A real time frequency analysis of the electroencephalogram using Labview

The use of the Electroencephalogram (EEG) for diagnosis of brain related diseases is becoming a popular technique in the clinical and research environment. To achieve accurate reading of EEG, signal representation and classification becomes extremely important. The goal of this project was to develop a basic software program for acquiring and online processing of the electrical activity recorded from the brain. A program was developed using the LabVIEW programming software by National Instruments. Basic hardware components recorded the EEG signal and a software component divided the data into delta, theta, alpha and beta bands in the frequency domain. Emphasis was placed on critical programming parameters such as sampling rate, filtering, windowing and FFT. The developed software was implemented in an already existing experimental paradigm that studies classical conditioning response. To prove the validity and accuracy of the system, a pilot experiment was conducted where EEG was recorded from six subjects. Data showed that as the subject learns, continuous theta activity is observed. Performance and testing of the EEG system demonstrated that the on line processing of EEG could be used in a variety of other applications where neural activity is involved such as classifying sleep stages in patients, discriminating various mental tasks, recording continuous EEG activity in neonatals with brain dysfunction etc

Operational Efficiency of District Central Cooperative Banks in Gujarat - A Comparative Study

The District Central Co-operative Banks is the central financing agency in the entire district. At the district level, 18 Central Co-operativeBanks including on taluka Co-operative banking Union with their 1026branches are operating within their area of operations. District Banks caterthe financial needs of the Urban Cooperative Credit Societies, FSS,LAMPS and the other non-agricultural Societies, Taluka and District Sales and Purchase Union etc through their branches spread at talk and village levels in the concerned District and thereby cover whole state. The cooperative credit structure has been developed in India with the mission that they will provide the agricultural and finance to the needy farmers at a reasonable rate of interest. The DCCBs are mainly doing three activities in their area of operation like (i) advancement of agricultural finance (ii) collection of deposits and (iii) providing banking services. Up to 1990 the DCCBs has a Monopoly business and they were covering about 70 percent of the population particularly in rural area through their business. After introduction of New Economic Policy (NEP) the business of the DCCBs has become very competitive and they are facing stiff competition in their area of operation where they have to flourish their business before Nationalized bank, Commercial Bank, Private Bank, Foreign Banks, Non-Banking Financing Agencies, and others. The overall all profitability of the DCCBs is also going down year to Year. Out of 18 DCCBs in Gujarat only 10 are earning profit and 8 are in loss. The percentage of NPA of the DCCB is also exceeding from 35 to 40 percent in most of the DCCBs. Looking to the present situation prevailing in the area of DCCBs it is revealed that DCCBs have to make themselves more effective and efficient in the area of operation so that they can face the stiff competition and justify their objective of the existence. The present research study will focus on the overall all working of the DCCBs and examine the operational efficiency with the help of the following objectives

Instilling reflective practice – The use of an online portfolio in innovative optometric education Accepted as: e‐poster Paper no. 098

At UCLAN we are breaking the mould and have developed a blended learning MSci optometry programme which is the first blended learning course in optometric education in the UK and the first to use a practice-based online portfolio. Optometry has traditionally been taught as a 3‐year undergraduate programme. Upon successful graduation, students are required to complete a year in practice and meet the General Optical Council's (GOC) “ability to” core competencies. However, a recent study by the GOC found that 76% of students felt unprepared for professional practice with insufficient clinical experience and in response, the GOC is currently undertaking an educational strategic review. To ensure the students receive high-quality clinical experience in the workplace, we have developed an online logbook and portfolio. Students log their experiences, learning points and reflections. The portfolio is closely monitored both by the student's mentor in practice and by academic staff. The content and reflections logged by the students then helps to drive the face to face teaching, small group discussions and clinical experiences provided by the university

