Rate of change in longitudinal EMG indicates time course of an individual's neuromuscular adaptation in resistance-based muscle training

An individual's long-term neuromuscular adaptation can be measured through time-domain analyses of surface electromyograms (EMG) in regular resistance-based training. The perceived changes in recruitment, such as those measured during muscle fatigue, can subsequently prolong the recovery time in rehabilitation applications. Thus, by developing quantifiable methods for measuring neuromuscular adaptation, adjuvant treatments applied during neurorehabilitation can be improved to reduce recovery times and to increase patient quality of care. This study demonstrates a novel time-domain analysis of long-term changes in EMG captured neuromuscular activity that we aim to use to develop a quantified performance metric for muscle-based intervention training and optimization of an individual. We measure EMG of endurance and hypertrophy-based resistance exercises of healthy participants over 100 days to identify trends in long-term neuromuscular adaptation. Particularly, we show that the rate of EMG amplitude increase (motor recruitment) is dependent on the training modality of an individual. Particularly, EMG decreases over time with repetitive training – but the rate of decrease is different in hypertrophy, endurance, and control exercises. We found that the EMG peak contraction decreases across all subjects, on average, by 8.23 dB during hypertrophy exercise and 10.09 dB for endurance exercises over 100 days of training, while control participants showed negligible change. This represents approximately 2 dB difference EMG activity when comparing endurance and hypertrophy exercises, and >8 dB change when comparing to our control cases. As such, we show that the slope of the long-term EMG activity is related to the resistance-based exercise. We believe this can be used to identify person-specific performance metrics, and to create optimized interventions using a measured performance baseline of an individual

The European Reference Genome Atlas: piloting a decentralised approach to equitable biodiversity genomics.

ABSTRACT: A global genome database of all of Earth’s species diversity could be a treasure trove of scientific discoveries. However, regardless of the major advances in genome sequencing technologies, only a tiny fraction of species have genomic information available. To contribute to a more complete planetary genomic database, scientists and institutions across the world have united under the Earth BioGenome Project (EBP), which plans to sequence and assemble high-quality reference genomes for all ∼1.5 million recognized eukaryotic species through a stepwise phased approach. As the initiative transitions into Phase II, where 150,000 species are to be sequenced in just four years, worldwide participation in the project will be fundamental to success. As the European node of the EBP, the European Reference Genome Atlas (ERGA) seeks to implement a new decentralised, accessible, equitable and inclusive model for producing high-quality reference genomes, which will inform EBP as it scales. To embark on this mission, ERGA launched a Pilot Project to establish a network across Europe to develop and test the first infrastructure of its kind for the coordinated and distributed reference genome production on 98 European eukaryotic species from sample providers across 33 European countries. Here we outline the process and challenges faced during the development of a pilot infrastructure for the production of reference genome resources, and explore the effectiveness of this approach in terms of high-quality reference genome production, considering also equity and inclusion. The outcomes and lessons learned during this pilot provide a solid foundation for ERGA while offering key learnings to other transnational and national genomic resource projects.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

Funder: European Society of Intensive Care Medicine; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100013347Funder: Flemish Society for Critical Care NursesAbstract: Purpose: Intensive care unit (ICU) patients are particularly susceptible to developing pressure injuries. Epidemiologic data is however unavailable. We aimed to provide an international picture of the extent of pressure injuries and factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries in adult ICU patients. Methods: International 1-day point-prevalence study; follow-up for outcome assessment until hospital discharge (maximum 12 weeks). Factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injury and hospital mortality were assessed by generalised linear mixed-effects regression analysis. Results: Data from 13,254 patients in 1117 ICUs (90 countries) revealed 6747 pressure injuries; 3997 (59.2%) were ICU-acquired. Overall prevalence was 26.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 25.9–27.3). ICU-acquired prevalence was 16.2% (95% CI 15.6–16.8). Sacrum (37%) and heels (19.5%) were most affected. Factors independently associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries were older age, male sex, being underweight, emergency surgery, higher Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, Braden score 3 days, comorbidities (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, immunodeficiency), organ support (renal replacement, mechanical ventilation on ICU admission), and being in a low or lower-middle income-economy. Gradually increasing associations with mortality were identified for increasing severity of pressure injury: stage I (odds ratio [OR] 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–1.8), stage II (OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.4–1.9), and stage III or worse (OR 2.8; 95% CI 2.3–3.3). Conclusion: Pressure injuries are common in adult ICU patients. ICU-acquired pressure injuries are associated with mainly intrinsic factors and mortality. Optimal care standards, increased awareness, appropriate resource allocation, and further research into optimal prevention are pivotal to tackle this important patient safety threat

