Stabilografická plošina poskytuje cenná objektivizační data při vyšetření různých poruch, zejména stability ve stoji. Pro studii byly vybrány děti a mladiství ve věku 6 – 25 let s diagnózou dětské mozkové obrny a lehké mozkové dysfunkce. Celkem bylo vyšetřeno 6 těchto jedinců. Vyšetřovány byly výkyvy stojících jedinců, přenášené na plošinu jako změny centra tlaku. Tyto změny byly přenášeny pomocí senzorů analogo-digitálně do počítačového softwarového programu. Výsledky u několika jedinců ukázaly velké rozdíly v záznamech ve smyslu postižení stability (koordinačních poruch, mozečkových poruch, periferních vestibulárních poruch a cervikálních vzorců, zatěžování pravé a levé strany až s 20% rozdílem, nemožnosti stoje na jedné noze), někdy překvapiv ě odlišné od předpokládaného postižení struktur centrálního nervového systému.
The force platform provides valuable objective data in examinations of different disorders, in particular of the stability in an upright position. For the submitted study children and adolescents aged 6 – 25 years with the diagnosis of infantile cerebral palsy and mild cerebral dysfunction were selected. A total of six subjects were examined. The authors examined the deviations of subjects in an upright position, transmitted to the platform as central pressure changes. Central pressure changes were transmitted by means of sensors by analogue digital means into a computer software programme. The results in several subjects revealed great differences, i.e. affection of the stability (impaired coordination, cerebellar disorders, peripheral vestibular disorders and cervical patterns, burdening of the right and left side with a difference up to 20 %, inability to stand on one leg) which sometimes differed surprisingly from the assumed affection of structures of the CNS.
This work is focused on problematic of biopotential signals measurements (EXG) using powerful SMART sensor system, composed of portable units, intended for in-time wireless measurement and evaluation of electrical activity, produced by skeletal muscles, human heart or brain. Here, we discuss very precise measurement features, which characterize this device (high gain, low noise, wireless data transfer, multi-probe measuring), some special features as low voltage and ultra-low power consumption were reached by application of the described amplifier in order to achieve its longer performance for daily use. It brings a lot of advantages to biomedical electronics and medical care. In order to optimize the performance of novel proposed smart biomedical instrument in our experimental part we have focused on measurement of surface electromyography (sEMG) signal to force ratio. These sEMG signals can illuminate our understanding of how the brain controls muscles to generate force and produce movement and can be used in such applications like as training of athletes, controlling robots, monitoring the physical capabilities of patients with motor disorders etc.
- MeSH
- Wireless Technology * instrumentation MeSH
- Electrodes MeSH
- Electromyography * instrumentation MeSH
- Isometric Contraction physiology MeSH
- Humans MeSH
- Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted instrumentation MeSH
- Muscle Contraction * physiology MeSH
- Muscle Strength physiology MeSH
- Muscle Fatigue physiology MeSH
- Check Tag
- Humans MeSH
- Publication type
- Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
The aim of the study was to assess the effects of climbing ability and slope inclination on vertical loading both in terms the forces involved and physiological responses. Five novice and six intermediate female climbers completed a climbing route at three slope inclinations (85°, 90°, and 98°). The vertical loading during the climb was assessed by force-time integral using a Novel Pedar-X insole and physiological responses via oxygen uptake and heart rate. The novice climbers had a significantly lower (p < 0.05) vertical loading on foot holds and higher oxygen uptake and heart rate compared to intermediate climbers. A significant negative correlation was identified between the force-time integral and oxygen uptake (R = -0.72), and with heart rate (R = -0.64), respectively. The time-force integral decreased across the ascents with increasing slope inclination (p < 0.001). The results indicate that more advanced ability climbers make greater use of foot holds, with associated lowering in physiological response (oxygen uptake and heart rate) across all slope inclinations.
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
In this study, a highly sensitive, fast, and selective enzyme-free electrochemical sensor based on the deposition of Ni cavities on conductive glass was proposed for insulin detection. Considering the growing prevalence of diabetes mellitus, an electrochemical sensor for the determination of insulin was proposed for the effective diagnosis of the disease. Colloidal lithography enabled deposition of nanostructured layer (substrate) with homogeneous distribution of Ni cavities on the electrode surface with a large active surface area. The morphology and structure of conductive indium tin oxide glass modified with Ni cavities (Ni-c-ITO) were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The diameter of the resulting cavities was approximately 500 nm, while their depth was calculated at 190 ± 4 nm and 188 ± 18 nm using AFM and SEM, respectively. The insulin assay performance was evaluated by cyclic voltammetry. Ni-c-ITO exhibited excellent analytical characteristics, including high sensitivity (1.032 μA μmol-1 dm3), a low detection limit (156 μmol dm-3), and a wide dynamic range (500 nmol dm-3 to 10 μmol dm-3). Finally, the determination of insulin in buffer with interferents and in real blood serum samples revealed high specificity and demonstrated the practical potential of the method.
