PROJECTED LIGHT SYSTEM FOR TRUNK SURFACE RECONSTRUCTION AND VOLUME MEASUREMENT DURING RESPIRATION

There is an increasing interest on developing non invasive and accurate methods to obtain torso shape and deformation during movement. Methods like inductance pletismography (Warren et al. 1989), magnetommetry (Verschakelen & Demedts 1995) and kinematical analysis (Ferrigno et al. 1994) have been proposed to access the pulmonary function based on trunk motion analysis. Measurements of body shape and dimensions are widely used on ergonomic and anthropometry designs fields (Allen et al. 2004) and to estimate body segment parameters for the analysis of human movement (Wicke et al. 2009). The aim of this work was to present a video-based method for trunk volumes measurement during the respiration by means of projected light and surface reconstruction

THE INFLUENCE OF TWO VARIABLES OF THE NONLINEAR CAMERA CALIBRATION ON THE 3D UNDERWATER ACCURACY

The purpose of this study was to control two variables of the nonlinear camera calibration to evaluate if they affect the 3D undewater accuracy. Two cameras (GoPro, 60 Hz) were fixed in the swimming pool. In order to evaluate the influence of a distance constrain (1 and 2 markers) and the movement of the wand calibration, we performed three different movements: M1 (zig zag), M2 (circular) and M3 (up and down). In each condition the 3D accuracy were assessed in seven trials of a dynamic rigid bar test (ANOVA,

UNDERWATER COMPARISON OF WAND AND 2D PLANE NONLINEAR CAMERA CALIBRATION METHODS

The purpose of this study was to compare two nonlinear camera calibration methods for 3D underwater motion analysis. The DVideo kinematic analysis system was used for underwater online data acquisition. The system consisted of two gen-locked Basler cameras working at 100Hz, with wide angle lenses that were enclosed in housings. The accuracy of both methods was compared in a dynamic rigid bar test. The mean absolute errors were 1.16mm for wand calibration, 1.20mm for 2D plane calibration using 8 control points and 0.73mm for 2D plane calibration using 16 control points. The results of both nonlinear camera calibration methods provided better underwater accuracy than all previous papers reported in literature. Both methods provided similar and highly accurate results, providing promising alternatives for underwater 3D motion analysis

Software for full-color 3D reconstruction of the biological tissues internal structure

A software for processing sets of full-color images of biological tissue histological sections is developed. We used histological sections obtained by the method of high-precision layer-by-layer grinding of frozen biological tissues. The software allows restoring the image of the tissue for an arbitrary cross-section of the tissue sample. Thus, our method is designed to create a full-color 3D reconstruction of the biological tissue structure. The resolution of 3D reconstruction is determined by the quality of the initial histological sections. The newly developed technology available to us provides a resolution of up to 5 - 10 {\mu}m in three dimensions.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figure

Tumor tracking based on correlation models in scanned ion beam therapy: an experimental study

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Changes in the use of anti-asthmatic medication in an international cohort

To access publisher full text version of this article. Please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links fieldThe aim of this study was to describe changes in pharmacotherapy for asthma since the early 1990s in an international cohort of young and middle-aged adults. A total of 28 centres from 14 countries participated in a longitudinal study. The study included 8,829 subjects with a mean follow-up time of 8.7 yrs. Change in the prevalence of use for medication was expressed as absolute net change (95% confidence interval) standardised to a 10-yr period. The use of anti-asthmatics was found to have increased by 3.1% (2.4-3.7%) and the prevalence of symptomatic asthma by 4.0% (3.5-4.5%). In the sample with asthma in both surveys (n=423), the use of inhaled corticosteroids increased by 12.2% (6.6-17.8%). Despite this, only 17.2% were using inhaled corticosteroids on a daily basis at follow-up. Females with continuous asthma were more likely, compared with males, and smokers with asthma, to have started using inhaled corticosteroids since the first survey. The use of anti-asthmatics has increased in a pattern consistent with current consensus on treatment. However, despite increased use of inhaled corticosteroids, a large majority of subjects with symptomatic asthma do not use this treatment on a daily basis, particularly males and smokers with asthma

