Pulmonary function and respiratory muscle activation in individuals with chronic spinal cord injury.

Pulmonary complications associated with persistent respiratory muscle weakness and paralyses are critical problems faced by patients with chronic spinal cord injury (SCI). The aim of this dissertation is to investigate the role of neurological injury and neural plasticity on pulmonary function after SCI in humans. We tested the following hypotheses: 1) post-SCI respiratory insufficiency is related to the severity of the spinal lesion; 2) respiratory insufficiency is related to abnormal neuromuscular activity of respiratory muscles and that the electromyographic (EMG) amplitude of respiratory muscles is correlated to respiratory muscle strength and 3) locomotor training, an activity-based therapy, improves pulmonary function in individuals with cervical and upper thoracic SCI. We recorded standard sitting spirometry in SCI (n=35) and non-injured individuals (n=15). We also recorded EMG patterns from inspiratory, expiratory and accessory muscles during maximal respiratory pressures maneuvers. Motor incomplete SCI subjects have significantly higher pulmonary function than motor complete (p = 0.006). The respiratory muscle activation patterns were variable in SCI during all maneuvers. After SCI, neural plasticity results in a compensatory recruitment of non-respiratory muscles for pulmonary function. Higher maximal inspiratory pressure (MIP) is related to higher EMG activity of the upper trapezious in the cervical incomplete group, suggesting that this muscle is being successfully recruited to create higher inspiratory pressure. EMG activity of the latissimus dorsi is negatively correlated with maximal expiratory pressure (MEP) in both cervical motor complete and incomplete subjects, suggesting that this muscle is being recruited as a compensatory strategy for forced expiration in individuals with cervical SCI. Locomotor training is a beneficial intervention for improving pulmonary function in SCI individuals. These findings can improve our understanding of the mechanisms that underlie respiratory insufficiency and may be useful to develop objective, quantitative evaluation of the neural control of respiration after neurologic injury

Karakteristik Gugatan Perdata dalam Tindak Pidana Korupsi di Indonesia

Salah satu cara pengembalian kerugian keuangan negara akibat tindak pidana korupsi adalah melalui upaya perdata. Tujuan penelitian ialah mengkaji karakteristik gugatan perdata dalam perkara tindak pidana korupsi. Jenis penelitian ini ialah penelitian hukum dengan pendekatan perundang-undangan dan konseptual. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa gugatan perdata dimaksudkan untuk memaksimalkan pengembalian keuangan negara, karena upaya pidana tidak selalu berhasil mengembalikan keseluruhan kerugian keuangan negara. Gugatan perdata untuk tindak pidana korupsi dengan dilakukan setelah upaya pidana tidak dimungkinkan lagi untuk diproses karena dihadapkan pada kondisi-kondisi tertentu. Meskipun terdakwa diputus bebas atau meninggal dunia, manakala telah terjadi kerugian keuangan negara, maka Jaksa Pengacara Negara atau instansi yang dirugikan dapat mengajukan gugatanperdata. Karakteristik spesifik gugatan perdata diajukan setelah upaya pidana tidak memungkinkan lagi dilakukan. Sehingga untuk memaksimalkan pengembalian keuangan negara, maka tidak ada pilihan lain negara harus terus-menerus menggalakkan upaya hukum secara perdata

Quality of Residual Neuromuscular Control and Functional Deficits in Patients with Spinal Cord Injury

Study Design: Prospective cohort study. Objective: This study examined the relationship between motor control and clinical function outcomes after spinal cord injury (SCI). Setting: University of Louisville, Louisville, KY, USA. Materials: Eleven persons with SCI and 5 non-injured subjects were included in this study. Methods: The ASIA Impairment Scale (AIS) was used to categorize injury level and severity. Multi-muscle, surface EMG (sEMG) recording, was carried out using a protocol of reflex and volitional motor tasks and was analyzed using a vector-based tool that calculates index values that relate a distribution of multi-muscle activation pattern of each SCI subject to the prototype obtained from non-injured subject group and presents overall magnitude as a separate value. Functional Independence Measure motor sub-scale, Spinal Cord Injury Independence Measure (SCIM-III), and Walking Index for Spinal Cord Injury (WISCI) scale scores were compared to neurophysiological parameters. Results: AIS category and injury level correlated significantly with the WISCI and SCIM mobility sub-scales. sEMG-derived parameters were significantly correlated with SCIM and WISCI scores but only for examinations carried out 48 or more days post-injury. Conclusion: These results supported the hypothesis that clinically relevant function after SCI is related to the degree to which functional organization within the central nervous system is disrupted. Further, due likely to the constraints placed on the expression of functional ability by early post-injury immobilization and hospitalization, neurophysiological assessment of motor function may provide better sensitivity and reliability than can be obtained using the clinical function scales examined here within the early period after injury

Prediction of Maximal Oxygen Consumption from Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE) using a Modified Total-body Recumbent Stepper

