Aim: To investigate if physical exercise in combination with coaching will reduce pain and improve knee function in patients with mild to moderate osteoarthritis in the knee compared to physical exercise alone.Method: The study consisted of 42 patients who were randomized to either an intervention group or a control group. Both groups followed a standardized training program at home, but the intervention group received additional support with regard to the aim of their training, as well as extra coaching during the training period of ten weeks. A Visual Analog Scale (VAS) was used to evaluate the patients? pain. A 10 metre walking test, the Index of Muscle Function (IMF) and the Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) were also used to evaluate knee function.

AbstractToday there is an opportunity to reinforce concrete with steel fiber reinforcement. In some cases, completely replace the conventional reinforcement. Replacing conventional mesh reinforcement with steel fiber reinforcement in slabs on ground has shown economic benefits, less crack width and less reinforcement amount.Today there are no Swedish standard for designing steel fiber reinforced concrete, what is there is different international recommendations.In this work, design methods for steel fiber concrete are used according to RILEM and Bekaer Swedish AB's software DRAPRO. For other design methods Eurokod 2 is followed.In this work, the design of slabs on ground that are not exposed by large tension strength been designed. Design of crack-reinforcement and restrictions of crack width have been conducted in three different slabs on ground.The calculations have been performed using only conventional reinforcement and only steel fiber reinforcement, and the results are then compared.The results of the theoretical analysis are summarized in tables that compare the amount of reinforcement, crack width and economic cost.This work showed that the slabs on the ground reinforced with steel fibers provide less crack width with a minor amount of reinforcement.

ABSTRACTTitle ?Trying to stay healthy as long as possible and being in motion?Titel ?Försöka hålla sig frisk så länge som möjligt och vara i rörelse?Author Martina SkoglundInstitute Institution For Health ScienceTutor Konstantin KougiomtzisDate 2014-06-05No. of pages 39Keywords Elder, Health, Healthy aging, Physical activity, SOCSummaryBackground: Thanks to advances in healthcare recent decades life expectancy have increased steadily. In order not to put pressure on the healthcare service we as a society need to think in terms of salutogenetic and health promotion. Research has shown that physical activity has great effects to healthy aging.

General principles of law can be defined as a legal foundation with the function of codifying basic values. They can also be of a character, which makes them useful as supplement and interpretation of law. EU has developed principles of law that can be divided into general and special. Within the Union there are existences of around twenty general ones. A further separation can be made in terms of institutional and individual.

Introduction: Dolomite AB was in need of a dummy arm for crutch testing, to complement their existing test capabilities. Background: A large number of people need crutches on a daily basis. For them it is essential that their crutches do not fail. ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) conducts ongoing work to guarantee the durability and function of e.g. crutches.

In many products a compromise between ground clearance and the required space to store the product has to be made. This problem attracted the attention of the authors of this thesis.The objective of this project is to develop a functioning solution to a foldable wheel. The solution should be applicable to several types of product groups. A limitation for this work has been made so that the work only covers solutions for lighter vehicles.The purpose is to drive this project forward, so that a solution can be found. Furthermore the purpose of the report is to clarify how the authors proceeded to design and construct the wheel according to a fixed specification.

Native spider silk is an attractive lightweight natural polymeric material with a unique combination of strength, extendibility and flexibility. Synthetic, recombinant spider silk is an attractive biomaterial with several possible fields of application. When a foreign material is introduced to blood, this can for example cause unwanted coagulation and complement activation. The aim of this study was to investigate if coatings of heparin or albumin could improve the blood compatibility of films of recombinant spider silk and to develop an initial method to do so. Hypothetically, objects like pacemakers, stents and dental implants could be covered with spider silk films of high blood compatibility to reduce potentially harmful foreign body reactions caused by the immune defense. Increased blood compatibility would likely lead to improvements for both the individual patients and the society thanks to reduced load on healthcare institutions. Our objective was to assess the blood compatibility of both functionalized and non-functionalized recombinant spider silk by evaluating coagulation and activation of the complement system of the immune defense. Coagulation was evaluated visually on glass slides and complement activation was analyzed by measuring the concentration of the complement system mediator C3a in blood samples that had been exposed to the different materials. This study introduces a non-toxic and easy performed method of improving the blood compatibility of recombinant spider silk films by adding a heparin coating. Heparin coated surfaces had statistically significantly higher blood compatibility than uncoated surfaces. The effects of albumin coating of films were less clear compared to the results of heparin coated films. Complement activation could not be evaluated because of high activation in all samples prior contact with the materials that were included in the study..