Mental health and the Gujarati communities: a case study of Leicester

This thesis explores the ways in which the Gujarati communities come to understand, experience and conceptualise ‘mental health’. These were explored under the following categories: social, cultural, economic and institutional. Ethnic inequalities and ‘mental health’ have been widely researched but explanations can provide a distorted picture for particular communities (Raleigh, 1995). Published information on measuring rates of inequalities focus use of services and wide categories such as ‘South Asians’ can be misleading in health research (Nazroo et al., 2002). Not only are current epidemiological studies problematic with the categories they utilise to group people together, but also using the medical model to define ‘mental health’ as an universally applied term indeed has its’ pitfalls. The major one that is inherent to this thesis is the complex relationship culture and social factors has in contributing to understandings of ‘mental health’ and how they are managed. Therefore, the crux of this thesis explores practices and beliefs the Gujarati communities have that help ‘mental health’ management but also their limitations that constrain and restrict help-seeking from western health services. This research is informed by two key phenomena and the complex relationship between the two – ‘mental health’ and culture. There is an exploration of social processes such as culture and the range of identity and historical factors such as migration, family, social capital and religion to name a few. A Bourdieusian analytical framework is used, in particular his forms of capital; social, cultural and economic to illustrate how culture influences conceptualisations, experiences and management of ‘mental health’ and how culture contributes to the complexity that cuts across the universality/specificity binary of addressing ‘mental health’. Qualitative interviews with the Gujarati communities in Leicester were used to explore these issues. 35 interviews were conducted with first-generation Gujarati migrants and 15 were conducted with second generation Gujarati migrants. These were all recorded, analysed using various thematic analytical techniques, analytic induction and cognitive mapping. It is argued that, strong forms of social and cultural capital contribute to and strengthen cultural opinions of mental illness as ‘mad’, ‘crazy’ and ‘slow’. Thus, these attitudes and understandings are lived realities for the Gujarati communities. However, it is also strong forms of social capital that contribute to potential ‘mental health’ problems due to the pressure of ‘social obligations’. This entails, behaving in a certain manner that abides to and maintains acceptable norms in the Gujarati communities. Consequently, social and cultural capital are underlying factors that explain the stigmatized nature of ‘mental health’ and their help-seeking trajectories. Additionally, the empirical data from my interviews has begun to demonstrate that attitudes towards ‘mental health’ are not as simple as being educated about it but rooted deeply in social and cultural practices, beliefs and traditions. Rightly so, Dogra et al. (2005) argues conceptualisations and expressions of ‘mental health’ can vary across cultures and thus these need to be considered when looking at ethnic groups. Additionally, due to the changing nature of cultures, continuous research is required to uphold suitable treatment and support for ‘mental health’. Therefore, I argue that research that informs policy in this area, such as cultural components of ‘mental health’ needs to be inductive rather than deductive in nature

MRI Evaluation of Lumbar Disc Degenerative Disease

Introduction: Lower back pain secondary to degenerative disc disease is a condition that affects young to middle-aged persons with peak incidence at approximately 40 y. MRI is the standard imaging modality for detecting disc pathology due to its advantage of lack of radiation, multiplanar imaging capability, excellent spinal soft-tissue contrast and precise localization of intervertebral discs changes. Aims and Objective: To evaluate the characterization, extent, and changes associated with the degenerative lumbar disc disease by Magnetic Resonance Imaging. Study Design: Cross-sectional and observational study. Materials and Methods: A total 109 patients of the lumbar disc degeneration with age group between 17 to 80 y were diagnosed & studied on 1.5 Tesla Magnetic Resonance Imaging machine. MRI findings like lumbar lordosis, Schmorl’s nodes, decreased disc height, disc annular tear, disc herniation, disc bulge, disc protrusion and disc extrusion were observed. Narrowing of the spinal canal, lateral recess and neural foramen with compression of nerve roots observed. Ligamentum flavum thickening and facetal arthropathy was observed. Result: Males were more commonly affected in Degenerative Spinal Disease & most of the patients show loss of lumbar lordosis. Decreased disc height was common at L5-S1 level. More than one disc involvement was seen per person. L4 – L5 disc was the most commonly involved. Annular disc tear, disc herniation, disc extrusion, narrowing of spinal canal, narrowing of lateral recess, compression of neural foramen, ligamentum flavum thickening and facetal arthropathy was common at the L4 –L5 disc level. Disc buldge was common at L3 – L4 & L4 – L5 disc level. Posterior osteophytes are common at L3 - L4 & L5 –S1 disc level. L1- L2 disc involvement and spondylolisthesis are less common. Conclusion: Lumbar disc degeneration is the most common cause of low back pain. Plain radiograph can be helpful in visualizing gross anatomic changes in the intervertebral disc. But, MRI is the standard imaging modality for detecting disc pathology due to its advantage of lack of radiation, multiplanar imaging capability, excellent spinal soft-tissue contrast and precise localization of intervertebral discs changes