UNLABELLED: PURPOSE OF THE STUDY Partial weight bearing (PWB) is commonly prescribed post operatively following lower limb fractures and compliance with the weight bearing protocol is an essential element of the rehabilitation. So far it is unknown to what extent patients do comply with PWB during the healing process as instructed by the surgeon. Our aim is to assess a new device for real-time feedback and long-term measurement of PWB of outpatients. The device offers the possibility to monitor the outpatient's activity. The applicability, reliability and validity of the new device should be evaluated. MATERIAL AND METHODS 20 young, healthy subjects complete a course of 500 m that contained several stairs, with a PWB of 15 kg. During the entire test, the axial load, the acceleration and the temperature were measured with a novel insole sensor system. The results were compared with reference measurements performed with a force plate. RESULTS Altogether, the 20 subjects performed 11,106 steps during the completion of the walking circuit. In 23.6% of the steps, the subjects applied a PWB of 10 to 20 kg. In 5.5% of all steps, PWB was superior to 60 kg. The mean bias of the insole was 11,58 N. Limits of agreement were +/- 125 N and the interclass correlation coefficient was r = 0.945. CONCLUSIONS The presented sensor sole might be a useful tool to obtain more precise insight of outpatients' activity and load to the injured limb during the healing process. Furthermore, these results demonstrate that even young and healthy subjects are not able to keep the prescribed PWB. This raises the question, if patients who have been recently operated are able to follow the instructions concerning the PWB. KEY WORDS: partial weight bearing (PWB), insole sensor system, sensor sole, monitoring, outpatients.
- MeSH
- Walking physiology MeSH
- Fractures, Bone rehabilitation surgery MeSH
- Humans MeSH
- Foot Orthoses * MeSH
- Outpatients MeSH
- Feedback, Sensory MeSH
- Weight-Bearing * MeSH
- Healthy Volunteers MeSH
- Check Tag
- Humans MeSH
- Male MeSH
- Female MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
Stargardt disease (STGD) leads to blindness in children and young adults. So far, no curative therapy is available and gene augmentation therapies have not yet advanced to the clinics, in part, due to the limited packaging capacity of adeno-associated viruses used to transfer genes into photoreceptor cells. Prime editing offers a new perspective to treat mutations on the genomic level. A nicking variant of Cas9 fused to a reverse transcriptase complex with an elongated guideRNA force intracellular mismatch repair to correct the targeted mutation even in postmitotic cells such as photoreceptors in the eye. Using a custom-made bioluminescence resonance energy transfer (BRET)-based editing sensor in HEK293 cells, we tested 27 different prime editing guide RNAs (pegRNAs) and additional 4 nicking guide RNAs (ngRNAs) with regard to their efficiency to induce sequences changes in exon 43 of the porcine ATP binding cassette subfamily A member 4 (ABCA4) gene that eliminate a mutagenic adenine frameshift insertion, which has been associated with STGD in humans. We identified nine working pegRNAs, and in combination with ngRNAs, we achieved a correction rate of up to ≈92% measured with the BRET-based reporter system. Our data prove the high efficiency of prime editors to correct mutations and highlight the importance of optimal ngRNA design, thus offering a promising editing tool to correct ABCA4 mutations in the disease context.
