Getting Started with Research Beginning: Defining a Research Question and Preparing a Research Plan

Research is the lifeblood of medicine with innovations being made in the different technologies used to diagnose and / or screen for the presence of disease or to deliver treatments with higher efficacy. Scientific publication is the network of vessels which delivers the lifeblood. The outputs of research provides us with tomorrows medicine. In this series of articles we will be discussing the different aspects of carrying out research from the conception of the research idea to publication in a peer reviewed journal with the cycle repeating again with new research ideas emerging from the research conducted

Getting Started With Research Carrying Out Your Research Project

This paper gives an overview of the considerations and practical aspects of carrying out a research project which may be of use to those beginning their research career or simply carrying out a research project for the first time as part of an academic qualification. It outlines practical steps for consideration in the day to day management of a research project and highlights areas which require particular consideration for a project to be completed successfully

An evaluation case study investigating the use of haptic ultrasound training devices to help Clinical Measurement Science students conceptualise Diagnostic Ultrasound

The aim of this project was to investigate the use of a haptic ultrasound training device as a training aid to improve students’ learning, competency and confidence, in the conceptually and technically challenging area of diagnostic ultrasound imaging. The research question was investigated through the use of an evaluative case study using a mixed methods approach, with each method converging to ensure triangulation. The quantitative evaluations of the Multiple Choice Questions, psychometric manipulation test and direct observation of ultrasound scanning manipulation, demonstrated improvements of 12%, 29% and 94%, respectively between pre- and post-training performance. The qualitative evaluation of students’ confidence level carrying out an ultrasound examination following the training intervention indicated that the training intervention was regarded positively by the students, demonstrated by the high level of confidence reported by the students, with a mean score of 4.43 / 5. In conclusion, the use of a haptic ultrasound training device was found to improve the students’ link between theory and practice, their hand-eye coordination, and allowed them to gain confidence in diagnostic ultrasound scanning

Getting Started with Research Writing-up the Results of Your Research

This paper gives an overview of the considerations and practical aspects of writing-up the results of your research which may be of interest to those beginning their research career or simply carrying out a research project for the first time as part of an academic qualification. It outlines practical steps for both writing-up the results of your research as an academic report and thereafter disseminating your results more widely as a peer-reviewed scientific publication

Development of a Novel Method for Assessing Balance: the Quantitative Posturography System

Balance is the ability to maintain equilibrium while sitting or standing. There are a number of different methods, which are used to assess balance: technical methods such as Sway Magnetometry, Ataxia Meter and Force Platforms and clinical methods such as Functional Reach Test, Berg Balance Test and Fall Risk Index. The most frequently used technical method is the force platform. There are two types of Force Platform a static and a dynamic Force Platform of which the dynamic Force Platform has been found to be more sensitive at detecting impaired balance. The Quantitative Posturography System (QPS) described in this paper is a type of dynamic Force Platform, however it has a simpler design to the currently available dynamic Force Platforms and can match the subjects sway exactly for tilting in the Anterio-Posterior and Medio-Lateral directions with its novel design. This paper describes the novel design of the QPS and its calibration

The Effects of Fatty Desposits on the Accuracy of the Fibroscan Liver Transient Elastography Ultrasound System

A new generation of ultrasound transient elastography (TE) systems have emerged which exploit the well-known correlation between the liver’s pathological and mechanical properties through measurements of the Young’s elastic modulus; however, little work has been carried out to examine the effect that fatty deposits may have on the TE measurement accuracy. An investigation was carried out on the effects on the measurement accuracy of a transient elastography ultrasound system, the Fibroscan®, caused by overlaying fat layers of varying thickness on healthy liver-mimicking phantoms, simulating in vivo conditions for obese patients. Furthermore, a steatosis effect similar to that in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and alcoholic liver disease (ALD) was simulated to investigate its effect on the TE system. A range of novel elastography fat-mimicking materials were developed using 6-10wt% poly(vinyl alcohol) cryogel capable of achieving a range of acoustic velocities (1482-1530m/s) and attenuation coefficients (0.4-1dB/MHz/cm) for simulating different liver states. Laboratory-based acoustic velocities and attenuation coefficients were measured while the Young’s modulus was established through a gold standard compression testing method. A significant variation of the Young’s elastic modulus was measured in healthy phantoms with overlaying fat layers of thicknesses exceeding 45mm, impinging on the scanners region of interest, overestimating the compression tested values by up to 11kPa in some cases. Furthermore, Fibroscan® measurements of the steatosis phantoms showed a consistent overestimation (~54%), which strongly suggests that the speed of sound mismatch between that of liver tissue and that assumed by the scanner is responsible for the high clinical cut-offs established in the case of ALD and NAFLD

Comparative Review of Imaging Methods Used for Diagnosing Renal Artery Stenosis (RAS)

This comparative review examines the efficacy of different imaging methods to detect and quantify renal artery stenosis (RAS). Detection of RAS is important because it can lead to renovascular hypertension which is the most common form of secondary hypertension. Furthermore, it is important that a RAS is detected as early as possible as it is a potentially correctable cause of hypertension.1 If detected at an early stage RAS can potentially be treated using a minimally invasive drug treatment regimen rather than the more invasive percutaneous transluminal renal angioplasty without or with stent placement or surgery. Currently there are a number of different types of modalities used to image the renal artery and determine whether a stenosis is present. Each of these imaging modalities has its own positive and negative aspects, which will be discussed in turn

Evaluation of CIRS String Doppler Phantom as a Test Tool for Use in a Doppler Ultrasound Quality Assurance Program

Ultrasound Doppler systems are routinely used to perform blood flow velocity measurements which assist in the clinical assessment and diagnosis of vascular. Doppler measurements of peak velocities for vascular applications provide an indication of the degree of the stenosis which will ultimately assist in deciding how a patient is managed. It is imperative that Doppler systems are capable of accurately measuring blood flow velocities to ensure correct diagnosis and appropriate patient treatment; therefore such systems should be evaluated regularly as part of a Quality Assurance program. Although a range of Doppler test phantoms have been developed for quality control (QC) purposes to establish the measurement accuracy and stability of Doppler systems only a limited number of such test phantoms are commercially available, the easiest of these devices to operate is the String Phantom. Currently, only one string Doppler phantom is commercially available, namely the CIRS Model 043. In this study an evaluation of the performance of this test device was carried out as a number of problems currently exist with it such as the filament type, the fact that the filament passes through a water–air interface and vibrations from the motor. This study has established that the braided-silk filament, provided with the phantom, should not be used as it introduces errors of as much as 24% for the mean velocity accuracy and 20% for the intrinsic spectral broadening (ISB) depending on the soak time of the filament. Rather, to avoid such errors it is advised that the phantom be retrofitted with a filament made from an O-ring rubber. While this eliminates the temporal changes in backscatter seen with the braided-silk filament, further discrepancies were observed, even with an O-ring filament, when the filament velocity was set in the range 26–44 cm/s, where a resonance effect significantly increased the variability of the maximum velocity accuracy and ISB measurements. This was most likely as a result of the imposed vibrations from the motor, which is mounted directly onto the tank wall; hence, it would prove practical to avoid taking measurements in this velocity range where resonance effects are observed