Deep learning model for doors detection a contribution for context awareness recognition of patients with Parkinson’s disease

Freezing of gait (FoG) is one of the most disabling motor symptoms in Parkinson’s disease, which is described as a symptom where walking is interrupted by a brief, episodic absence, or marked reduction, of forward progression despite the intention to continue walking. Although FoG causes are multifaceted, they often occur in response of environment triggers, as turnings and passing through narrow spaces such as a doorway. This symptom appears to be overcome using external sensory cues. The recognition of such environments has consequently become a pertinent issue for PD-affected community. This study aimed to implement a real-time DL-based door detection model to be integrated into a wearable biofeedback device for delivering on-demand proprioceptive cues. It was used transfer-learning concepts to train a MobileNet-SSD in TF environment. The model was then integrated in a RPi being converted to a faster and lighter computing power model using TensorFlow Lite settings. Model performance showed a considerable precision of 97,2%, recall of 78,9% and a good F1-score of 0,869. In real-time testing with the wearable device, DL-model showed to be temporally efficient (~2.87 fps) to detect with accuracy doors over real-life scenarios. Future work will include the integration of sensory cues with the developed model in the wearable biofeedback device aiming to validate the final solution with end-users

Qualidade de vida e sintomatologia emocional e comportamental em adolescentes com doença das células falciformes

Dissertação de mestrado, Psicologia (Área de Especialização em Psicologia Clínica e da Saúde - Psicologia da Saúde e da Doença), Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Psicologia, 2021Enquadramento: estudos têm verificado que as manifestações e características da Doença das Células Falciformes (DCF) têm impacto nos domínios da Qualidade de Vida Relativa à Saúde (QVRS) dos adolescentes e que os coloca em risco para perturbações psicossociais. Esses resultados foram reforçados na revisão sistemática de literatura apresentada neste estudo, que seguiu as recomendações da Preferred Reporting Item for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) e incluiu 29 artigos na análise. Objetivo: identificar os níveis da QVRS e os indicadores de problemas emocionais e comportamentais em adolescentes com DCF. Método: a amostra integrou 22 participantes, 11 adolescentes com DCF com idades entre 13 e 17 anos e 11 pais/cuidadores, que preencheram o Pediatric Quality of Life Sickle Cell Disease Module (PedsQL-SCD), o KIDSCREEN-10 e o Pediatric Symptom Checklist-17 (PSC-17). Foi realizada uma análise descritiva e correlacional. Resultados: os adolescentes da amostra apresentam QVRS baixa, com resultados piores nas subescalas relativas ao impacto e controlo da dor, tanto no relato dos adolescentes como dos pais/cuidadores. No KIDSCREEN-10, verificou-se uma QVRS moderada, em ambos os relatos. No relato dos adolescentes verificaram-se associações significativas entre perturbações emocionais e de comportamento e dificuldades na comunicação com os cuidadores formais sobre a doença; e entre o risco para problemas de internalização e as subescalas relativas a emoções negativas direcionadas à DCF e dificuldades de compreensão por outras pessoas do diagnóstico. No relato dos pais/cuidadores, foram identificadas associações negativas entre o risco de perturbações emocionais e de comportamento e a subescala Emoções e a perceção de que a QVRS dos adolescentes é afetada por dificuldades de compreensão da sua doença por outros. Conclusões: este estudo reforça os resultados de estudos similares sobre a prevalência de risco de perturbações psicossociais e emoções negativas em relação à doença, avaliadas pelos adolescentes e pelos seus pais/cuidadores, e colocando em evidência a relação entre a QVRS e as características da DCF, especificamente, o impacto da dor e o seu controlo.Background: studies have found that the manifestations and characteristics of Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) have an impact on domains of adolescents’ health-related quality of life (HRQoL), and that it puts them at risk for psychosocial disorders. These results were reinforced in the systematic review presented in this study, which followed the recommendations of the Preferred Reporting Item for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis and included 29 articles. Objective: identify HRQoL levels and signs of emotional and behavioral problems in adolescents with SCD. Method: the sample consisted of 22 participants, 11 adolescents with SCD, ages 13 to 17 years, and 11 parents/caregivers, who completed the Pediatric Quality of Life Sickle Cell Disease Module (PedsQL-SCD), the KIDSCREEN- 10 and the Pediatric Symptom Checklist-17 (PSC-17). Descriptive and correlational analysis were performed. Results: the adolescents in this sample have a low HRQoL and, as shown in the self and parent proxy reports, the subscales related to pain impact and control have the worst results. KIDSCREEN-10 showed a moderate HRQL in both reports. In the adolescents' self-report, significant associations were found between emotional and behavioral problems, and difficulties in communicating with medical staff about the disease; as well as between risk for internalizing problems and the subscales related to negative emotions directed towards SCD and difficulty when others don’t understand what is like having SCD. In parent-proxy negative associations were identified between the risk of emotional and behavioral disturbances and negative emotions like anger, as well as the perception that the adolescents' HRQoL is affected when other people don’t understand what is like having SCD. Conclusions: this study reinforces the results of similar studies about the prevalence of risk for psychosocial problems and negative emotions related to the disease, assessed by adolescents and parents/caregivers and highlights the relation between HRQoL and SCD’s characteristics, especially the impact and control of pain