- MeSH
- ATP-Binding Cassette Transporters * genetics MeSH
- Child MeSH
- HEK293 Cells MeSH
- Humans MeSH
- Young Adult MeSH
- Mutation MeSH
- Swine MeSH
- Energy Transfer MeSH
- Stargardt Disease genetics MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Check Tag
- Child MeSH
- Humans MeSH
- Young Adult MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
- Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
AIMS: A challenge of pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) in catheter ablation for paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF) is electrical reconnection of the PV. EFFICAS I showed correlation between contact force (CF) parameters and PV durable isolation but no prospective evaluation was made. EFFICAS II was a multicentre study to prospectively assess the impact of CF guidance for an effective reduction of PVI gaps. METHODS AND RESULTS: Pulmonary vein isolation using a radiofrequency (RF) ablation catheter with an integrated force sensor (TactiCathTM) was performed in patients with PAF. Operators were provided EFFICAS I-based CF guidelines [target 20 g, range 10-30 g, minimum 400 g s force-time integral (FTI)]. Conduction gaps were assessed by remapping of PVs after 3 months, and gap rate was compared with EFFICAS I outcome. At follow up, 24 patients had 85% of PVs remaining isolated, compared with 72% in EFFICAS I (P = 0.037) in which CF guidelines were not used. The remaining 15% of gaps correlated to the number of catheter moves at creating the PVI line, quantified as Continuity Index. For PV lines with contiguous lesions and low catheter moves, durable isolation was 81% in EFFICAS I and 98% in EFFICAS II (P = 0.005). At index procedure, the number of lesions was reduced by 15% in EFFICAS II vs. EFFICAS I. CONCLUSION: The use of CF with the above guidelines and contiguous deployment of RF lesions in EFFICAS II study resulted in more durable PVI in catheter ablation of PAF.
- MeSH
- Equipment Failure Analysis MeSH
- Surgery, Computer-Assisted instrumentation methods MeSH
- Equipment Design MeSH
- Adult MeSH
- Atrial Fibrillation diagnosis surgery MeSH
- Catheter Ablation instrumentation methods MeSH
- Humans MeSH
- Body Surface Potential Mapping instrumentation methods MeSH
- Stress, Mechanical MeSH
- Transducers, Pressure MeSH
- Heart Conduction System surgery MeSH
- Pulmonary Veins surgery MeSH
- Treatment Outcome MeSH
- Check Tag
- Adult MeSH
- Humans MeSH
- Male MeSH
- Female MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
- Controlled Clinical Trial MeSH
- Multicenter Study MeSH
- Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
- Geographicals
- Europe MeSH
BACKGROUND: Pulmonary vein isolation is the most prevalent approach for catheter ablation of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation. Long-term success of the procedure is diminished by arrhythmia recurrences occurring predominantly because of reconnections in previously isolated pulmonary veins. The aim of the EFFICAS I multicenter study was to demonstrate the correlation between contact force (CF) parameters during initial procedure and the incidence of isolation gaps (gap) at 3-month follow-up. METHOD AND RESULTS: A radiofrequency ablation catheter with integrated CF sensor (TactiCath, Endosense, Geneva, Switzerland) was used to perform pulmonary vein isolation in 46 patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation. During the ablation procedure, the operator was blinded to CF information. At follow-up, an interventional diagnostic procedure was performed to assess gap location as correlated to index procedure ablation parameters. At follow-up, 65% (26/40) of patients showed ≥1 gaps. Ablations with minimum Force-Time Integral (FTI) <400 gs showed increased likelihood for reconnection (P<0.001). Reconnection correlated strongly with minimum CF (P<0.0001) and minimum FTI (P=0.0007) at the site of gap. Gap occurrence showed a strong trend with lower average CF and average FTI. CF and FTI are generally higher on the right side, although the left anterior segment presents a unique challenge to achieve stable position with good CF. CONCLUSIONS: Minimum CF and minimum FTI values are strong predictors of gap formation. Optimal CF parameter recommendations are a target CF of 20 g and a minimum FTI of 400 gs for each new lesion.
- MeSH
- Time Factors MeSH
- Adult MeSH
- Electrocardiography * MeSH
- Atrial Fibrillation physiopathology surgery MeSH
- Catheter Ablation methods MeSH
- Middle Aged MeSH
- Humans MeSH
- Adolescent MeSH
- Young Adult MeSH
- Follow-Up Studies MeSH
- Tachycardia, Paroxysmal physiopathology surgery MeSH
- Heart Conduction System physiopathology surgery MeSH
- Recurrence MeSH
- Aged MeSH
- Pulmonary Veins physiopathology surgery MeSH
- Treatment Outcome MeSH
- Check Tag
- Adult MeSH
- Middle Aged MeSH
- Humans MeSH
- Adolescent MeSH
- Young Adult MeSH
- Male MeSH
- Aged MeSH
- Female MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
- Multicenter Study MeSH
- Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
- Randomized Controlled Trial MeSH
- Comparative Study MeSH
Label-free immunosensors are well suited for detection of microorganisms because of their fast response and reasonable sensitivity comparable to infection doses of common pathogens. Active (lever oscillator and frequency counter) and passive (impedance analyzer) modes of quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) were used and compared for rapid detection of three strains of E. coli. Different approaches for antibody immobilization were compared, the immobilization of reduced antibody using Sulfo-SMCC was most effective achieving the limit of detection (LOD) 8 × 104 CFU·mL-1 in 10 min. For the passive mode, software evaluating impedance characteristics in real-time was developed and used. Almost the same results were achieved using both active and passive modes confirming that the sensor properties are not limited by the frequency evaluation method but mainly by affinity of the antibody. Furthermore, reference measurements were done using surface plasmon resonance. Effect of condition of cells on signal was observed showing that cells ruptured by ultrasonication provided slightly higher signal changes than intact microbes.
