Modelli di attivazione muscolare dell'arto inferiore: confronto tra soggetti giovani ed anziani

I neuroscienziati stanno indagato l’ipotesi che il Sistema Nervoso Centrale (SNC) gestisca l'attivazione muscolare, durante compiti motori complessi, mediante la combinazione di un numero ridotto di segnali, detti primitivi. In questo modo, si faciliterebbe il controllo dei numerosi gradi di libertà e la ridondanza del sistema muscolo scheletrico. Alcuni ricercatori hanno esaminato tali sinergie muscolari durante il cammino, osservando l'attivazione dei muscoli appartenenti alle gambe, in soggetti giovani, e identificando quattro principali obiettivi nel controllo degli arti. Per quanto riguarda i soggetti anziani, la letteratura ha rilevato un'attivazione muscolare più consistente di quella dei giovani, attribuita ad una minore versatilità nel controllo motorio e dovuta ad una ridotta plasticità del SNC. Il presente lavoro era indirizzato a confrontare il comportamento dei segnali primitivi tra giovani e anziani. L'obiettivo era verificare che l'attivazione muscolare nei soggetti anziani potesse essere descritta da un numero minore di segnali primitivi. I risultati hanno evidenziato che l'attività muscolare di giovani ed anziani può essere descritta dallo stesso numero di segnali primitivi anche se gli anziani sono caratterizzati da una maggiore simmetria fra le due gambe. Inoltre il controllo motorio di questi ultimi ha attribuito un ruolo principale agli estensori di ginocchio piuttosto che ai planta flessori, i quali, invece, avevano un ruolo preminente nei giovani. In altri termini, gli anziani prediligerebbero una strategia che riduca il rischio di collasso del ginocchio, mentre i giovani una a carattere propulsivo

Quantitative Kinematic Characterization of Reaching Impairments in Mice After a Stroke

Background and Objective. Kinematic analysis of reaching movements is increasingly used to evaluate upper extremity function after cerebrovascular insults in humans and has also been applied to rodent models. Such analyses can require time-consuming frame-by-frame inspections and are affected by the experimenter's bias. In this study, we introduce a semi-automated algorithm for tracking forepaw movements in mice. This methodology allows us to calculate several kinematic measures for the quantitative assessment of performance in a skilled reaching task before and after a focal cortical stroke. Methods. Mice were trained to reach for food pellets with their preferred paw until asymptotic performance was achieved. Photothrombosis was then applied to induce a focal ischemic injury in the motor cortex, contralateral to the trained limb. Mice were tested again once a week for 30 days. A high frame rate camera was used to record the movements of the paw, which was painted with a nontoxic dye. An algorithm was then applied off-line to track the trajectories and to compute kinematic measures for motor performance evaluation. Results. The tracking algorithm proved to be fast, accurate, and robust. A number of kinematic measures were identified as sensitive indicators of poststroke modifications. Based on end-point measures, ischemic mice appeared to improve their motor performance after 2 weeks. However, kinematic analysis revealed the persistence of specific trajectory adjustments up to 30 days poststroke, indicating the use of compensatory strategies. Conclusions. These results support the use of kinematic analysis in mice as a tool for both detection of poststroke functional impairments and tracking of motor improvements following rehabilitation. Similar studies could be performed in parallel with human studies to exploit the translational value of this skilled reaching analysis

Ricerca di Marketing a supporto del lancio di due dispositivi medicali: i casi Virusolve+ e Santec Laser Smooth™ (Fotona) di Santec Srl

L’obiettivo principale del presente lavoro di tesi magistrale è applicare la ricerca di marketing ad un caso concreto, proposto dall’azienda Santec Srl, al fine di raccogliere informazioni necessarie alla definizione della strategia aziendale. L’azienda Santec Srl, opera nel settore dei dispositivi medicali e sta lanciando sul mercato italiano due prodotti innovativi: il primo è una salvietta ad elevato potere disinfettante in grado di eliminare in pochi minuti virus, batteri e funghi; il secondo è un sistema laser a stato solido utilizzabile a scopo terapeutico in ambito ginecologico

I Sistemi di Garanzia dei Depositanti

La presente tesi si occupa del regime comunitario e nazionale in ambito di Garanzia dei Depositanti, evidenziando quei cambiamenti legislativi succedutisi nell’ultimo ventennio che hanno portato alla situazione odierna. Il nucleo del presente lavoro è la procedura interistituzionale 2010/0207(COD), sviscerata in tutte le sue componenti. A completamento di tale quadro legislativo europeo tuttora in evoluzione, è stata prestata attenzione sia alla disciplina italiana regolata dagli artt.96 ss T.U.B. sia ai due DGS presenti sul nostro territorio. Nel presente lavoro, infine, considerata la società transfrontaliera in cui viviamo, sono stati presi in considerazione anche i maggiori sistemi di garanzia sia europei che extra-europei

