Social Participation of Youth with Cerebral Palsy: Determinants and Effects of Self-perceived Competence

Social participation fosters the development of meaningful relationships, perceived competence and psychosocial well-being. The aim of this dissertation was to expand knowledge of the multi-dimensional and interactive nature of social participation of youth with cerebral palsy (CP) by identifying: 1) determinants of social participation and 2) whether participation with friends differs based on self-perceived competence as a friend. The participants were 209 youth 13-21 years old with cerebral palsy (52% males) and their parents. Participants were part of a larger study on Activity and Participation of Children with Cerebral Palsy and were recruited from six Shriners Hospitals for Children and one Children’s Rehabilitation Center. The measures included the Children’s Assessment of Participation and Enjoyment, Fulfillment in Social Roles, Gross Motor Function Classification System, Coping Inventory, Pediatric Outcomes Data Collection Instrument, Family Environment Scale, Measure of Processes of Care, and Service Questionnaire. Sequential multiple regression analysis was used to determine the youth, family and service determinants of social participation with friends and other non-family members. Kruskal-Wallis One-Way Analyses of Variance was used to examine the differences in the number, total frequency, and enjoyment of activities done with friends among youth with high, middle, low self-perceived competence as a friend. Youth and service characteristics were determinants of participation with friends but not other non-family members. Higher sports and physical function (β=.25), communication/speech ability (β=.18), inclusive education program (β=.21), and the higher extent to which desired community recreational activities were obtained (β=.22) explained 46% of the variance in number of activities done with friends. Higher parental education (β=.25) explained 6% of variance in number of activities done with other non-family members and was the sole determinant. The number (χ2=17.07, df=2, p.05), differed based on youth’s self-perceived competence as a friend. Youth with higher self-perceived competence did more activities with friends and participated with them more often. Services and supports that promote youth’s mobility, communication, and social skills, and enable access to community opportunities and real-life experiences with friends and other non-family members may help to optimize social participation and competence of youth with CPPh.D., Physical Therapy -- Drexel University, 201

Participation and Environmental Factors of Children with Physical Disabilities in Taiwan

Participation is a critical health and education outcome of children and can be optimized by environmental supports. Children with physical disabilities often experience participation restriction and environmental barriers. Research is limited in describing participation in everyday activities of children with physical disabilities and identifying environmental barriers faced by those children in Taiwan. This chapter presents data of 94 children with physical disabilities aged 2–6 years and their families in Taiwan. Children with physical disabilities were primarily children with cerebral palsy (36%) and developmental (motor) delay (34%). Parents completed the Chinese version of Assessment of Preschool Children’s Participation (APCP-C) and the Chinese version of the Child and Adolescent Scale of Environment (CASE-C) by structured interview to assess pattern of participation and impact of environment factors to their children’s daily life. Participation of children with physical disabilities differed on the basis of level of severity, but not age and sex. Parents reported increased impacts of problems with the quality and availability of family and community resources than problems with assistance/attitude supports and physical design and access. The findings provide a profile of children’s pattern of participation and environmental barriers that impact participation in Taiwan

Experiencing the difference between a virtual and in-person fit session

This research explored the concept of using avatars as fit models. Participants who had 2D/3D computer-aided design skills developed two basic garments and virtually draped the garments on two avatars, one was the program’s default avatar and the second was a personal avatar captured through a 3D body scan. The garments were also assembled in muslin and fit during a live session. Photographs of the three scenarios documented the static fit of the garments. Overall, the participants were satisfied with the evaluation of the virtual garment on their personal avatar, though disappointed that the avatar itself was not a cleaner image. There was some difference in the fit results between the personal avatar and the live session which was due to fabric appearance and difference in draping. Further research, and advancement in virtual textile rendering, needs to take place as this affects the visual fit on the avatar. Virtual fit has the potential to be a time- and cost-saving practice for industry.Design, Housing and Merchandisin

Ligand chemistry of titania precursor affects transient photovoltaic behavior in inverted organic solar cells

The chemistry of the precursor from which charge transport layers are formed can significantly affect the device performance of organic solar cells. Here, we compare two common precursors that are used to generate titania electron transport layers and elucidate their effects on the transient characteristics of inverted bulk-heterojunction polymer solar cells comprising poly(3-hexyl hiophene) and [6,6]-phenyl-C-61-butyric acid methyl ester. Substituting the isopropyl ligands of titanium isopropoxide with 2-methoxyethanol leads to electron transport layers that require a shorter illumination time to fill shallow electron traps. Furthermore, organic solar cells with titania electron transport layers prepared with such pre-modified titania precursor exhibit higher power-conversion efficiencies stemming from lower trap densities. (C) 2013 American Institute of Physics. [http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4795287open4