Mechanistic Profiling of Novel Wafer Technology Developed for Rate-Modulated Oramucosal Drug Delivery

Student Number ; 9901384G - MPharm dissertation - School of Pharmacy and Pharmacology - Faculty of Health SciencesA lyophilized polymeric wafer system was formulated for the provision of rapid drug release in the oramucosal region. Lyophilization produced a porous sponge-like matrix which allowed simulated saliva to be rapidly imbibed into the hydrophilic structure. This surge of simulated saliva resulted in rapid disintegration of the wafer. Hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC) was selected as the polymeric platform based on its low gelation potential. Other excipients incorporated into the system were lactose and mannitol as diluents, and glycine as a collapse protectant. A Face Centred Central Composite Design was chosen to establish the significant effects of the independent formulation variables on the physicochemical and physicomechanical properties of the wafer. The formulation variables investigated were, HPC concentration, type of diluent (lactose, mannitol or mixture), concentration of diluent, quantity of glycine and fill volume. An analysis of these variables elucidated the influential factors that may be controlled to form an ‘ideal’ wafer. The concentration of HPC significantly affected the disintegration rate (p=0.003), influx of simulated saliva (p=0.011) and friability (p=0.023). The quantity of diluent present in the system also had significant effect on matrix tolerance (p=0.029) and friability (p=0.032). Statistical optimization was undertaken using stepwise forward and backward regression, and Artificial Neural Networks to predict the ideal combination of the independent variables that would produce an ideal formulation. This wafer was required to produce a matrix disintegration of 3.33%/s, friability of 0.1% loss and maximum matrix resilience. Formulations manufactured with and without model drug, diphenhydramine hydrochloride, reflected no significant differences in their physicomechanical and physicochemical properties. In an attempt to expand the scope of this technology, a preliminary investigation was undertaken to develop a prolonged release wafer system. This was successfully achieved trough the application of crosslinking technology. It was possible to achieve drug released over a period of 6 hours

Responses to intensity-shifted auditory feedback during running speech

PURPOSE: Responses to intensity perturbation during running speech were measured to understand whether prosodic features are controlled in an independent or integrated manner. METHOD: Nineteen English-speaking healthy adults (age range = 21-41 years) produced 480 sentences in which emphatic stress was placed on either the 1st or 2nd word. One participant group received an upward intensity perturbation during stressed word production, and the other group received a downward intensity perturbation. Compensations for perturbation were evaluated by comparing differences in participants' stressed and unstressed peak fundamental frequency (F0), peak intensity, and word duration during perturbed versus baseline trials. RESULTS: Significant increases in stressed-unstressed peak intensities were observed during the ramp and perturbation phases of the experiment in the downward group only. Compensations for F0 and duration did not reach significance for either group. CONCLUSIONS: Consistent with previous work, speakers appear sensitive to auditory perturbations that affect a desired linguistic goal. In contrast to previous work on F0 perturbation that supported an integrated-channel model of prosodic control, the current work only found evidence for intensity-specific compensation. This discrepancy may suggest different F0 and intensity control mechanisms, threshold-dependent prosodic modulation, or a combined control scheme.R01 DC002852 - NIDCD NIH HHS; R03 DC011159 - NIDCD NIH HH

Assessing the prosody of minimally to nonverbal children with autism

A procedure for assessing basic prosodic perception and production abilities of minimally to nonverbal children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder is described (AP: Assessment of Prosody). The procedure consists of three sections: an optional primer phase, a learning phase, and an assessment phase. It includes the assessment of both the perception of basic pitch accent structure distinctions (low versus high) as well as elicits expressive productions of these contrasts. The goal of the procedure is to evaluate the extent to which this population can perceive and produce prosodic distinctions. The overarching aim is to create a pre and post assessment to quantify prosodic competence and performance of minimally to nonverbal children and adolescents who are eligible for music-motor based intervention therapies (i.e. AMMT: Auditory Motor Mapping Therapy). Current and future versions of the assessment are discussed.Published versio

