Vol 16, No 2 (2017)

The ongoing active development of robotics in the framework of the new economic paradigm known as «the 4th technological revolution» opens up new possibilities for the progress in various disciplines including medicine. The further improvement and clinical application of robotic manipulation mechanotherapeutic complexes are among the major priorities for the Russian public healthcare system. The article represents the characteristics of the Russian robotic manipulator prototype designed to enhance the effectiveness of medical rehabilitation, develop various options of the robotic situational behavior, and specify the topical issues as regards the improvement of the manipulation robotic systems that require the effective solutions and actions. The prospects for the formation of the basic principles of new specialty «massage programmer» are outlined based on the above considerations.

At present, degenerative dystrophic disease of intervertebral disks and lumbar back pain associated with this condition constitute a most serious medical, social and economic problem. This article was designed to consider underwater spine traction as a drug-free treatment for low back pain. The literature review includes the historical milestones and current concepts of traction therapy. The paper includes the analysis of the long-established clinical notions having the influence on the evaluation of the effectiveness of the treatment and proposes the new up-to-date approach to the investigation of the pathological condition being condidered and the method for its therapy.

Skin hyperpigmentation is one of the most common conditions that attract the attention of both the dermatologists and the cosmetologists since the cosmetic defects associated with this pathology are known to greatly deteriorate the quality of life of the patients. This article presents information about the most popular modern methods for the correction of non-neoplastic melanin hyperpigmentation of the skin. The main trends in the application of the external agents, laser and light therapy as well as the possibility of the combination of some of these techniques are considered. Methods: A total of 24 patients presenting with various clinical forms of non-neoplastic melanin hyperpigmentation of the skin aged from 25 to 62 years were under supervision in the present study. The pathological process was mainly localized on the face, the neckline and the back of the hands in 21 (87.5%) patients, on the skin of the trunk and the extremities in 3 (12.5%) ones. All the patients received topical therapy with the use of the products containing glycolic acid and ascorbic acids in the form of both drug monotherapy and its combination with laser therapy (at a wavelength of 1064 nm). Results: The study has demonstrated that the topical application of the products containing glycolic acid and ascorbic acid as a monotherapy provides a highly efficacious and safe method for the aesthetic correction of skin hyperpigmentation. However, its combination with laser therapy (at a wavelength of 1064 nm) produces a significantly higher therapeutic effect as confirmed by the present study.

We have undertaken the comparison of the results of the treatment and the changes in the laboratory characteristics of 25 patients that suffered a viper bite and were given the combined treatment either with the application of wave biomechanical therapy (WBMT) (10 patients comprising the study group), and without it (15 patients making up the control group). During the rehabilitation period, all the patients exhibited the common symptoms of intoxication including fever, shortness of breath, dizziness, nausea, dilated pupils, and rapid heartbeat as well as the local changes (burning sensation, redness of the skin at the site of the bite, decreased skin sensitivity, swelling, bruising, and blisters); other pathological conditions documented in the association with the snake bite included lymphangitis, lymphadenitis of the regional lymph nodes, and extensive swelling of the extremities with severe pain which were collectively responsible for the significant prolongation of the duration of hospitalization and required an additional treatment. The laboratory studies have demonstrated the multidirectional disorders of the hemorheologic patterns and of the cellular component of toxemia, such as deviations from the normal values of practically all hemorheological characteristics, mostly in the upward direction, moderate leukocytosis, and the increase in the amount of the dead white blood cells, as well as the significant enhancement of the indicators of endotoxemia including the leukocyte index of intoxication, and the coefficient of endogenous intoxication (a 1.8-5.7 times elevation, respectively). The application of the WBMT technology gave rise to positive clinical and laboratory dynamics (more pronounced in the patients of the study group than in those of the group of comparison) in the form of the reverse development of the general manifestations of intoxication and, especially, such local changes as reduced swelling, skin redness, bleeding, feelings of pain, normalization of body temperature and heart rate, restoration of skin sensitivity. The use of WBMT was accompanied by a full and pronounced correction of hemorheological disorders (viscosity and aggregation), and the 1.5-fold higher frequency of their effective correction in the treatment group compared with that in the control patients. There was an apparent tendency towards the normalization of endogenous intoxication and higher overall contents of the blood fractions of medium molecular weight peptides (MMP) (with the 1.2 and 1.4 times reduction in the levels of the MMP254 and MMP280 fractions, respectively) while leukocyte index of intoxication showed a statistically significant fall by a factor of 3.5 in comparison with its initial value. It is concluded that the introduction of WBMT in the combined therapeutic modality makes it possible to decrease the duration of hospitalization of the patients by 1.5 times (33%) on the average.