POSTURAl CONTROL STRATEGIES IN DANCERS AND NON DANCERS

Postural stability is typically measured by assessing total excursions of either the center of pressure or whole body center of mass. One problem with measures such as these is that interpretations or postural stability are typically made without references to any stability boundaries. Further, postural control studies are typically on'y conducted on individuals with balance impairments and compared to healthy controls. Little research has been conducted on athletes with high levels of postural control. This study compares the postural dynamics of elite balancers with matched control subjects using stability measures that take into account the stability boundaries of different postures

Methods for modeling degradation of electrical engineering components for lifetime prognosis

Reliability of electrical components is an issue studied to improve the quality of products, and to plan maintenance in case of failure. Reliability is measured by studying the causes of failure and the mean time to failure. One of the methods applied in this field is the study of component aging, because failure often occurs after degradation. The objective of this thesis is to model the degradation of components in electrical engineering, in order to estimate their lifetime. More specifically, this thesis will study large area organic white light sources (OLEDs). These sources offer several advantages in the world of lighting thanks to their thinness, their low energy consumption and their ability to adapt to a wide range of applications. The second components studied are electrical insulators applied to pairs of twisted copper wires, which are commonly used in low voltage electrical machines. First, the degradation and failure mechanisms of the various electrical components, including OLEDs and insulators, are studied. This is done to identify the operational stresses for including them in the aging model. After identifying the main causes of aging, general physical models are studied to quantify the effects of operational stresses. Empirical models are also presented when the physics of degradation is unknown or difficult to model. Next, methods for estimating the parameters of these models are presented, such as multilinear and nonlinear regression, as well as stochastic methods. Other methods based on artificial intelli­gence and online diagnosis are also presented, but they will not be studied in this thesis. These methods are applied to degradation data of organic LEDs and twisted pair insulators. For this purpose, accelerated and multifactor aging test benches are designed based on factorial experimental designs and response surface methods, in order to optimize the cost of the experiments. Then, a measurement protocol is described, in order to optimize the inspection time and to collect periodic data. Finally, estimation methods tackle unconstrained deterministic degradation models based on the measured data. The best empirical model of the degradation trajectory is then chosen based on model selection criteria. In a second step, the parameters of the degradation trajectories are modeled based on operational constraints. The parameters of the aging factors and their interactions are estimated by multilinear regression and according to different learning sets. The significance of the parameters is evaluated by statistical methods if possible. Finally, the lifetime of the experiments in the validation sets is predicted based on the parameters estimated by the different learning sets. The training set with the best lifetime prediction rate is considered the best

Our Voices

In declaration, we come together, calling for all who experience the intersection of oppressions to have the opportunity to claim and use their own Voices

Our Voices

In declaration, we come together, calling for all who experience the intersection of oppressions to have the opportunity to claim and use their own Voices.SUNY BrockportDissenting Voice

