NIRS Measurements with Elite Speed Skaters: Comparison Between the Ice Rink and the Laboratory

Wearable, wireless near-infrared (NIR) spectrometers were used to compare changes in on-ice short-track skating race simulations over 1,500 m with a 3-min cycle ergometry test at constant power output (400 W). The subjects were six male elite short-track speed skaters. Both protocols elicited a rapid desaturation (∆TSI%) in the muscle during early stages (initial 20 s); however, asymmetry between right and left legs was seen in ΔTSI% for the skating protocol, but not for cycling. Individual differences between skaters were present in both protocols. Notably, one individual who showed a relatively small TSI% change (-10.7%, group mean = -26.1%) showed a similarly small change during the cycling protocol (-5.8%, group mean = -14.3%). We conclude that NIRS-detected leg asymmetry is due to the specific demands of short-track speed skating. However, heterogeneity between individuals is not specific to the mode of exercise. Whether this is a result of genuine differences in physiology or a reflection of differences in the optical properties of the leg remains to be determined

Pneumococcal sepsis presenting as acute compartment syndrome of the lower limbs: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Acute compartment syndrome is a surgical emergency requiring immediate fasciotomy. Spontaneous onset of acute compartment syndrome of the lower limbs is rare. We present a very rare case of pneumococcal sepsis leading to spontaneous acute compartment syndrome.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 40-year-old Caucasian man presented as an emergency with spontaneous onset of pain in both legs and signs of compartment syndrome. This was confirmed on fasciotomy. Blood culture grew <it>Streptococcus pneumoniae</it>.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Sepsis should be strongly suspected in bilateral acute compartment syndrome of spontaneous onset.</p

Biomedical applications of wireless continuous wave near infrared spectroscopy

AlgemeenStellenbosse Instituut vir Gevorderde Navorsing (SIGNA)Please help us populate SUNScholar with the post print version of this article. It can be e-mailed to: [email protected]

Review: The evolution of wireless near infrared spectroscopy applications in urology and rationale for clinical use

Near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy is an established non-invasive optical technique for measuring changes in haemoglobin concentration occurring in the microcirculation in real time. NIR spectroscopy parameters refect change in tissue haemodynamics and oxygenation and can contribute important physiologic insights when used alone or interpreted in parallel with other conventional measurements. The broad use of NIR spectroscopy in research is not matched by clinical applications; reasons include limitations inherent to the technique, using instruments designed for research at the bedside, ambiguity regarding what NIR spectroscopy measures, defciencies of early algorithms, and understandable expectations by clinicians that NIR spectroscopy data are reproducible and specific enough for clinical decision making. Such issues could be addressed by appropriate collaboration where clinicians drive the questions which NIR spectroscopy is to answer, researchers contribute to monitoring methodology, device design and data analysis/algorithms and both groups utilise physiologic knowledge and practical lessons learned from prior NIR spectroscopy studies when interpreting data. NIR spectroscopy applications in urology are recent and offer clear opportunities for clinicians and researchers to collaborate. Urology is a field where current clinical investigations are limited in terms of the physiologic information they provide and because the principal test used for evaluation of the many people who have problematic lower urinary tract dysfunction is invasive in nature. Hence the rationale for non-invasive transcutaneous optical monitoring of the bladder during voiding as, when the organ contracts, changes in oxygenated and deoxygenated haemoglobin occur which allow haemodynamic variations and alterations in oxygen supply and demand to be inferred. Different patterns of change are evident in healthy and diseased tissue; these patterns refect the effects of physiologic events observed using NIR spectroscopy to study other tissues and provide novel insights into the causation of voiding dysfunction. This review of the evolution of a wireless methodology for bladder studies includes examples of effective clinician researcher collaboration, reveals how miniature NIR spectroscopy devices make monitoring in ambulant subjects straightforward and makes possible studies in special populations such as children and patients with spinal cord injury. Hence, such wireless devices represent an advance of relevance in urology and an opportunity to expand research in other fields and progress with translation of NIR spectroscopy into other relevant clinical arenas. © IM Publications LLP 2012