Posture and gait assessment in spastic patients: Key points for practice

IntroductionPosture and gait are frequently disturbed in patients suffering from diseases affecting central nervous system. Whatever the origin of these troubles (neuromotors, sensory, coordination or cognitive deficiencies), they can lead to major impact on activities, participation and quality of life. Thus they represent an important rehabilitation goal for patients.MethodIn order to assess consequences of neuromotor deficiencies, posture and gait evaluations have two main aspects. A first part of assessments are designed to study posture and gait troubles and to search for their determining factors; in a therapeutic point of view, they can help to choose treatment target(s) and tools and to measure their efficacy on gait or posture troubles. The second part is intended to assess the impact of gait and posture disturbances on activity, participation and quality of life; these evaluations allow measuring the overall efficacy of the treatment in daily living.ResultsThere are multiple clinical and instrumental evaluation tools to deal with these two aspects. The use of these measurements in daily practice must be considered with regards to their feasibility, practical aspects and usefulness.DiscussionWe will make an overview of some of these posture and gait assessment tools in neurological disease, keeping in mind their utility in clinical practice

Towards uniform reporting of drowning

Drowning remains a common problem throughout the world. It can help improve the scientific process of understanding how to prevent drowning, and/or improve outcomes, if researchers use standard definitions, and record their findings in a uniform way, so that the findings of different studies can be compared.This thesis contributes to a consistent reporting of drowning research, by illustrating how the 'Utstein Style For Drowning' (USFD) can be used to study drowning in a uniform manner. The USFD is an international consensus-based template that uses a standard set of definitions and parameters for reporting drowning resuscitation. Moreover, this thesis shows how lessons learned through the use of the USFD have helped to improve this template.This thesis also describes the development of a 'drowning dictionary' as an example of how standardisation in drowning reporting can be achieved beyond the domain of resuscitation of drowning victims. Finally, this thesis contributes to the identification of new parameters potentially relevant to the outcome of drowning and standardising resuscitation attempts at sea by means of providing suggestions for future revisions of the USFD. This will aid the uniform reporting of parameters related to the rescue and resuscitation efforts of lifeboat crewmembers that will potentially have an impact on the outcome of drowning

Computing Difference Abstractions of Metabolic Networks Under Kinetic Constraints

International audienceAlgorithms based on abstract interpretation were proposed recently for predicting changes of reaction networks with partial kinetic information. Their prediction precision, however, depends heavily on which heuristics are applied in order to add linear consequences of the steady state equations of the metabolic network. In this paper we ask the question whether such heuristics can be avoided while obtaining the highest possible precision. This leads us to the first algorithm for computing the difference abstractions of a linear equation system exactly without any approximation. This algorithm relies on the usage of elementary flux modes in a nontrivial manner, first-order definitions of the abstractions, and finite domain constraint solving

