Effects of a Cardiac Sports Rehabilitation Program on Cognitive Function in Elderly Patients after Myocardial Infarction.

Purpose: Although cardiac rehabilitation is associated with numerous benefits, including improved cardiovascular health and a lower mortality rate, the current challenge is to examine whether cardiac rehabilitation can also provide cognitive benefits. This study was conducted to determine the effects of a cardiac sports rehabilitation program (CSP) on cognitive function in elderly patients. Methods: Twenty-one male patients after myocardial infarction (MI) (mean age: 68.8 years, mean interval time after a MI 42.1 months) completed this study. The CSP group (n=11) practiced combined Tai Chi and table tennis training once a week together with conventional exercise training for 1 year. The control group (n=10) carried out conventional exercise training only. Cognitive function was measured using a Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) at baseline and 1 year later. Results: At baseline, the MMSE score and other clinical characteristics did not differ between the two groups. After 1 year, the CSP group showed a slight increase in the MMSE score (from 26.1 +/- 1.92 to 27.3 +/- 2.81, p=0.153), while the control group showed a significant decrease (from 27.0 +/- 2.00 to 25.4 +/- 3.27, p=0.035). Conclusions: Supervised CSP may have implications for the prevention of cognitive decline in elderly patients after MI

発症早期の座位能力が低下した脳卒中患者に対する対角平面上の座位傾斜練習が座位バランスに与える効果 : 無作為化比較試験

首都大学東

Arterial Remodeling and Endothelial Shear Stress Exhibit Significant Longitudinal Heterogeneity Along the Length of Coronary Plaques

Atherosclerosis is determined by both systemic risk factors and local vascular mechanisms. The arterial remodeling in response to plaque development plays a key role in atherosclerosis. Compensatory expansive remodeling is an adaptive mechanism that maintains lumen patency as a plaque develops. In contrast, excessive expansive remodeling, signifying an enlargement in vascular and lumen volume as a result of local plaque buildup, is a consistent attribute of high-risk plaques. Local hemodynamic factors, in particular low endothelial shear stress (ESS), is an intensely proinflammatory and proatherogenic stimulus and largely accounts for the spatially diverse distribution of atherosclerotic plaques. However, plaque, remodeling and ESS have hitherto been investigated only in the cross-sectional arterial axis and their distribution in the longitudinal axis of individual plaques has not been characterized

Pusher現象例の主観的垂直認知にUSNが及ぼす影響

Pusher behavior (PB) impairs verticality in the frontal plane and is often associated with unilateral spatial neglect (USN). However, it is unclear whether USN affects verticality among patients with PB. We aimed to clarify the characteristics of verticality among PB, with and without USN. The study included 43 patients with right hemisphere stroke, including 12 without PB or USN, 10 with only USN, 10 with PB only, and 11 with PB and USN, and 15 age-matched healthy individuals. The subjective visual vertical (SVV), subjective postural vertical with eyes closed (SPV), and subjective postural vertical with eyes open were assessed. Under each condition, the mean (tilt direction) and standard deviation (variability) across trials were calculated. The variability of SVV was significantly greater among patients with only USN (6.9°±5.9°) or those with PB and USN (7.6 ± 4.3°). On SPV, the contralesional tilt was significantly greater, with higher variability, in patients with only PB (-2.2°±1.1° and 6.3°±1.4°, respectively) and those with PB and USN (-2.1°±2.0° and 6.6°±2.0°, respectively) than in the other groups. In patients with PB, SVV differed depending on the presence of USN, but it was suggested that SPV might not be affected by USN. These findings are important to plan PB treatment.首都大学東京学位論文甲第966号副論