The psychological impact on the emergency crews after the disaster event on February 20, 2010

The scope of this article is to screen thesymptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among the professionals of health and public safety security who providedhumanitarian aid for the population of Madeira after the 2010 alluvium. It involves a cross-sectional study. The list of life events (LAV) and theperi-traumaticexperiences questionnaire (PTSB)—adult versionwere used for screening symptoms.The participants included 405 professionalson the emergency crews (mean age = 34.51). Most are male (83.5%) and was in his residence (52.8%) at the time of the event.The results showed that there are significant differences between the profession and the response to the event (P < 0.001), as well as in relation to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), being most evident in the group of firemen and military (P < 0.001) of developing PTSD.Therefore, the mental health care of the professionals should suggest the vital need for specific training and the prevention of psychological disorders.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Estudo do perfil bioquímico da população hemodialisada diabética da Região da Madeira

A Diabetes Mellitus, em especial a do tipo 2, é uma das causas mais frequentes na insuficiência  renal crónica, e uma das diversas complicações que podem ocorrer num individuo diabético é a  nefropatia diabética. A nefropatia diabética é uma doença que se caracteriza pela falência renal  e leva a que alguns dos pacientes com esta doença tenham de realizar o tratamento de  hemodiálise. O objectivo principal deste estudo foi a caracterização do perfil bioquímico da  população hemodialisada diabética e não diabética. Realizou‐se um estudo retrospectivo a  doentes que realizaram hemodiálise, no período de Novembro de 2004 a Julho de 2005, na  Unidade de Hemodiálise do Hospital dos Marmeleiros do Centro Hospitalar do Funchal e na  Nefromar, Unidade de Hemodiálise da Clínica de Santa Catarina.  Este estudo envolveu uma amostragem de 267, em que 115 eram hemodialisados com os  níveis da glicose inferiores a 150 mg/dl, constituindo o GTND, 60 eram hemodialisados com  níveis  de  glicose  iguais  ou  superiores  a  150  mg/dl,  constituindo  o  GTD  e,  finalmente,  os  restantes  92  indivíduos  saudáveis  e  que  não  realizam  hemodiálise,  o  GC.  Os  parâmetros  analisados foram a creatinina, a ureia, a glicose, as proteínas totais, a albumina, o colesterol, o  HDL‐c, LDL‐c e triglicerídeos, o sódio, o potássio e o cloro.  A análise dos parâmetros bioquímicos revelou uma maior frequência de hemodialisados no  sexo masculino, com idades superiores aos sessenta anos, o que está de acordo com estudos  efectuados anteriormente.  Os resultados mostraram que os parâmetros creatinina e ureia, são os que apresentam mais  alterações  nos  doentes  hemodialisados,  devido  terem  sido  determinados  em  pré‐diálise.  Verificou‐se que os níveis colesterol total, de LDL‐c e os triglicerídeos são mais elevados nos  grupos teste, em especial no GTD.   Das análises de correlações verificou‐se haver uma relação entre a glicose e os níveis elevados  de colesterol, LDL‐c e triglicerídeos e também com os níveis baixos de HDL‐c.Os restantes  parâmetros analisados com a excepção da glicose, não mostraram diferenças significativas  entre os grupos em estudo

