper are among those system which can be used to fulfill strength and latera stiffness criteria. In this paper a 20 story reinforced concrete building has been modeled in standard package ETABS 2016 for the purpose of study. Total of 6 models have been made, bare frame, bracing with its type and fluid viscous damper. Also equivalent static and linear response spectrum analysis have been performed to capture accurate response of structure. For seismic efficiency base shear, time period and lateral deflection of each model have found and compared with each other.

Aims
The aim of this study was to determine the influence of pelvic parameters on the tendency of patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) to develop flatback deformity (thoracic hypokyphosis and lumbar hypolordosis) and its effect on quality-of-life outcomes.
Patients and Methods
This was a radiological study of 265 patients recruited for Boston bracing between December 2008 and December 2013. Posteroanterior and lateral radiographs were obtained before, immediately after, and two-years after completion of bracing. Measurements of coronal and sagittal Cobb angles, coronal balance, sagittal vertical axis, and pelvic
parameters were made. The refined 22-item Scoliosis Research Society (SRS-22r) questionnaire was recorded. Association between independent factors and outcomes of postbracing ≥ 6° kyphotic changes in the thoracic spine and ≥ 6° lordotic changes in the lumbar spine were tested using likelihood ratio chi-squared test and univariable
logistic regression. Multivariable logistic regression models were then generated for both outcomes with odds ratios (ORs), and with SRS-22r scores.
Results
Reduced T5-12 kyphosis (mean -4.3° (sd 8.2); p < 0.001), maximum thoracic kyphosis (mean -4.3° (sd 9.3); p < 0.001), and lumbar lordosis (mean -5.6° (sd 12.0); p < 0.001) were observed after bracing treatment. Increasing prebrace maximum kyphosis (OR 1.133) and lumbar lordosis (OR 0.92) was associated with postbracing hypokyphotic change. Prebrace sagittal vertical axis (OR 0.975), prebrace sacral slope (OR 1.127), prebrace pelvic tilt (OR 0.940), and change in maximum thoracic kyphosis (OR 0.878) were predictors for lumbar hypolordotic changes. There were no relationships between coronal deformity, thoracic kyphosis, or lumbar lordosis with SRS-22r scores.
Conclusion
Brace treatment leads to flatback deformity with thoracic hypokyphosis and lumbar hypolordosis. Changes in the thoracic spine are associated with similar changes in the lumbar spine. Increased sacral slope, reduced pelvic tilt, and pelvic incidence are associated with reduced lordosis in the lumbar spine after bracing. Nevertheless, these sagittal
parameter changes do not appear to be associated with worse quality of life.

A Bracing system is provided to reduce the lateral deflection of the structure. The use of braced frames has become more effective in high rise structure and also in the seismic design of the structure. The bracing system plays the vital role in structural behavior during the earthquake. So this paper aims to find out the effect of bracing on multi-storied of the steel building. In this paper, G+19 steel frames are modeled with the different type of bracing pattern and different combination of soft-story using CYPE software.

ZUSAMMENFASSUNG:
Bei größeren Tiefen ist der Offshore Windpark derzeit unwirtschaftlich auf Grund der aufwändigen Fundamente.
Die vorliegende Anmeldung hat sich zur Aufgabe gestellt diese hohen Kosten wesentlich zu reduzieren.
Windparks können nun bei Meerestiefen bis über 100m aufgestellt werden.

Das Fundament des Turmes mit Abspannungen über Topp muss nun lediglich die Vertikallasten tragen. Die seitliche Abspannung des gesamten Seilnetzes übernehmen dann die Horizontalkräfte aus der Windbelastung.
Dieses neue Turmkonzept wird wesentliche Kosten senken durch:
Kleineres Fundament bei Vertikalbelastung
Reduzierung des Biegemomentes um 75%, damit schlankere Bauweise,
Das neue Turmkonzept bietet die Möglichkeit im Gesamten drehbare Türme auszuführen. Damit wird ein schlanker Stromlinienkörper mit fest angebauter Gondel ermöglicht.

Weiter ergibt sich die Nutzung
Durch Anbringung zusätzliche Solarzellen im Windpark und
des Windleiteffektes mittels Folien für besseren Wirkungsgrad der Rotoren.
Darüber hinaus bieten sich Vorteile zur Verbesserung der Windenergie
Nutzung und der Möglichkeit Photovoltaik Anlagen über Topp zu installieren. Die Ausfallrate bei 70m/s Orkan wird verringert.

Abstract. In this paper, the cyclic nonlinear behavior of a brace element has been modeled. A brace element is modeled as two elastic beam-column segments, which are connected to each other via a plastic hinge. The far ends of the element are hinged. By a suitable combination of the isotropic and kinematical hardening rules of plasticity, the nonlinear axial force-displacement relation for a beam element has been derived. So, the strain hardening, strain softening, tangential modulus of elasticity and Bauschinger e ects are taken into account. This model shows good agreement with experimental results that have been reported in other research works.