HEALTH CARE QUALITY INDICATORS: THE OPINION OF NURSING MANAGERS OF TEACHING HOSPITALS

Estudo descritivo de abordagem quantitativa que teve como objetivo identificar a opinião de enfermeiros gerentes de hospitais de ensino sobre a pertinência de indicadores de qualidade para gerenciar os serviços de enfermagem. A população foi composta por nove gestores dos serviços de enfermagem de hospitais de ensino do estado do Paraná. Os dados foram coletados entre os meses de agosto e setembro de 2012, com um questionário eletrônico referente à caracterização dos enfermeiros e sua opinião sobre os indicadores de qualidade. Os participantes desse estudo valorizaram os indicadores assistenciais para gerenciamento dos serviços de enfermagem e avaliação da qualidade assistencial em detrimento dos indicadores institucionais gerais e de gestão de pessoas. O gerenciamento das instituições de saúde exige dos profissionais competências para analisar o processo de trabalho e tomar decisões que visem à melhoria contínua da assistência e a competitividade das instituições.Estudio descriptivo de abordaje cuantitativo que tuvo como objetivo identificar la opinión de enfermeros gerentes de hospitales de enseñanza sobre la pertinencia de indicadores de cualidad para gerenciar los servicios de enfermería. La población fue compuesta por nueve gestores de los servicios de enfermería de hospitales de enseñanza del estado de Paraná. Los datos fueron obtenidos entre los meses de agosto y septiembre de 2012, con un cuestionario electrónico acerca de la caracterización de los enfermeros y su opinión sobre los indicadores de cualidad. Los participantes de ese estudio valoraron los indicadores asistenciales para gerenciamento de los servicios de enfermería y evaluación de la cualidad asistencial en detrimento de los indicadores institucionales generales y de gestión de personas. El gerenciamento de las instituciones de salud exige de los profesionales competencias para analizar el proceso de trabajo y tomar decisiones para obtener la mejoría continua de la asistencia y la competitividad de las instituciones.Quantitative descriptive study aimed to identify the opinion of nursing managers of teaching hospitals on the relevance of quality indicators in the management of nursing services. The population was composed of nine nursing managers of teaching hospitals of the state of Paraná. Data were collected in the months of August and September 2012, through a tool - a questionnaire on quality indicators made available electronically to be completed by the nurses. The participants showed greater appreciation of quality indicatorsfor the management of nursing services and evaluation of health care than to general indicators and personnel management indicators.For the management of health institutions, professional must be able to analyze work processes and make decisions aimed to the continuous improvement of care and competitiveness of institutions

Feasibility and efficacy of bypassing the right ventricle and pulmonary circulation to treat right ventricular failure: an experimental study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Right ventricular failure (RVF) and -support is associated with poor results. We aimed for a new approach of right - sided assistance bypassing the right ventricle and pulmonary circulation in order to better decompress the right ventricle and optimize left ventricular filling.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>From a microaxial pump (Abiomed), a low resistance oxygenator (Maquet and Novalung) and two cannulas (28 and 27 Fr) a system was set up and evaluated in an ovine model (n = 7). Connection with the heart was the right and left atrium. One hour the system was operated without RVF and turned of again. Then a RVF was induced and the course with the system running was evaluated. Complete hemodynamic monitoring was performed as well as echocardiography, flow measurement and blood gas analysis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The overall performance of the system was reliable. Without RVF no relevant changes of hemodynamics occurred; blood gases were supra normal. In RVF a cardiogenic shock developed (MAP 35 ± 13 mmHg, CO 1,1 ± 0,7 l/min). Immediately after starting the system the circulation normalized (significant increase of MAP to 85 ± 13 mmHg, of CO to 4,5 ± 1,9). Echocardiography also revealed right ventricular recovery. After stopping the system, RVF returned.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Bypassing the right ventricle and pulmonary circulation with an oxygenating assist device, which may offer the advantages of enhanced right ventricular decompression and augmented left atrial filling, is feasible and effective in the treatment of acute RVF. Long time experiments are needed.</p

Circular RNAs in urine of kidney transplant patients with acute T Cell-mediated allograft rejection

BACKGROUND: Circular RNAs (circRNAs) have recently been described as novel noncoding regulators of gene expression. They are detectable in the blood of patients with acute kidney injury. We tested whether circRNAs were present in urine and could serve as new predictors of outcome in renal transplant patients with acute rejection. METHODS: A global circRNA expression analysis using RNA from urine of patients with acute T cell-mediated renal allograft rejection and control transplant patients was performed. Dysregulated circRNAs were confirmed in a cohort of 62 patients with acute rejection, 10 patients after successful antirejection therapy, 18 control transplant patients without rejection, and 13 stable transplant patients with urinary tract infection. RESULTS: A global screen revealed several circRNAs to be altered in urine of patients with acute rejection. Concentrations of 2 circRNAs including hsa_circ_0001334 and hsa_circ_0071475 were significantly increased. These were validated in the whole cohort of patients. hsa_circ_0001334 was upregulated in patients with acute rejection compared with controls. Concentrations of hsa_circ_0001334 normalized in patients with acute rejection following successful antirejection therapy. hsa_circ_0001334 was associated with higher decline in glomerular filtration rate 1 year after transplantation. CONCLUSIONS: CircRNA concentrations are significantly dysregulated in patients with acute rejection at subclinical time points. Urinary hsa_circ_0001334 is a novel biomarker of acute kidney rejection, identifying patients with acute rejection and predicting loss of kidney function