Three-phase optimal power flow for networked microgrids based on semidefinite programming convex relaxation

Many autonomous microgrids have extensive penetration of distributed generation (DG). Optimal power flow (OPF) is necessary for the optimal dispatch of networked microgrids (NMGs). Existing convex relaxation methods for three-phase OPF are limited to radial networks. In light of this, we develop a semidefinite programming (SDP) convex relaxation model which can cope with meshed networks and also includes a model of three-phase DG and under-load voltage regulators with different connection types. The SDP model solves the OPF problem of multi-phase meshed network effectively, with satisfactory accuracy, as validated by real 6-bus, 9-bus, and 30-bus NMGs, and the IEEE 123-bus test cases. In the SDP model, the convex symmetric component of the three-phase DG model is demonstrated to be more accurate than a three-phase DG modelled as three single-phase DG units in three-phase unbalanced OPF. The proposed method also has higher accuracy than the existing convex relaxation methods. The resultant optimal control variables obtained from the convex relaxation optimization can be used for both final optimal dispatch strategy and initial value of the non-convex OPF to obtain the globally optimal solution efficiently

Training Effects of Virtual Reality on Reaching Behaviors in Children with Cerebral Palsy: Case Report

Virtual reality (VR) is a computer technology that artificially generates sensory information in a form that people perceive as real-world objects and events. It has been proposed that VR can improve upper-extremity function in children with cerebral palsy (CP) by decreasing physical disabilities, precisely adjusting the difficulty of task and feedback, enhancing motivation and manipulating perceptual information. The purpose of this study was to investigate the training effects of VR on reaching behavior in a child with CP. This case was a 6-year-old boy with spastic quadriplegic CP who had good cooperation and normal cognition. A single-subject A-B-A design was used. The case received 3 baseline, 4 intervention, and 2 follow-up measures. He received a 4-week (3 times a week) individualized VR training using VR-hand function training system and Eyetoy-play system with therapist\u27s manual guidance. The outcome measures included (1) four reaching kinematic parameters (movement time (MT), path, peak velocity (PV), and number of movement units (MU)) in 2 activities (pegboard and mail-delivery) at 3 directions (abduction, adduction, and forward); (2) touching a swing ball; and (3) the fine motor domain of Peabody Development Motor Scale-2nd edition (PDMS2). Visual inspection and 2-standard deviation band method were used to compare the outcome measures between the two adjacent phases. Improvements were found in the kinematic parameters in all directions from baseline to intervention, and the effects were maintained in some directions from intervention to follow-up. Improvement was also shown in the ability to touch a swing ball, but the effect was not maintained from intervention to follow-up. Furthermore, there was an increase (11 points) in the PDMS2 scores from baseline to intervention and an increase (1 point) from intervention to follow-up. This case study demonstrated the potential effect of VR training program to improve the upper-extremity function in children with CP. The training effects might retain for 1 month post intervention

Antifungal Activity and Action Mechanism of Ginger Oleoresin Against Pestalotiopsis microspora Isolated From Chinese Olive Fruits

Pestalotiopsis microspora (P. microspora) is one of dominant pathogenic fungi causing rotten disease in harvested Chinese olive (Canarium album Lour.) fruits. The purposes of this study were to evaluate the antifungal activities of ginger oleoresin (GO) against P. microspora and to illuminate the underlying action mechanisms. The in vitro assays indicate that GO exhibited strong antifungal activity against mycelial growth of P. microspore, and with 50%-inhibition concentration (EC50) and 90%-inhibition concentration (EC90) at 2.04 μL GO and 8.87 μL GO per mL propylene glycol, respectively, while the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimal fungicidal concentration were at 10 μL GO and 30 μL GO per mL propylene glycol, respectively. Spore germination of P. microspora was inhibited by GO in a dose-dependent manner, and with 100% inhibition rate at the concentration of 8 μL GO per mL propylene glycol. Compared to the control, the cellular membrane permeability of P. microspora increased due to severe leakage of intercellular electrolytes, soluble proteins, and total sugars with the treatments (EC50, EC90) by GO during incubation. In addition, analysis of fatty acid contents and compositions in cellular membrane by GC-MS indicated that GO could significantly promote the degradation or peroxidation of unsaturated fatty acids in P. microspore, resulting in the enhancement of membrane fluidity. Moreover, observations of microstructure further showed the damage to plasma membrane and morphology of P. microspora caused by GO, which resulted in distortion, sunken and shriveled spores and mycelia of the pathogen. Furthermore, in vivo assay confirmed that over 3 MIC GO treatments remarkably suppressed disease development in P. microspore inoculated-Chinese olive fruit. These results demonstrate that owing to its strong antifungal activity, GO can be used as a promising antifungal agent to inhibit the growth of pathogenic fungi in Chinese olives