Generazione di traffico ad alta velocita': problematiche e soluzioni

Often, on computer networks experiments is useful to have a traffic generator. It's purpose could get particularly critical when, operating on high speed link, is required to generate an high volume of traffic on a restricted time interval. This thesis is going to address this issue by making, in a FreeBSD environment, an high performance UDP traffic generator, explaining problems and solutions adopted along the way. Tests, executed during the whole development cycle, show good results even operating under the maximum generation speed. Spesso, negli esperimenti che si effettuano sulle reti di calcolatori è utile disporre di un generatore di traffico. Il compito di questo strumento può diventare particolarmente critico nel momento in cui, operando su linee ad alta velocità, è richiesta la generazione di un elevato volume di traffico in un intervallo temporale ristretto. La tesi affronta questo tema attraverso la realizzazione, in ambiente FreeBSD, di un generatore di traffico UDP dalle elevate prestazioni, illustrando i problemi incontrati e le soluzioni adottate in corso d'opera. Le prove pratiche, effettuate durante l'intero ciclo di sviluppo, hanno dato dei buoni risultati già al di sotto del massimo regime operativo

The SSSA-MyHand: a dexterous lightweight myoelectric hand prosthesis

The replacement of a missing hand by a prosthesis is one of the most fascinating challenges in rehabilitation engineering. State of art prostheses are curtailed by the physical features of the hand, like poor functionality and excessive weight. Here we present a new multi-grasp hand aimed at overcoming such limitations. The SSSA-MyHand builds around a novel transmission mechanism that implements a semi-independent actuation of the abduction/adduction of the thumb and of the flexion/extension of the index, by means of a single actuator. Thus, with only three electric motors the hand is capable to perform most of the grasps and gestures useful in activities of daily living, akin commercial prostheses with up to six actuators, albeit it is as lightweight as conventional 1-Degrees of Freedom prostheses. The hand integrates position and force sensors and an embedded controller that implements automatic grasps and allows inter-operability with different human-machine interfaces. We present the requirements, the design rationale of the first prototype and the evaluation of its performance. The weight (478 g), force (31 N maximum force at the thumb fingertip) and speed of the hand (closing time: <370 ms), make this new design an interesting alternative to clinically available multi-grasp prostheses

Epidemiology and Surgical Management of Foreign Bodies in the Liver in the Pediatric Population: A Systematic Review of the Literature

Retention of foreign bodies (FB) in the liver parenchyma is a rare event in children but it can bring a heavy burden in terms of immediate and long-term complications. Multiple materials can migrate inside the liver. Clinical manifestations may vary, depending on the nature of the foreign body, its route of penetration and timing after the initial event. Moreover, the location of the FB inside the liver parenchyma may pose specific issues related to the possible complications of a challenging surgical extraction. Different clinical settings and the need for highly specialized surgical skills may influence the overall management of these children. Given the rarity of this event, a systematic review of the literature on this topic was conducted and confirmed the pivotal role of surgery in the pediatric population

Epidemiology and Surgical Management of Foreign Bodies in the Liver in the Pediatric Population: A Systematic Review of the Literature

Retention of foreign bodies (FB) in the liver parenchyma is a rare event in children but it can bring a heavy burden in terms of immediate and long-term complications. Multiple materials can migrate inside the liver. Clinical manifestations may vary, depending on the nature of the foreign body, its route of penetration and timing after the initial event. Moreover, the location of the FB inside the liver parenchyma may pose specific issues related to the possible complications of a challenging surgical extraction. Different clinical settings and the need for highly specialized surgical skills may influence the overall management of these children. Given the rarity of this event, a systematic review of the literature on this topic was conducted and confirmed the pivotal role of surgery in the pediatric population

Handheld Optical System for Pectus Excavatum Assessment

Disruptive 3D technologies, such as reverse engineering (RE) and additive manufacturing (AM), when applied in the medical field enable the development of new methods for personalized and non-invasive treatments. When referring to the monitoring of pectus excavatum, one of the most common thoracic malformations, 3D acquisition of the patient chest proved to be a straightforward method for assessing and measuring chest deformation. Unfortunately, such systems are usually available in a dedicated facility, can be operated only by specialized doctors with the support of engineers and can be used only with patients on site. It is therefore impossible to perform any routine check-up when the patient is unable to reach the outpatient clinic. The COVID19 pandemic situation has placed even greater restrictions on patient mobility, worsening this problem. To deal with this issue, a new low-cost portable optical scanner for monitoring pectus excavatum is proposed in this work. The scanner, named Thor 2.0, allows a remote diagnostic approach, offering the possibility to perform routine check-ups telematically. Usability tests confirmed the user-friendly nature of the devised system. The instrument was used at the Meyer Children’s Hospital (Florence, Italy) chest-malformations center to treat PE patients. The performed measurements proved to be in line with the current state of the art