JournalTOCs

Frontiers of Medical and Biological Engineering
Number of Followers: 0

Hybrid journal (It can contain Open Access articles)
ISSN (Print) 0921-3775 - ISSN (Online) 1568-5578
Published by Brill Academic Publishers

[11 journals]

A study on the rehabilitation of cognitive function and short-term memory
in patients with Alzheimer's disease using transcutaneous electrical nerve
stimulation
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  Authors: Yi Guo; Xuemin Shi, Hisashi Uchiyama, Akihiro Hasegawa, Yaeko Nakagawa, Masaharu Tanaka Ichiro Fukumoto
  First page: 237
  Abstract: Source: Volume 11, Issue 4, pp 237 - 247In some previous studies, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) to the back was shown to improve non-verbal short-term and long-term memory as well as verbal fluency in patients in the early stage of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Moreover, the patients' physical, social and affective functions were also improved. In this study, the effects of TENS applied to the face were studied in patients with mild and severe AD. Fourteen patients with probable AD were used as subjects. To evaluate the effects of treatment, the subjects underwent two kinds of neuropsychological tests as well as a pupillary light reflex test. The pupillary light reflex test was chosen because it has been proven to show poorer results in cases of senile dementia. These three tests were carried out before the treatment, immediately after the treatment and 6 months after the treatment. Improvements were seen in subjects in the TENS groups and the effects of treatment were more significant in mild AD patients than in severe AD patients. However, the improvements were not maintained 6 months after the treatment. The possible mechanisms underlying the beneficial effects of TENS in AD patients are discussed in this paper.
  PubDate: 2001-12-01T00:00:00Z
Influence of cool-down exercise on autonomic control of heart rate during
recovery from dynamic exercise
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  Authors: Tatsuhisa Takahashi; Akiyoshi Okada, Junichiro Hayano Toshiyo Tamura
  First page: 249
  Abstract: Source: Volume 11, Issue 4, pp 249 - 259The recovery of post-exercise heart rate (HR) is enhanced by a procedure of cooling down; however, the mechanism of this facilitated reduction is unknown. To determine whether more cardiac vagal reactivation is associated with a decrease in HR following cool-down exercise, we examined high-frequency R-R interval variability (HF, 0.15–0.40 Hz), an index of cardiac vagal tone, in six young healthy male subjects with a comparison between sitting rest after 6 minutes of cool-down cycling at 20% peak oxygen uptake (V˙O2peak) and sitting complete rest, following 5 min of upright cycle exercise at 70% V˙O2peak. During the last minute of exercise, there was no difference in HR between the two exercise tests before performing or not performing cool-down exercise (mean ± SE, 148.7 ± 6.9 versus 149.7 ± 7.0 beats/min, respectively, by a Wilcoxon signed-ranks test). After exercise, a similar initial rapid decrease in HR and subsequent decline was observed during the first 6 min of recovery, regardless of cool-down exercise. However, the resting HR average following cool-down exercise was significantly lower than the corresponding HR without cool-down exercise (92.1 ± 3.0 versus 100.8 ± 3.6 beats/min, P < 0.05). The corresponding HF amplitude was slightly, but significantly greater with than without cool-down exercise (10.6 ± 2.2 versus 9.0 ± 1.9, P < 0.05). Thus the increase in HF amplitude corresponded to a decrease in resting HR following cool-down exercise, as compared to complete rest without cool-down exercise. Therefore, we conclude that after moderate exercise, the decrease in resting HR following cool-down exercise is associated with an increase in cardiac vagal tone.
  PubDate: 2001-12-01T00:00:00Z
Adaptive EEG spike detection: determination of threshold values based on
conditional probability
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  Authors: Takenao Sugi; Masatoshi Nakamura, Akio Ikeda Hiroshi Shibasaki
  First page: 261
  Abstract: Source: Volume 11, Issue 4, pp 261 - 277Determination of the threshold value for automatic EEG spike detection was investigated adopting conditional probability. An adaptive spike detection method was constructed and evaluated. A discriminant function for detecting spikes was obtained by conditional probability calculated from the EEG spike data. The relationship among false-negatives, false-positives and threshold values for the discriminant function was investigated. An adaptive detection algorithm was developed by combining different threshold values. False-negative and false-positive rates for spike detection depended on the threshold values. The adaptive spike detection algorithm achieved a high detection rate and accuracy. The advantage of the proposed method is to construct an adaptive detection algorithm by combining the threshold values according to the purpose of spike detection. Since the threshold can be easily changed in the proposed method, it is practically effective for clinical use.
  PubDate: 2001-12-01T00:00:00Z
Roles of reactive oxygen species in monocyte activation induced by
photochemical reactions during photodynamic therapy
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  Authors: Miho Takahashi; Tomokazu Nagao, Yoshiharu Imazeki, Kazuki Matsuzaki Haruyuki Minamitani
  First page: 279