Abstract The use of high strength (HS) steel is becoming very popular thanks to their economical and mechanical benefits. Seismic applications represent the rational field to exploit the high performance of HS steel, by means of the “dual-steel” concept that combines the HS with Mild Carbon (MC) steel in order to increase the strength of non-dissipative elements, thus enforcing a ductile overall failure mode. In this paper, a comprehensive parametric study devoted to investigate the seismic performance of EC8-compliant dual-steel chevron Concentrically Braced Frames (CBF) is presented and discussed. Both static and dynamic nonlinear analyses were carried out to investigate the seismic performance for three limit states: damage limitation (DL), severe damage (SL) and near collapse (NC). The investigated parameters cover both geometric and mechanical variables, as the type of columns, span length, number of stories and spectral shape. The analyses showed that the use of HS steel in EC8-compliant CBFs is effective to avoid the damage in the brace-intercepted beams. However, due to the flexibility of the brace-intercepted beams made of HS steel, the bracing members are characterized by severe deformation demand in compression and elastic response in tension. Also, the behavior factors evaluated by means of dynamic analyses are smaller than those recommended by Eurocode 8. The comparison between dual steel CBFs with those entirely made of MC steel showed that in the second case the use of heavier profiles for braced-intercepted beams can be beneficial to reduce the brace ductility demand in compression and to activate their yielding in tension. Thereby, numerical results show that for chevron CBFs it seems more efficient to guarantee adequate stiffness than increasing the material strength for beams. On the contrary, the use of HS steel is effective for columns of the braced spans, reducing the material consumptions while providing satisfactory structural efficiency.

This paper reviews the results of some recent works conducted by the author on new methods of retrofitting the RC frames. On the local retrofit of RC members, it includes the work on the application of a new high performance fibre-reinforced cementitious composite material. The composite can be applied either as a wet mix to the desired thickness or attached as precast sheets or strips to the face of the member using a suitable epoxy adhesive. The suitability of this technique of member retrofit to enhance the strength and ductility of the retrofitted member compared with other methods of local retrofit, such as steel plates and FRP laminates, is discussed. Other works reviewed in this paper include those carried out recently on global retrofit of RC frames using direct internal steel bracing. Results of inelastic pushover tests on scaled models of ductile RC frames, directly braced by steel X and knee braces are presented which indicate that such bracings can increase the yield and...

Background-Evidence that knee braces used for the treatment of osteoarthritis mediate pain relief and improve function by unloading the joint (increased joint separation) remains inconclusive. Alternatively, valgus braces may mediate pain relief by mechanically stabilizing the joint and reducing muscle co-contractions and joint compression. This study therefore sought to examine the degree to which unloader knee braces control knee instability and influence muscle co-contractions during gait. Methods-Sixteen subjects with radiographic evidence of medial compartment knee osteoarthritis and malalignment were recruited and fitted with a custom Generation II Unloader Brace. Gait analysis was performed with the knee unbraced and with the brace in neutral alignment and 4° valgus. A two week washout period separated brace conditions. Muscle cocontraction indices were derived for agonist and antagonist muscle pairings. Pain, instability and functional status were assessed using self-report questionnaires. Repeated-measures ANOVA's, correlations and regression analysis were used for statistical analysis. Results-The scores for pain, function and stability were worst when the knee was unsupported (baseline and washout). At baseline, 9 of 16 subjects reported knee instability, of which 5 complained it affected activities of daily living. Poor knee stability was significantly correlated with decreased activities of daily living, quality of life, global knee function and higher pain and symptoms. Knee function and stability scored highest with the neutral brace compared to the valgus brace. Vastus lateralis-lateral hamstring and vastus medialis-medial hamstring muscle cocontractions were significantly reduced as a result of bracing. Subjects with greater varus alignment exhibited greater decreases in vastus lateralis-lateral hamstrings co-contraction. Conclusion-Neutral alignment performed as well or better than valgus alignment, in reducing pain, disability, muscle co-contraction, and knee adduction excursions. Pain relief may result from diminished muscle co-contractions rather than so called medial compartment unloading.