健常者における主観的身体垂直の再テスト法による信頼性と加齢による差異

The subjective postural vertical (SPV) reflects gravity perception when the eyes are closed. Changes in the SPV on both the frontal and sagittal planes occur in response to neurological disorders and aging; however, these changes on the diagonal plane are unclear. Here we examined test–retest reliability (n=16) of and age-related changes (n=38) in the SPVon the diagonal plane. Subjects sat on an electrical vertical board (EVB), which was used to measure the SPVon the diagonal plane. An experimenter controlled and moved the EVB seat at a constant speed on the diagonal plane and measured the seat’s tilt using a digital inclinometer when subjects verbally reported that they had reached a true vertical position. Measurement was performed for eight trials, and the mean (tilt direction) and standard deviation (variability) were calculated. To determine test–retest reliability, the same experimenter repeatedly measured the SPV 1 week later. To assess age-related changes, tilt direction and variability were compared between the young (n=20) and elderly (n=18) groups. Test–retest reliability on the right and left diagonal planes was 0.61 or more. Moreover, tilt direction on the right diagonal plane – but not on the left diagonal plane – indicated a significant diagonally backward deviation in the elderly group compared with that in the young group.Variability was significantly higher in the elderly group on both planes. SPV measurement on the diagonal plane was indicated, and age-related changes were identified. Thus, future studies should assess the potential clinical applications of SPV in neurological disorders.首都大学東京学位論文甲第966号副論

Evaluation of the Applicability of Infrared and Thermistor-Thermometry in Thermophysiology Research

The accuracy and reliability of temperature measuring devices in thermal physiology research and clinical practice has been subject of various investigations. Research data have been conflicting in some cases. Further investigations are therefore needed to elucidate the reliability and sensitivity of these devices under different temperature settings. The aim of this study was to evaluate the reliability and sensitivity of the tympanic thermistor (TT), infrared tympanic thermometer (ITT) and oral thermistor (OT) in the detection of body temperature changes in adults exposed to heat load. A single set of three simultaneous temperatures i.e. oral, left and right tympanic membrane were measured. At rest, core temperature (Tc) measured by TT was 0.45℃ and+0.10～-0.12℃ (changed range) higher than that measured with OT and ITT respectively. At the end of 30min 43℃ water bath leg immersion, Tc measured by TT was 0.48℃ and 0.04℃ higher than that measured with OT and ITT. This showed that when subjects were exposed to heat load, there was no difference in Tc measured by TT and ITT, although both were significantly higher than that measured with OT. From these results, it might be thought that the sensitivity for Tc detection increased in the order tympanic thermistor>infrared thermometer>oral thermistor. Further-more, in addition to the merits of infrared thermometer, the hazards and difficulties of tympanic temperature measurement were discussed from the view of development of the various kinds of thermometers

Effects of Dynamic Sitting Exercise with Delayed Visual Feedback in the Early Post-Stroke Phase: A Pilot Double-Blinded Randomized Controlled Trial

Sitting ability in the early post-stroke phase affects functional balance ability and other prognoses. We investigated whether dynamic sitting exercise with delayed visual feedback in the mediolateral and anteroposterior directions affected postural control in the early post-stroke phase. In this pilot randomized controlled trial, 27 hemiparetic stroke patients were randomized to experimental (n = 13) and control (n = 14) groups. Dynamic sitting exercise (30 times/day, 5 days/week) in the mediolateral and anteroposterior directions, with 500-ms-delayed (experimental group) or real-time (control group) visual feedback on a computer, was added to usual physical therapy. We evaluated the postural assessment scale for stroke (PASS), static and dynamic sitting balance tasks, the five-times sit-to-stand test, trunk impairment scale, functional ambulation category, and functional independence measure–motor items. In intention-to-treat analysis, the experimental group demonstrated a significant intervention effect on the PASS score (p < 0.05). The mean percentage of body weight on the moving side in the lateral sitting task and the number of successes in the five-times sit-to-stand test were significantly higher in the experimental group than those in the control group (p < 0.05). Thus, the proposed exercise improves postural control, dynamic sitting balance, and sit-to-stand ability in early post-stroke patients

Efficiency Evaluation of Software Faults Correction Based on Queuing Simulation

Fault-counting data are collected in the testing process of software development. However, the data are not used for evaluating the efficiency of fault correction activities because the information on the fault detection and correction times of each fault are not recorded in the fault-counting data. Furthermore, it is difficult to collect new data on the detection time of each fault to realize efficiency evaluation for fault correction activities from the collected fault-counting data due to the cost of personnel and data collection. In this paper, we apply the thinning method, using intensity functions of the delayed S-shaped and inflection S-shaped software reliability growth models (SRGMs) to generate sample data of the fault detection time from the fault-counting data. Additionally, we perform simulations based on the infinite server queuing model, using the generated sample data of the fault detection time to visualize the efficiency of fault correction activities