Immobilitzats

Immobilitzats is the Catalan term for entities that have been prevented from moving or kept in a fixed position. In practice, immobilització covers both physical restraint and deliberate fixation, and immobilitzats is the form used to describe objects, tissues, or biological components that have been fixed for a specific purpose. The concept appears across medical, engineering, and biotechnological contexts and is analogous to immobilized in English.

In medical contexts, immobilization is used to support healing after injury or surgery. Techniques include casts, splints, braces, and traction, or the surgical fixation of bones. The aim is to stabilize an area, reduce pain, and facilitate proper alignment. Prolonged immobilization carries risks such as stiffness, muscle wasting, and pressure injuries, so care plans often combine stability with gradual mobilization.

In science and industry, immobilization refers to fixing enzymes, cells, or catalysts onto solid supports. This allows their recovery and reuse and can improve stability. Common methods include covalent binding to carriers, adsorption on surfaces, entrapment in gels, and encapsulation. The choice of method affects activity, diffusion of substrates, and the mechanical durability of the support.

Applications include biocatalysis in chemical and pharmaceutical manufacture, food processing, and the development of biosensors and diagnostic devices. Immobilized systems offer advantages in process control and sustainability, but they may require trade-offs between activity and stability.

See also immobilization, immobilized enzymes, biocatalysis.