International Journal of Exercise Science 8(4): 414-424, 2015. Exercise training is crucial to improve cardiovascular health and quality of life in people with spinal cord injuries (SCI). A key limitation is the lack of validated submaximal tests to evaluate and predict cardiovascular fitness in this population. The purpose of this study was to validate a submaximal test to predict maximal oxygen consumption for individuals with SCI. Ten able-bodied participants and two individuals with SCI completed a rating of perceived exertion (RPE)-based submaximal oxygen consumption test and a graded maximal oxygen consumption test on a NuStep T4 recumbent stepper. Prediction of VO2max from an RPE-based protocol is feasible and can produce reliable predicted VO2max values in the able bodied population. This study is a proof of concept to the implementation of a submaximal test protocol using a total body recumbent stepper to predict VO2max in able-bodied individuals. Additionally, this study shows evidence of feasibility of performing this test in SCI individuals

Planeación, estudios y diseños de 200 viviendas vis en el municipio de Mercaderes - Cauca

El presente proyecto está concebido como solución al problema de vivienda propia para las familias que conforman la Asociación Juan De Palomino, comunidad constituida desde hace 10 años por 200 familias de bajos recursos del municipio El Mercaderes, en el departamento del Cauca, quienes, a través de diferentes actividades lúdicas, adquirieron un lote de 4,3 hectáreas para la construcción de sus viviendas; a la fecha, ninguna entidad ha apoyado y/o financiado a la asociación para la edificación de una urbanización. Este proyecto tuvo su inicio el 09 de diciembre del 2017 y está proyectado terminar el 21 de marzo del 2020. Teniendo en cuenta la problemática descrita anteriormente, la presente investigación tiene como fin participar con la estructuración de un proyecto de construcción de Viviendas de Interés Social (VIS), realizando los estudios de factibilidad, los estudios financieros, ambientales y del entorno, al igual que de mercado y estudio social; para así obtener las licencias hasta la entrega, puesta en marcha y servicio de postventa, de las 200 unidades de vivienda a construir. El Proyecto está estimado en un valor de $ 10.974.384.000 (COP) incluida la reserva de contingencia. El proyecto se financiará con entidades gubernamentales de financiamiento como Findeter, Fonade y Fonvivienda, un crédito constructor tomado por un tiempo de 18 meses y la captación de la cuota inicial de la venta de cada vivienda correspondiente a un 30% del valor total de la unidad habitacional

Eficiência da translocação de nutrientes em plantas

As plantas são organismos que sobrevivem retirando CO2 e água da atmosfera e do solo além dos minerais presentes no mesmo. Os nutrientes minerais adentram no organismo vegetal através das raízes advindos da solução do solo. Outros organismos, como algumas espécies de fungos e bactérias fixadoras de nitrogênio, frequentemente contribuem para a aquisição de nutrientes pelas plantas. Os usos de nutrientes minerais e orgânicos, adicionados aos solos pelos modelos de produção da atualidade, vêm crescendo com o desenvolvimento da agricultura moderna e dos métodos cada vez mais rápidos de identificar e quantificar deficiências nutricionais nos solos e nas plantas. Para seu  crescimento e desenvolvimento as espécies vegetais  variam em sua exigência  nutricional  de  espécie para espécie  e de cultivar para cultivar. O presente trabalho se propõe a levantar as principais referencias a respeito da eficiência e da translocação de nutrientes, propondo alguns questionamentos e alertando para a falta de pesquisa na área. Enquanto áreas como o melhoramento genético avançam muito rapidamente a área da compreensão da nutrição caminha a passos curtos

Lux meter digital

Alat ukur cahaya (Lux meter digital) adalah alat yang digunakan untuk mengukur besarnya intensitas cahaya di suatu tempat. Besarnya intensitas cahaya ini perlu untuk kita ketahui karena pada biasanya manusia juga memerlukan penerangan yang cukup, baik itu dalam pekerjaan maupun di dalam ruangan tempat manusia beraktivitas. Untuk mengetahui besarnya intensitas cahaya ini maka sangat diperlukan sebuah sensor yang cukup peka dan linier terhadap cahaya. Sehingga cahaya yang diterima oleh sensor dapat kita ukur dan ditampilkan pada sebuah display. Pada skripsi ini direneanakan sebuah alat ukur cahaya yang dapat mengukur dengan range 200 - 2000 lux. Harga dari besamya cahaya ini dapat ditampiikan pada layar LCD dengan menggunakan sebuah ADC Max ICL7106 dengan tegangan input maksimum 200 m V - 2 V dan tegangan referensi 100 mV-I V. Dan tentu saja dengan menggunakan sebuah sensor cahaya, yaitu solar cell dengan output tegangan sebesar 0.5 V dan arus 20-30 mA. Alat ukur ini dibuat portable dengan menggunakan tegangan sumber 9 V DC dari baterai. Pereneanaan dan pcmbuatan dari alat ukur ini cukup sederhana hanya meliputi Sensor Cahaya, Rangkaian Pengubah Arus ke Tegangan, Rangkalan ADC dan Rangkaian LCD. Dari data pengukuran aiat dengan pembanding (digital light Meter RS ISO-Tech II.M 350) dapat dilihat bahwa alat ini dapat bekeria dengan cukup baik pada media pengukuran dengan jarak antara sensor cahaya dengan sumber cahaya antara 60 cm - 70 cm dengan persentase ketidakpresisian antara 0.411 % - 0.677%