Correspondence should be sent to J. P. Y. Cheung; email: cheungjp@ hku. hk The aim of this study was to assess whether supine flexibility predicts the likelihood of curve progression in patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) undergoing brace treatment. Methods This was a retrospective analysis of patients with AIS prescribed with an underarm brace between September 2008 to April 2013 and followed up until 18 years of age or required surgery. Patients with structural proximal curves that preclude underarm bracing, those who were lost to follow-up, and those who had poor compliance to bracing (<16 hours a day) were excluded. The major curve Cobb angle, curve type, and location were measured on the pre-brace standing posteroanterior (PA) radiograph, supine whole spine radiograph, initial in-brace standing PA radiograph, and the post-brace weaning standing PA radio-graph. Validation of the previous in-brace Cobb angle regression model was performed. The outcome of curve progression post-bracing was tested using a logistic regression model. The supine flexibility cutoff for curve progression was analyzed with receiver operating characteristic curve. Results A total of 586 patients with mean age of 12.6 years (SD 1.2) remained for analysis after exclusion. The baseline Cobb angle was similar for thoracic major curves (31.6° (SD 3.8°)) and lumbar major curves (30.3° (SD 3.7°)). Curve progression was more common in the thoracic curves than lumbar curves with mean final Cobb angles of 40.5° (SD 12.5°) and 31.8° (SD 9.8°) respectively. This dataset matched the prediction model for in-brace Cobb angle with less mean absolute error in thoracic curves (0.61) as compared to lumbar curves (1.04). Reduced age and Risser stage, thoracic curves, increased pre-brace Cobb angle, and reduced correction and flexibility rates predicted increased likelihood of curve progression. Flexibility rate of more than 28% has likelihood of preventing curve progression with bracing. Conclusion Supine radiographs provide satisfactory prediction for in-brace correction and post-bracing curve magnitude. The flexibility of the curve is a guide to determine the likelihood for brace success. Cite this article: Bone Joint J 2020;102-B(2):254-260.

Objective. Examine the neuromuscular response to functional knee bracing relative to anterior tibial translations in vivo. Design. During randomised brace conditions, electromyographic data with simultaneous skeletal tibiofemoral kinematics were recorded from four anterior cruciate ligament deficient subjects to investigate the effect of the DonJoy Legend functional brace during activity.

This research is concentrated on the study of structural strength and behavior of cold-formed steel frame with strap bracing subjected to horizontal loads. The wall specimens with and without calcium silicate board sheathing were tested to compare the differences of shear resistance. Based on the test data, the ultimate strength, stiffness, ductility ratio, and failure behavior were studied for each specimen, and the wall's movements were also discussed in this paper. The cold-formed steel framing wall without bracing from previous study was introduced for the comparison purpose. As expected, the ultimate strength was increased for the cold-formed steel wall sheathed with calcium silicate board after installing strap bracing. However, the initial stiffness and ductility ratio of cladded wall specimens with bracing did not show much difference as compared to cladded wall specimens without bracing. It was found that the ultimate strength of cold-formed steel wall frame installed with both sheathing and strap bracing is not the sum of ultimate strengths of cold-formed steel wall frame with sheathing and cold-formed steel wall frame with strap bracing only. A better performance of energy absorption beyond the portion of ultimate strength was found for the wall specimen with both sheathing and bracing. It was also observed that the failure type and location are different for the cladded wall specimens with and without bracing.

Relatively new seismic code has been introduced in Indonesia (SNI 1726-2012) which affects old structures. Mostly, the existing structures does not meet the requirement of new regulation: overstressed. Therefore, it is important to strengthen reinforced concrete (RC) structure in order to meet the performance level and structural behaviour satisfied. In this study, the retrofitting method was performed by using a type V steel braces both external and internal settlement. Clearly, the advantage of braces is significantly increases lateral capacity where small amount of mass also invoked into the structures. Computer simulation using SAP2000 found that most of the structures have been overstress on its components, indeed reinforcement is necessary with braces. Nonlinear pushover analysis was performed on type-V braces with and without perimeter frames which reviewed structural performances. Evaluation of 3, 5, 8 and 10 storey structures designed under previous code and failures of str...

We undertook a prospective study in 51 male patients aged between 17 and 27 years to ascertain whether immobilisation after primary traumatic anterior dislocation of the shoulder in external rotation was more effective than immobilisation in internal rotation in preventing recurrent dislocation in a physically active population. Of the 51 patients, 24 were randomised to be treated by a traditional brace in internal rotation and 27 were immobilised in external rotation of 15° to 20°. After immobilisation, the patients undertook a standard regime of physiotherapy and were then assessed clinically for evidence of instability. When reviewed at a mean of 33.4 months (24 to 48) ten from the external rotation group (37%) and ten from the internal rotation group (41.7%) had sustained a futher dislocation. There was no statistically significant difference (p = 0.74) between the groups. Our findings show that external rotation bracing may not be as effective as previously reported in preventi...

The current design of supporting structure of Elevated water tanks is tremendously vulnerable under lateral forces due to an earthquake. Water tanks and especially the elevated water tanks are structures of high importance which are considered as main lifeline elements that should be capable of keeping the expected performance i.e. operation during and after earthquakes. Thus researchers, in recent years, have focused on studying seismic behaviors of these tanks, particularly ground tanks, while only few of these researches have concerned with the elevated tanks and even less with the reinforced concrete elevated tanks. In this research, a sample of a concrete elevated water tank with 400 m3 have been studied and analyzed by linear dynamic method and seismic response such as base shear, tank displacement, max Bending Moment at the base of column under tank reinforced empty condition, tank full condition and tank half full condition for different type of bracing arrangements have bee...