  Abstract: Source: Volume 11, Issue 4, pp 279 - 294This study attempts to investigate the mechanism of the vascular shut down (VSD) effect during photodynamic therapy (PDT) with zinc coproporphyrin III tetrasodium salt as a photosensitizer. PDT is a treatment based on photochemical reactions and the resultant cytotoxic reactive oxygen species (ROS). Platelet thrombus formation leading to stasis observed in vivo during PDT is called the VSD effect. Leukocytes play an important role in the VSD effect in vivo, but the mechanism how activated monocytes generate ROS is not known in detail. To evaluate ROS generation by activated monocytes is especially important to clarify leukocyte-endothelium interactions in the VSD mechanism. The dichlorofluorescein fluorescence intensity of monocytes with four types of free radical scavenger was investigated by confocal laser scanning microscopy. The fluorescence intensity of monocytes that had been incubated with superoxide dismutase and incubated and added with L-histidine was decreased by about 20 and 30%, respectively. The result affirms the predominant role of singlet oxygen and superoxide anion radicals in monocyte activation in the VSD effect during PDT.
  PubDate: 2001-12-01T00:00:00Z
Development of a portable bruxism monitoring and analysis device equipped
with a microcomputer and its practical application
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  Authors: Ryuji Sakagami; Takeshi Horii, Shuichi Ino, Kazunari Matoba, Hiroshi Kato Masamitsu Kawanami
  First page: 295
  Abstract: Source: Volume 11, Issue 4, pp 295 - 306The purposes of this study were to develop and verify the a portable nocturnal bruxism monitoring and analysis device equipped with a microcomputer, and to clinically apply the device to know the actual conditions of bruxism patients. EEPROM was installed in the device for the data recording, and after the data collection, the recorded data was entered into a personal computer via serial port. After confirming the accuracy of the device, a total of 30 subjects were enrolled in this study to monitor their bruxism activities for 3 nights. Bruxism self-aware group consisted of 14 subjects, 7 males and 7 females, and unaware group consisted of 16 patients, 8 males and 8 females. Most of the subjects reported that the new device was easy to handle. The average bruxism time per hour and the average bruxism lasting time were 223.8 ± 112.0 and 3.9 ± 2.9 s in the self-aware group, and 49.3 ± 38.3 and 0.8 ± 0.7 s in the unaware group, respectively. The bruxism self-aware group showed statistically longer average bruxism time per hour and the average bruxism lasting time. It was confirmed that the new bruxism monitoring and analysis device is practical for clinical application to monitor and analyze the electromyographic activities.
  PubDate: 2001-12-01T00:00:00Z
A comparison of abdominal ECG and Doppler ultrasound for fetal heart rate
detection
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  Authors: Muhammad I. Ibrahimy; M. A. Mohd Ali, Edmond Zahedi Shinji Tsuruoka
  First page: 307
  Abstract: Source: Volume 11, Issue 4, pp 307 - 322A fetal monitor has been developed for the measurement of the fetal and maternal heart rates from maternal abdominal electrocardiogram during pregnancy and labor for ambulatory monitoring. Developed algorithm of the fetal monitor is based on digital filtering, adaptive thresholding, statistical properties in the time domain and differencing of local maxima and minima. Five volunteers with low risk pregnancies, between 35 to 40 weeks of gestation and no evidence of labor, were studied for the fetal heart rate detection. A Doppler ultrasound fetal monitor was used to compare the accuracy of the measurement system. Results showed an average percent rms difference (PRD) of 5.32% in comparison with the reference ultrasound method. The fetal heart rates curve remained inside a ± 5 beats/min limit relative to the reference ultrasound method for 84.1% of the time.
  PubDate: 2001-12-01T00:00:00Z
Development of an EMG recording device from stimulation electrodes for
functional electrical stimulation
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  Authors: Yoshihiro Muraoka
  First page: 323
  Abstract: Source: Volume 11, Issue 4, pp 323 - 333A device that records voluntary EMG from a pair of surface stimulation electrodes has been developed for functional electrical stimulation (FES). The device can apply to a small muscle on which it is difficult to locate both the stimulation electrodes and recording electrodes. The device utilizes photo-MOS relays to disconnect the stimulator when it is not active, to ground the electrodes after delivering the stimulation pulses, and to drop the gain of the EMG amplifier during the stimulus period. The device is able to detect the voluntary EMG of a small muscle from the stimulation electrodes for the EMG-controlled FES system.
  PubDate: 2001-12-01T00:00:00Z
The high zero-flow pressure phenomenon in coronary circulation: A
simulation study
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  Authors: Tahseen Ejaz; Tadashi Takemae, Yukio Kosugi Minoru Hongo
  First page: 335
  Abstract: Source: Volume 11, Issue 4, pp 335 - 340A dynamic simulation was performed in order to study the high zero-flow pressure phenomenon by using an electronic model of the coronary vessel. The objective of this study was to establish a relationship between the diastolic arterial pressure and diastolic arterial flow. The simulated study showed that this relationship is approximately linear with a zero flow pressure intercept of approximately 40 mmHg. This result is consistent with the results obtained in animal experimentation conducted by others.
  PubDate: 2001-12-01T00:00:00Z