Gait monitoring system for patients with Parkinson’s disease

Background: Wearable monitoring devices based on inertial sensors have the potential to be used as a quantitative method in clinical practice for continuous assessment of gait disabilities in Parkinson’s disease (PD). Methods: This manuscript introduces a new gait monitoring system adapted to patients with PD, based on a wearable monitoring device. To eliminate inter- and intra-subject variability, the computational method was based on heuristic rules with adaptive thresholds and ranges and a motion compensation strategy. The experimental trials involved repeated measurements of walking trials from two cross-sectional studies: the first study was performed in order to validate the effectiveness of the system against a robust 3D motion analysis with 10 healthy subjects; and the second-one aimed to validate our approach against a well-studied wearable IMU-based system on a hospital environment with 20 patients with PD. Results: The proposed system proved to be efficient (Experiment I: sensitivity = 95,09% and accuracy = 93,64%; Experiment II: sensitivity = 99,53% and accuracy = 97,42%), time-effective (Experiment I: earlies = 13,71 ms and delays = 12,91 ms; Experiment II: earlies = 12,94 ms and delays = 12,71 ms), user and user-motion adaptable and a low computational-load strategy for real-time gait events detection. Further, it was measured the percentage of absolute error classified with a good acceptability (Experiment I: 3,02 ≤ ε%≤12,94; Experiment II: 2,81 ≤ ε%≤13,45). Lastly, regarding the measured gait parameters, it was observed a reflection of the typical levels of motor impairment for the different disease stages. Conclusion: The achieved outcomes enabled to verify that the proposed system can be suitable for gait analysis in the assistance and rehabilitation fields.This work was supported by FCT national funds, under the national support to R&D units grant, through the reference project UIDB/04436/2020 and UIDP/04436/2020, and under the Reference Scholarship under grant SFRH/BD/136569/2018

Vibrotactile biofeedback devices in Parkinson’s disease: a narrative review

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is often associated with a vast list of gait-associated disabilities, for which there is still a limited pharmacological/surgical treatment efficacy. Therefore, alternative approaches have emerged as vibrotactile biofeedback systems (VBS). This review aims to focus on the technologies supporting VBS and identify their effects on improving gait-associated disabilities by verifying how VBS were applied and validated with end-users. It is expected to furnish guidance to researchers looking to enhance the effectiveness of future vibrotactile cueing systems. The use of vibrotactile cues has proved to be relevant and attractive, as positive results have been obtained in patients’ gait performance, suitability in any environment, and easy adherence. There seems to be a preference in developing VBS to mitigate freezing of gait, to improve balance, to overcome the risk of fall, and a prevalent use to apply miniaturized wearable actuators and sensors. Most studies implemented a biofeedback loop able to provide rescue strategies during or after the detection of a gait-associated disability. However, there is a need of more clinical evidence and inclusion of experimental sessions to evaluate if the biofeedback was effectively integrated into the patients’ motor system.This work was supported by FCT national funds, under the national support to R&D units grant, through the reference project UIDB/04436/2020 and UIDP/04436/2020, and under the Reference Scholarship under Grant SFRH/BD/136569/2018

Neurofeedback vibrotactile system for parkinsonians overcome freezing of gait first steps in detecting the most perceived frequency

Parkinson’s Disease is a neurodegenerative disorder for which there is still no cure affecting the non-motor and motor systems. One of the most serious gait disorders are the freezing episodes, denominated by freezing of gait. This paper address the development and validation of a neurofeedback vibrotactile system through a belt for patients with Parkinson’s Disease overcome the freezing episodes, aiming to detect the most perceived frequency. It was verified that the higher frequencies (above 160 Hz) are easily perceived independently of the time interval of vibrotactile feedback.This work is supported by the FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia - with the reference project UID/EEA/04436/2013, by FEDER funds through the COMPETE 2020 - Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização (POCI) - with the reference project POCI-01- 0145-FEDER-00694

Finding parameters around the abdomen for a vibrotactile system: healthy and patients with Parkinson’s disease