The purpose of this study is to improve the performance of walls under out-of-plane loads especially when subjected to the hammering action of the floors. The idea behind the paper is to provide the masonry walls with a device that behaves like a buttress, without having to build a traditional buttress. The solution presented in this paper consists of a mechanical coupling between the three-dimensional net of steel ribbons of the CAM (Active Confinement of Masonry) system and the CFRP (Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer) strips. Since the steel ribbons of the CAM system have a pre-tension, the mechanical coupling allows the steel ribbons to establish a semi-rigid transverse link between the CFRP strips bonded on the two opposite sides of a wall. Therefore, two vertical CFRP strips tied by the steel ribbons behave like the flanges of an I-beam and the flexural strength of the ideal I-beam counteracts the out-of-plane displacements of the wall. The experimental results showed that the combined technique inherits the strong points of both constituent techniques. In fact, the delamination load is comparable to that of the specimens reinforced with the CFRP strips and the overall behavior is as ductile as for the specimens reinforced with the CAM system. They also inspired a more performing combined technique.

Fourteen trials involving 891 patients were included. Several of the studies had poor methodology and inadequate reporting of outcomes. Open operative treatment compared with non-operative treatment (4 trials, 356 patients) was associated with a lower risk of rerupture (relative risk (RR) 0.27, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.11 to 0.64), but a higher risk of other complications including infection, adhesions and disturbed skin sensibility (RR 10.60, 95%CI 4.82 to 23.28). Percutaneous repair compared with open operative repair (2 studies, 94 patients) was associated with a shorter operation duration, and lower risk of infection (RR 10.52, 95% CI 1.37 to 80.52). These figures should be interpreted with caution because of the small numbers involved. Patients splinted with a functional brace rather than a cast post-operatively (5 studies, 273 patients) tended to have a shorter in-patient stay, less time off work and a quicker return to sporting activities. There was also a lower complication rate (excluding rerupture) in the functional brace group (RR 1.88 95%CI 1.27 to 2.76). Because of the small number of patients involved no definitive conclusions could be made regarding different operative techniques (1 study, 51 patients), different non-operative treatment regimes (2 studies, 90 patients), and different forms of post-operative cast immobilisation (1 study, 40 patients).

A total of 108 consecutive patients presenting to our hospital following a soft tissue injury of the neck from a road traffic accident were included in a prospective trial. Each patient was randomised to either early mobilisation using an exercise regime or 3 weeks treatment in a soft collar followed by the same exercise regime. Patients were assessed clinically at 3, 12 and 52 week intervals from injury. No differences were found between the two groups for pain, range of movement or activities of daily living at any of the follow up intervals. The collar treatment group took significantly longer to return to work after injury (17 days) compared with the early mobilisation group (34 days), P < 0.05. Treatment with a soft collar was found to have no obvious benefit in terms of functional recovery after neck injury and was associated with a prolonged time period off work. This study supports the use of an early mobilisation regime following soft tissue injuries of the neck.

Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the effects of taping and preventive bracing on functional balance, jumping performance, multi-joint coordination and proprioception on comparison to barefoot and each other. Design: Controlled trial as an experiment with the independent variable testing in 3 trials: control (barefooted), preventive bracing, and taping. Setting: The sports physiotherapy research laboratory. Participants: Twenty physically active male university students aged between 20 and 28 who had been free from lower extremity pathology for 12 months and had no previous history of ankle sprain served as participants. Main outcome measures: Single leg balance (s), jumping performance (cm), coordination and proprioception assessments by the Functional Squat System. The software automatically calculated the absolute average error (cm) and the standard deviation (SD) of the average error. Average errors were independently quantified as a function of the action mode (concentric versus eccentric) and of the lower limb (dominant versus non-dominant). Results: There was no significant difference among the groups for balance tests (p > 0.05). For vertical jump performance of bilateral and the dominant leg there were significant differences that the barefoot group had better results compared to the other groups (p = 0.059; 0.017). According to the coordination results of Functional Squat System participants were better in brace and tape situations since the deviations were less for all concentric and eccentric positions. Deviation results for the proprioception test were different for first visual and non-visual deviations for dominant leg (p < 0.05). Conclusion: In conclusion, bracing and taping may play an important role in preventing injury or rehabilitation of the injured ankle by improving concentric and eccentric coordination, proprioception with the ability of reproducing motion in closed kinetic chain while decreasing vertical jump performance. No superiority of brace over tape or vice versa was found in this study.