Helstångsborr och konstång kallas bergborrverktyg, som tillverkas av sexkantiga stänger med inre hål för ledning av spolvatten. Dessa spolhål är klädda med ferritiskt rostfritt stål. Innan valsning borras ett centrerat hål i stålämnet som ska valsas. I det borrade hålet appliceras ett rör av ferritiskt rostfritt stål och i det röret skjuts en manganstålskärna in. Efter valsning dras kärnan ut och ett spolhål med invändigt foder av rostfritt stål bildas.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the connection between store layout and how it affects us as shoppers. We formed our research questions based on literature. The study was based on observations of shoppers without their knowing they were observed. We didn?t tell shoppers since the science of shopping says that shoppers pattern of movement is something that?s subconscious and if the shoppers had known it would have affected the result of the study.

This master thesis is commissioned by Permobil AB. The report describes thoroughly the developing process of an adjustable backrest for wheelchairs. The target group for the backrest are people that suffer from scoliosis or other spinal diseases. Because of insufficient pressure distribution usage of traditional backrests is not an option for them.The current solution has got a frame that is made by several adjustable links that is held in place by friction. Between the links velcro tapes are attached that is adjusts the depth.

This thesis analyses the prerequisites, profitability and competitiveness of eucalyptus plantation on the Iberian Peninsula and in Brazil. The thesis has a macro perspective and analyses a typical hectare of eucalyptus in each studied region. A survey methodology was used as a strategy to cover a broad perspective using expert respondents. The regions studied on the Iberian Peninsula were the ones found suitable for eucalyptus plantations from an economic point of view. The studied regions were Huelva in the South West of Spain, Galicia in the North West of Spain and Portugal.

Abstract? Background: ?Breast?cancer is the?most?common cancer for?women,?with?over 8000?of?cancer?cases?per?year.?Surgery?is the?most?common form?of?treatment. Basis?of?illness?and?the?loss?of?a?breast?can?be a?big?trauma for the?individual?and?affect?many?aspects.?Aim: The?aim?of?this?study?was?to?investigate?health-related?quality?of?life?and?psychosocial?situation and the?need?for support and?care?for?women?who?undergone?a?mastectomy?with?or?without?reconstruction.?Method: The?study?design?was?a?descriptive?study?with?qualitative?approach.?The?selection?was?strategically?consisting?of?the?eight?women?from?five?cities?which?had?undergone?mastectomy?with?or?without?reconstruction. The?interviews?were?semi-structured?individual?that?analyzed?using? content?analysis.?Results:All?of?the?women?felt?that?the?body?changed?after?the?mastectomy.? Feelings?of?insecurity?and?discomfort?were?common.?Among?those?who?underwent?reconstruction?were?all?dissatisfied?with?the?results.

Reinforcement is of great importance to fulfill the dimensioned strength of a concrete construction. This requires that the work needs to be carried out with adequate results that neither endangers the workers or the safety of the construction. Progressive development of the planning phase, construction documents, and construction methods is in constant need since the technology constantly evolves.In order for contractors to be able to get acceptances from their quotations requires that they have to increase their working pace in order to be able to leave a quotation with a lower price than the competition.Due to the increasing pace the different parts involved in the construction process is subjected to time pressure. The design stage, construction documents, work preparation and the execution are all affected when everything has to be finished quickly. To avoid problems, it is required that all parts are able to deliver good quality solutions and results under the influences of time pressure, which is not always easy.

Due to recent legal enactments regarding carbon dioxide emissions, the car industry is facing higher demands. An effective way of reducing these emissions is to minimize the weight of the vehicle. This thesis constitutes a feasibility study on whether or not it is applicable for the car industry to utilize an inner floor structure comprising composite materials. The principal was the projectSåNätt, in which the main participant was Volvo Cars Corp. In consultation with a reference group, consisting of delegates from the industry and KTH, a specification of requirements was produced.

During a fire large amounts of particles and unhealthy agents occur.  Polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and toxic metals are examples among many others. These agents have a capacity to bond to particles and when the fire is extinguished, the particles can be transferred with the extinguish water into the soil and to the groundwater.Recent studies in particles have been conducted. A study by Ulrika Iverfelt (2014) reviled that the particles from a fire contained large amounts of both PAH and metals, which is consistent with earlier analyses. Her column experiments with particles in the size ? 11 microns and ?100 microns in silica sand, reviled that the larger particles was immobilized because the transportation was influenced by sieving or physiochemical particle and surface interactions.The transport of the particles in soil and groundwater is regulated by two main mechanisms: physiochemical surface interactions and straining.