Mental health and the Gujarati communities: a case study of Leicester

This thesis explores the ways in which the Gujarati communities come to understand, experience and conceptualise ‘mental health’. These were explored under the following categories: social, cultural, economic and institutional. Ethnic inequalities and ‘mental health’ have been widely researched but explanations can provide a distorted picture for particular communities (Raleigh, 1995). Published information on measuring rates of inequalities focus use of services and wide categories such as ‘South Asians’ can be misleading in health research (Nazroo et al., 2002). Not only are current epidemiological studies problematic with the categories they utilise to group people together, but also using the medical model to define ‘mental health’ as an universally applied term indeed has its’ pitfalls. The major one that is inherent to this thesis is the complex relationship culture and social factors has in contributing to understandings of ‘mental health’ and how they are managed. Therefore, the crux of this thesis explores practices and beliefs the Gujarati communities have that help ‘mental health’ management but also their limitations that constrain and restrict help-seeking from western health services. This research is informed by two key phenomena and the complex relationship between the two – ‘mental health’ and culture. There is an exploration of social processes such as culture and the range of identity and historical factors such as migration, family, social capital and religion to name a few. A Bourdieusian analytical framework is used, in particular his forms of capital; social, cultural and economic to illustrate how culture influences conceptualisations, experiences and management of ‘mental health’ and how culture contributes to the complexity that cuts across the universality/specificity binary of addressing ‘mental health’. Qualitative interviews with the Gujarati communities in Leicester were used to explore these issues. 35 interviews were conducted with first-generation Gujarati migrants and 15 were conducted with second generation Gujarati migrants. These were all recorded, analysed using various thematic analytical techniques, analytic induction and cognitive mapping. It is argued that, strong forms of social and cultural capital contribute to and strengthen cultural opinions of mental illness as ‘mad’, ‘crazy’ and ‘slow’. Thus, these attitudes and understandings are lived realities for the Gujarati communities. However, it is also strong forms of social capital that contribute to potential ‘mental health’ problems due to the pressure of ‘social obligations’. This entails, behaving in a certain manner that abides to and maintains acceptable norms in the Gujarati communities. Consequently, social and cultural capital are underlying factors that explain the stigmatized nature of ‘mental health’ and their help-seeking trajectories. Additionally, the empirical data from my interviews has begun to demonstrate that attitudes towards ‘mental health’ are not as simple as being educated about it but rooted deeply in social and cultural practices, beliefs and traditions. Rightly so, Dogra et al. (2005) argues conceptualisations and expressions of ‘mental health’ can vary across cultures and thus these need to be considered when looking at ethnic groups. Additionally, due to the changing nature of cultures, continuous research is required to uphold suitable treatment and support for ‘mental health’. Therefore, I argue that research that informs policy in this area, such as cultural components of ‘mental health’ needs to be inductive rather than deductive in nature

A Model for Teaching Financial Literacy in a Doctor of Physical Therapy Program Using the Five Stages of Career Development

Purpose: The cost of higher education programs across allied health disciplines have increased substantially in recent years while salaries have remained relatively stagnant. The result of which is an increase in debt burden for graduates of allied health professional programs. One possible intervention to improve the experience of graduates is to improve financial literacy; however, research on the effectiveness of financial literacy education in higher education is scant. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to understand the effectiveness of a financial literacy and career planning seminar in a Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program. Specifically, this study aimed to (1) describe the implementation of a novel career planning and financial literacy workshop as an additional component of a required physical therapy administration course in a DPT program, and to (2) understand the outcomes and effectiveness of the model utilized. Methods: This study included a single cohort pre/post design and between subject analysis. DPT students completed a pre- and post-survey before and after attending a 1-hour asynchronous career planning and financial literacy workshop. The survey included questions to capture students’ knowledge and confidence in financial literacy. Results: Overall, 80 DPT students completed the pre-survey and 54 DPT students completed the post-survey. The group of 55 participants that completed the post-workshop knowledge portion of the survey (M=87%, SD 220.72) demonstrated significantly better knowledge scores t(124) = 7.44, p \u3c .05 compared to the group of 77 participants that completed the pre-workshop knowledge portion of the survey (M = 67%, SD 282.31). The group of 53 participants that completed the post-workshop confidence portion of the survey (M=35.79%, SD 27.09) demonstrated significantly improved confidence on the post-workshop survey t(130) = 2.75, p \u3c .05 compared to the group of 79 participants that completed the pre-workshop confidence portion of the survey (M = 32.62, SD 64.57). Conclusion: A 1-hour workshop can be effective at improving knowledge and confidence in financial literacy of DPT students, and it can be implemented in existing DPT curricula without considerable time or added credit hours