Environmental/Regatta Buoy: Telemetry and Configuration

A monitorização ambiental é essencial para a tomada de decisões tanto na ciência como na indústria. Em particular, uma vez que a água é essencial à vida e a superfície da Terra é composta principalmente por água, a monitorização do clima e dos parâmetros relacionados com a água em ecossistemas sensíveis, tais como oceanos, lagoas, rios e lagos, é de extrema importância. Um dos métodos mais comuns para monitorar a água é implantar bóias. O presente trabalho está integrado num projeto mais amplo, com o objetivo de projectar e desenvolver uma bóia autónoma para a investigação científica com dois modos de funcionamento: (i) monitorização ambiental ; e (ii) baliza ativa de regata. Assim, a bóia tem duas aplicações principais: a coleta e armazenamento de dados e a assistência a regatas de veleiros autónomos. O projeto arrancou há dois anos com um grupo de quatro estudantes internacionais. Eles projetaram e construíram a estrutura física, compraram e montaram o sistema de ancoragem da bóia e escolherem a maioria dos componentes electrónicos para o sistema geral de controlo e medição. Este ano, durante o primeiro semestre, dois estudantes belgas - Jeroen Vervenne e Hendrick Verschelde – trabalharam nos subsistemas de recolha e armazenamento de dados (unidade de controlo escrava) e de telemetria e configuração (unidade de controlo mestre) assim como definiram o protocolo de comunicação da aplicação. O trabalho desta tese continua o desenvolvimento do subsistema de telemetria e configuração. Este subsistema _e responsável pela configuração do modo de funcionamento e dos sensores assim como pela comunicação com a estacão de base (controlo ambiental), barcos (baliza ativa de regata) e com o subsistema de recolha e armazenamento de dados. O desenvolvimento do subsistema de recolha e armazenamento de dados, que coleta e armazena num cartão SD os dados dos sensores selecionados, prossegue com outro estudante belga - Mathias van Flieberge. O objetivo desta tese é, por um lado, implementar o subsistema de telemetria e de configuração na unidade de controle mestre e, por outro lado, refinar e implementar, conjuntamente com Mathias van Flieberge, o protocolo de nível de aplicação projetado. Em particular, a unidade de controlo mestre deve processar e atribuir prioridades às mensagens recebidas da estacão base, solicitar dados à unidade de controlo escrava e difundir mensagens com informação de posição e condições de vento e água no modo de regata. Enquanto que a comunicação entre a unidade de controlo mestre e a estacão base e a unidade de controlo mestre e os barcos é sem fios, a unidade de controlo mestre e a unidade de controlo escrava comunicam através de uma ligação série. A bóia tem atualmente duas limitações: (i) a carga máxima é de 40 kg; e (ii) apenas pode ser utilizada em rios ou próximo da costa dada à limitação de distância imposta pela técnica de comunicação sem fios escolhida.Environmental monitoring is essential for decision-making both in science and industry. In particular, since water is essential to life and the Earth's surface consists mostly of water, monitoring the weather and water-related parameters in sensitive ecosystems such as oceans, lagoons, rivers and lakes is of the greatest importance. One of the most commons methods to monitor water is to deploy buoys. The current work is part of a larger project with the aim to design and develop a dual mode autonomous buoy for scientific research: (i) environmental monitoring; and (ii) regatta beacon. As a result, the buoy has two major applications: collection and storage of data and assistance in autonomous sailing boat regattas. The project started two years ago with a group of four international students. They designed and built the physical structure and selected and assembled the anchoring system of the buoy. They also chose the majority of the components for the overall control and sensing system. This year, during the first semester, two Belgian students - Jeroen Vervenne and Hendrick Verschelde - worked on the data logging (slave control unit) as well as on the telemetry and configuration (master control unit) subsystems and designed the application level communication protocol. The current thesis continues the development of the telemetry and configuration subsystem. This subsystem is responsible for the configuration of the operation mode and selection of sensors, as well as for the communication with the base station (environmental monitoring), boats (regatta beacon) and with the data logging subsystem. The development of the data logging subsystem, which collects and stores in a SD card the selected sensor data, proceeds with another Belgian student - Mathias van Flieberge. The goal of this thesis is to implement the telemetry and configuration subsystem in the master control unit and to refine and implement, together with Mathias van Flieberge, the designed application level protocol. In particular the master control unit must handle and assign priorities to the incoming messages from the base station, request data from the slave control unit and broadcast messages holding water, wind and position real time data in the regatta mode. Whereas the master control unit and base station communication and the master control unit and boat communication is wireless, the master and the slave units communicate over a serial connection. The buoy has currently two limitations: (i) the maximum payload is 40 kg; and (ii) it can only be used in rivers or near shore due to the distance limitation of the chosen wireless communication technique

Once Again on the Triumph of Bacchus Engraved by Cornelis Bos, Its Sources and Reception

editorial reviewedThe Triumph of Bacchus engraved by Cornelis Bos in Antwerp in 1543 exemplifies the complex phenomenon of intericonicity generated by the circulation of artists and works in Europe during the Renaissance. Clearly related to a painting by Maarten van Heemskerck (Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum), it remains a subject of scholarly debate, since a later copy of the print mentions Giulio Romano instead of Heemskerck as the inventor. I will revisit the issue in the light of comparative material including hitherto neglected or even completely ignored occurrences of this composition and its constituent motifs.Wittert Projec

Les volets peints du retable de Saint-Denis er les débuts de Lambert Lombard à Liège

editorial reviewedThe St Denis Altarpiece does not fully bear witness to the ambitions of its donors in its present condition, since its painted wings have been dismantled and partly lost. The wings of the predella, traditionally attributed to Lambert Lombard and his workshop, have always aroused much interest among the scholars. Conversely, the remnants of the upper wings have not received the attention they deserve. Their recent restoration gave the opportunity to examine them thoroughly. Although excluding an attribution of the two pairs of painted wings to the same workshop, close technical and stylistic examination reveals strong similarities between them, suggesting a simultaneous execution and joint supervision. Meanwhile, the carved predella and its painted wings form an indivisible iconographic entity and were obviously designed at the same time. Considering these interrelations, one can assume that these three parts of the altarpiece were monitored together. The project coordination was surely a considerable task, which could justify the huge amount paid to a certain Lambertus pictor, quoted in an archival document in 1533. This painter-contractor was most probably active in Liège in the 1530s. A topographical detail painted on a panel from the upper wings supports this statement. Moreover, the underdrawings visualized by infrared reflectography contain a squaring pattern based on a measurement system used in Liège at that time. As to the identity of the painter-contractor, the young Lambert Lombard is undoubtedly the best candidate. Stylistic and iconographic characteristics point to him, as well as some evidence of clumsiness and lack of experience in managing such a large-scale commission. As is commonly assumed, Lombard’s workshop was probably in charge of the wings of the predella. However, it seems unrealistic to try to detect the master’s hand either in the underdrawings or in the paintings. The technical examination of the two pairs of wings indicates a collective work organization for both. A possible involvement of Lombard’s patron, Prince-Bishop Erard de la Marck, in the commission is also discussed in this chapter. The prelate, whose coat of arms featured on a stained-glass window in the choir of St-Denis church, just above the altarpiece, might have provided financial support to achieve the work after Louis Chokier’s death in 1526