Correction to: Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake

Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

Funder: European Society of Intensive Care Medicine; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100013347Funder: Flemish Society for Critical Care NursesAbstract: Purpose: Intensive care unit (ICU) patients are particularly susceptible to developing pressure injuries. Epidemiologic data is however unavailable. We aimed to provide an international picture of the extent of pressure injuries and factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries in adult ICU patients. Methods: International 1-day point-prevalence study; follow-up for outcome assessment until hospital discharge (maximum 12 weeks). Factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injury and hospital mortality were assessed by generalised linear mixed-effects regression analysis. Results: Data from 13,254 patients in 1117 ICUs (90 countries) revealed 6747 pressure injuries; 3997 (59.2%) were ICU-acquired. Overall prevalence was 26.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 25.9–27.3). ICU-acquired prevalence was 16.2% (95% CI 15.6–16.8). Sacrum (37%) and heels (19.5%) were most affected. Factors independently associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries were older age, male sex, being underweight, emergency surgery, higher Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, Braden score 3 days, comorbidities (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, immunodeficiency), organ support (renal replacement, mechanical ventilation on ICU admission), and being in a low or lower-middle income-economy. Gradually increasing associations with mortality were identified for increasing severity of pressure injury: stage I (odds ratio [OR] 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–1.8), stage II (OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.4–1.9), and stage III or worse (OR 2.8; 95% CI 2.3–3.3). Conclusion: Pressure injuries are common in adult ICU patients. ICU-acquired pressure injuries are associated with mainly intrinsic factors and mortality. Optimal care standards, increased awareness, appropriate resource allocation, and further research into optimal prevention are pivotal to tackle this important patient safety threat

Multi-muscle arm movements without planning: proposing a tunable, scalable and robust biomimetic controller

The goal of this thesis is to explore a novel biomimetic control approach for goal-oriented reaching tasks. Specifically, it will demonstrate that a simple spinal-like regulator can exhibit complex behaviours for a variety of movement paradigms. A unique controller is designed based on interpretations of simplified reflex circuits. In addition, special attention is paid to the relationship between the central and spinal motor centers and how they affect the generation of movement commands. It has been observed during visually guided reaching tasks that tectal maps project gain related stimuli to the periphery which may aid in system modulation. By designing the controller to include sensory-integration, it is hypothesized that gain modulation can facilitate unique modes or policies for various reaching tasks. These theories are examined in several essential paradigms that include control of reaching in robots, multi-muscle regulation and coordination in humans or monkeys, as well as kinematic and dynamic variability within each system.The symmetrical reach controller will demonstrate inherent robust behaviours that contrast to earlier theories in biomimetic control, but maintain those that are reminiscent of the biology. Specifically, the research will illustrate an ability to modulate speed, vary accuracy, tune trajectory paths, and even reject external noise, without any need for pre-computations or kinematic planning. Moreover, the system shows adaptive regulation based on sensory dependent stimuli that include internally perceived state estimates, and visually perceived kinematic changes. The thesis will also illustrate how the novel biomimetic controller supports biologically relevant characteristics such as dynamic muscle co-activation and learning as they apply to the underlying system. The theoretical and experimental work presented herein has implications for the development of several rehabilitative devices in biomedical engineering and for improved autonomy in mobile robots.Le but de cette thèse est d'explorer une nouvelle approche biomimétique de commande pour des tâches d'orientation du bras vers un but. Spécifiquement, il sera démontré qu'un simple régulateur de type moelle épinière peut présenter des comportements complexes pour une variété de paradigmes de mouvement. Un contrôleur unique est conçu se basant sur une interprétation simplifiée des circuits réflexes. En outre, une attention particulière est prêtée à la relation entre les centres moteurs des systèmes nerveux central et périphérique et comment ils affectent la production des commandes de mouvement. Pendant des tâches d'orientation visuellement guidées, il a été observé que les cartes des Colliculi projetaient des stimuli reliés au gain vers la périphérie, pouvant ainsi faciliter la modulation du système moteur. En concevant le contrôleur afin d'inclure l'intégration sensorielle, on présume que la modulation de gain peut faciliter des modes uniques pour diverses tâches d'atteinte. Ces théories sont examinées selon plusieurs paradigmes essentiels qui incluent la commande de l'atteinte chez les robots, la régulation des systèmes multi-musculaires et la coordination du bras chez l'homme ou le singe, ainsi que la variabilité cinématique et dynamique à l'intérieur de chaque mouvement. Le contrôleur symétrique démontrera que des comportements robustes sont inhérents dans la commande biomimétique, ce qui contraste avec des théories antérieures. Cependant, cette théorie demeure compatible avec les observations en biologie. Spécifiquement, la recherche illustrera la capacité de moduler la vitesse, changer l'exactitude, syntoniser des trajectoires et même rejeter le bruit externe, sans aucun pré-calcul ou planification cinématique. D'ailleurs, le système démontre une régulation adaptative basée sur les stimuli sensoriels qui incluent des estimations d'états internes perçus et des changements cinématiques visuellement perçus. La thèse illustrera également comment le contrôleur biomimétique soutient des caractéristiques biologiquement pertinentes telles que la co-activation dynamique de muscles antagonistes et l'apprentissage. Ce travail théorique et expérimental présenté ci-dessous a des implications pour le développement de plusieurs appareils de réadaptation dans le domaine technologie biomédicale ainsi que pour l'amélioration de l'autonomie chez les robots mobiles

A portable measurement system for the evaluation of human gait

A tool has been developed which can be used to evaluate human gait in a more detailed manner. Its purpose is to record data from an individual during gait then categorize and analyze the intrinsic phases with neuro-fuzzy techni(TRUNCATED