- MeSH
- Electric Impedance MeSH
- Escherichia coli isolation & purification MeSH
- Immobilized Proteins metabolism MeSH
- Immunoassay MeSH
- Calibration MeSH
- Quartz Crystal Microbalance Techniques methods MeSH
- Microscopy, Atomic Force MeSH
- Surface Plasmon Resonance MeSH
- Antibodies metabolism MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
- Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
Úvod: Porucha funkce horní končetiny u pacientů po CMP významně ovlivňuje provádění běžných denních činností (activities of daily living; ADL). Většina ADL je bimanuální, zatímco mnoho konvenčních ergoterapeutických technik je založeno na unimanuálním přístupu. Cílem studie je porovnat dlouhodobé účinky bimanuální a unimanuální roboticky asistované terapie na funkci horní končetiny u pacientů po CMP. Metoda: Pacienti po CMP (n = 40) byli náhodně rozděleni do dvou skupin: roboticky asistovaná bimanuální terapie (BRAT, n = 20) a roboticky asistovaná unimanuální terapie (URAT, n = 20). Terapie trvala 3 týdny a probíhala 5 dní v týdnu, 30 min denně pro obě skupiny. Výsledky intervence byly hodnoceny pomocí Upper Extremity Motor Activity Log (UE MAL) a Motor Assessment Scale (MAS) v časech T0, T1 a T2 (jednoměsíční sledování). K posouzení svalové síly byl použit Motricity Index (MI). Výsledky: BRAT statisticky významně zlepšila funkci horní končetiny v kategorii 7-Hand motion (v T2) a 8-Advantage hand motion (v T1 a T2) dle MAS. Závěr: BRAT má pozitivní vliv na jemnou motoriku a funkci horní končetiny po dokončení terapie a dokonce i po jednoměsíčním sledování. Použití BRAT v kombinaci s konvenční terapií může být účinné při obnově funkce horní končetiny u pacientů po cévní mozkové příhodě se středně těžkou až těžkou hemiparézou.
Introduction: An upper limb functional disability in stroke patients significantly affects activities of daily living (ADL). Most ADL are bimanual, whereas many conventional occupational therapy techniques are based on a unimanual approach. The aim of the study focuses on comparing long--term effects of bimanual and unimanual robot-assisted therapies for upper limb function in stroke patients. Methods: Stroke patients (N = 40) were randomly divided into two groups: robot-assisted bimanual therapy (BRAT, N = 20) and unimanual therapy (URAT, N = 20). Sessions lasted for three weeks running five days a week and 30 min per day for both groups. Outcome measures were the Upper Extremity Motor Activity Log (UE MAL) and the Motor Assessment Scale (MAS) at times T0, T1, and T2 (one month follow-up). Additionally, the Motricity Index (MI) was used to assess force control. Results: BRAT statistically significantly improved upper limb function in category 7-Hand motion (at T2) and 8-Advantage hand motion (at T1 and T2) in MAS. Conclusions: BRAT has a positive effect on fine motor and upper limb function after completion and even after the monthly follow-up. The use of BRAT in combination with conventional therapy appears to be effective in restoring upper limb function in stroke patients with moderate to severe hemiparesis.
- Keywords
- senzorická rukavice, bilaterální roboticky asistovaná terapie,
- MeSH
- Stroke * complications MeSH
- Activities of Daily Living MeSH
- Exoskeleton Device classification MeSH
- Upper Extremity innervation physiopathology MeSH
- Humans MeSH
- Paresis etiology rehabilitation MeSH
- Stroke Rehabilitation * classification methods instrumentation MeSH
- Check Tag
- Humans MeSH
- Publication type
- Randomized Controlled Trial MeSH