Freezing of Gait (FOG) is one of the most disabling gait disorders in Parkinson’s Disease (PD), for which the efficacy of the medication is reduced, highlighting the use of non-pharmacological solutions. In particular, patients present less difficulties in overcoming FOG when using feedback and especially with Biofeedback Systems. In this study it is intended to detect the frequency threshold and the minimum interval of perception of the vibrotactile feedback, through a proposed wearable system, a waistband. Experimental tests were carried out that considered a temporal, spatial and spatiotemporal context, for which 15 healthy and 15 PD patients participated. It was detected as threshold frequency 180 Hz and for minimum interval of vibration perception 250 ms. The identification of this threshold frequency and this interval will allow us to select the frequency and the minimum interval of vibration to be used in a Vibrotactile Biofeedback Device for patients with PD, in order to help them to overcome FOG.This work was supported by the FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia - with the reference project UID/EEA/04436/ 2013, by FEDER funds through the COMPETE 2020 – Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização (POCI) - with the reference project POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006941

The potential of visual cues to overcome freezing of gait in Parkinson’s disease

Freezing of Gait (FOG) is arguably the most disabling motor dysfunction in Parkinson’s Disease (PD), being pharmacological an unfeasible approach in the long-run, which justifies the emergence of non-pharmacological solutions. In fact, patients easily overcome FOG when it is provided a rhythmical temporal information (external cues), favoring a goal-directed gait (biofeedback systems). In this paper, it was intended to assess the tolerability and acceptability of a healthy group towards an augmented reality interface which aims to apply visual cues in temporal synchrony with heel-strike event by an augmented reality glasses. It is intended to be later assessed, the visual cues ability to facilitate motor activity in PD patients. The experimental setup comprised a group of 15 healthy subjects, being those instructed to perform a 30 m straight-walking along an unobstructed walkway, both in the presence of external cues and without any feedback applied. Questionnaires proven visual feedback to be perceived by the users with ease. Users reported interest and curiosity towards the system and proved to be keen to integrate the system into their daily life if they would ever face this disease

Mental health of the population affected after natural disaster of 20 february 2010 in Madeira Autonomous Region

Natural disasters resulting from climate change have increased currently.More and more people feel unprotected without security and therefore vulnerable to stress and anxiety may cause lasting mental illness. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder(PTSD), is an anxiety problem that develops in some people after extremely traumatic events, such as combat, crime, an accident or natural disaster.People with PTSD may relive the event via intrusive memories, flashbacks and nightmares; avoid anything that reminds them of the trauma; and have anxious feelings they didn’t have before that are so intense their lives are disrupt (APA, 2013).Identifying the natural disaster of the 20th February 2010 in the Autonomous Region of Madeira as a potentially traumatic event, the objectives of this research were: (1) to describe the levels of PTSD and dissociative responses to exposure to peritraumatic experiences associated with alluvial the natural disaster of February 20, 2010, in a sample of adults living in the Autonomous Region of wood (RAM), namly in the districts of Funchal, Santa Cruz and Ribeira Brava; (2) to analyze the relationship between the district of residence and levels of PTSD and dissociative responses to exposure to peritraumatic experiences; and (3) to assess the rate of occurrence of PTSD in these individuals. This cross-sectional study included a sample of 602 adults living in the districts most affected like Funchal, Ribeira Brava and Santa Cruz. The instruments for assessing the individuals were the Peritraumatic Experiences Questionnaire (QEPT; Maia, Moreira &Fernandes, 2009) and the Response Evaluation to Traumatic Event Scale (EARAT; McIntyre & Ventura, 1996). The majority of the population was exposed to significant peritraumatic experiences (85.4%) and about a quarter of the sample (25.4%) had criteria for the diagnosis of PTSD. Between the subsamples defined by district in respect to the average scores of the QEPT and subscale EARAT – Long term Responses we verify the existence of statistically significant differences. Most individuals exposed to significant peritraumaticexperiences was found in the sub-sample of Santa Cruz (90.5%) and the highest percentage of people diagnosed with PTSD was found in the sub-sample of Ribeira Brava (32.6%) The scientific importance and the clinical relevance of these findings, envision their usefulness in understanding the impact of this natural disaster with a view to the promotion of mental health in the support to victims of disasters in Madeira.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio