Speech Language Pathologist’s Knowledge of Genetics – An Indian Perspective

Background and Objectives: The aim of the present study was to examine the knowledge, attitudes and confidence levels about genetics among speech-language pathologists (SLPs) working in India; and further to identify the relationship between knowledge, attitudes and confidence levels. Methods: A cross-sectional study design was implemented to carry out an email-based survey to assess the knowledge, attitudes and confidence levels about genetics among SLP’s in India. Results: Responses from 121 SLP’s working with pediatric population were analyzed. Results suggested that 70.3% of responses were correct for the genetic knowledge based questions. The confidence levels and attitudes were in the medium categories. The primary sources of learning were from school lesson as reported by the professionals. There existed a positive correlation between knowledge index and the mean attitude and confidence levels. Conclusion: The findings of the present study add valuable information to international literature and provides suggestions towards increasing more topics related genetics into the curricula

Wind energy management of a standalone system operating at maximum power point

In this paper, the management and control of a standalone wind energy system versus variations of wind speed and load are investigated. The system includes a wind turbine coupled to a variable-speed permanent magnet synchronous generator (PMSG), rectifier,boost converter, power inverter, and an energy storage system(ESS). The ESS is a very important part to achieve system stability and support the maximum power point tracking(MPPT) operation. A simple off-line MPPT algorithm is introduced that can be accomplished using the boost converter. The system dynamic model is derived then the control and energy management algorithms are introduced to improve the system performance. The MATLABplatform has been utilized to simulate the proposed system under different disturbances in the load power and wind speed. The results show perfect management of the system energy, good performance of the DC link voltage, stable load voltage, and load frequency

A scoping review on the clinical effectiveness of Trans-Impedance Matrix (TIM) measurements in detecting extracochlear electrodes and tip fold overs in Cochlear Ltd devices.

BACKGROUND: Extrusion of electrodes outside the cochlea and tip fold overs may lead to suboptimal outcomes in cochlear implant (CI) recipients. Intraoperative measures such as Trans-Impedance Matrix (TIM) measurements may enable clinicians to identify electrode malposition and direct surgeons to correctly place the electrode array during surgery. OBJECTIVES: To assess the current literature on the effectiveness of TIM measurements in identifying extracochlear electrodes and tip fold overs. METHODS: A scoping review of studies on TIM-based measurements were carried out using the Databases-Medline/PubMed, AMED, EMBASE, CINAHL and the Cochrane Library following PRISMA guidelines. Eleven full texts articles met the inclusion criteria. Only human studies pertaining to TIM as a tool used in CI were included in the review. Further, patient characteristics, electrode design, and TIM measurement outcomes were reported. RESULTS: TIM measurements were available for 550 implanted ears with the subjects age ranged between 9 months to 89 years. Abnormal TIM measurements were reported for 6.55% (36). Tip fold over was detected in 3.64% (20) of the cases, extracochlear electrodes in 1.45% (8), and 1.45% (8) were reported as buckling. Slim-modiolar electrode array designs were more common (54.71%) than pre-curved (23.34%) or lateral wall (21.95%) electrode array. Abnormal cochlear anatomy was reported for five ears (0.89%), with normal cochlear anatomy for all other patients. CONCLUSION: TIM measurement is a promising tool for the intraoperative detection of electrode malposition. TIM measurement has a potential to replace intraoperative imaging in future. Though, TIM measurement is in its early stages of clinical utility, intuitive normative data sets coupled with standardised criteria for detection of abnormal electrode positioning would enhance its sensitivity