Can differences in medical drug compliance between European countries be explained by social factors: analyses based on data from the European Social Survey, round 2

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Non-compliance with medication is a major health problem. Cultural differences may explain different compliance patterns. The size of the compliance burden and the impact of socio-demographic and socio-economic status within and across countries in Europe have, however, never been analysed in one survey. The aim of this study was to analyse 1) medical drug compliance in different European countries with respect to socio-demographic and socio-economic factors, and to examine 2) whether cross-national differences could be explained by these factors.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A multi-country interview survey <it>European Social Survey, Round 2 </it>was conducted in 2004/05 comprising questions about compliance with last prescribed drug. Non-compliance was classified as primary and secondary, depending whether the drug was purchased or not. Statistical weighting allowed for adjustment for national differences in sample mechanisms. A multiple imputation strategy was used to compensate for missing values. The analytical approach included multivariate and multilevel analyses.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The survey comprised 45,678 participants. Response rate was 62.5% (range 43.6–79.1%). Reported compliance was generally high (82%) but the pattern of non-compliance showed large variation between countries. Some 3.2% did not purchase the most recently prescribed medicine, and 13.6% did not take the medicine as prescribed. Multiple regression analyses showed that each variable had very different and in some cases opposite impact on compliance within countries. The multilevel analysis showed that the variation between countries did not change significantly when adjusted for increasing numbers of covariates.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Reported compliance was generally high but showed wide variation between countries. Cross-national differences could, however, not be explained by the socio-demographic and socio-economic variables measured.</p

Reference values for methacholine reactivity (SAPALDIA study)

BACKGROUND: The distribution of airway responsiveness in a general population of non-smokers without respiratory symptoms has not been established, limiting its use in clinical and epidemiological practice. We derived reference equations depending on individual characteristics (i.e., sex, age, baseline lung function) for relevant percentiles of the methacholine two-point dose-response slope. METHODS: In a reference sample of 1567 adults of the SAPALDIA cross-sectional survey (1991), defined by excluding subjects with respiratory conditions, responsiveness during methacholine challenge was quantified by calculating the two-point dose-response slope (O'Connor). Weighted L1-regression was used to estimate reference equations for the 95(th ), 90(th ), 75(th )and 50(th )percentiles of the two-point slope. RESULTS: Reference equations for the 95(th ), 90(th ), 75(th )and 50(th )percentiles of the two-point slope were estimated using a model of the form a + b* Age + c* FEV(1 )+ d* (FEV(1))(2 ), where FEV(1 )corresponds to the pre-test (or baseline) level of FEV(1). For the central half of the FEV(1 )distribution, we used a quadratic model to describe the dependence of methacholine slope on baseline FEV(1). For the first and last quartiles of FEV(1), a linear relation with FEV(1 )was assumed (i.e., d was set to 0). Sex was not a predictor term in this model. A negative linear association with slope was found for age. We provide an Excel file allowing calculation of the percentile of methacholine slope of a subject after introducing age – pre-test FEV(1 )– and results of methacholine challenge of the subject. CONCLUSION: The present study provides equations for four relevant percentiles of methacholine two-point slope depending on age and baseline FEV(1 )as basic predictors in an adult reference population of non-obstructive and non-atopic persons. These equations may help clinicians and epidemiologists to better characterize individual or population airway responsiveness

Lung function decline in relation to diagnostic criteria for airflow obstruction in respiratory symptomatic subjects

Contains fulltext : 108583.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)BACKGROUND: Current COPD guidelines advocate a fixed < 0.70 FEV1/FVC cutpoint to define airflow obstruction. We compared rate of lung function decline in respiratory symptomatic 40+ subjects who were 'obstructive' or 'non-obstructive' according to the fixed and/or age and gender specific lower limit of normal (LLN) FEV1/FVC cutpoints. METHODS: We studied 3,324 respiratory symptomatic subjects referred to primary care diagnostic centres for spirometry. The cohort was subdivided into four categories based on presence or absence of obstruction according to the fixed and LLN FEV1/FVC cutpoints. Postbronchodilator FEV1 decline served as primary outcome to compare subjects between the respective categories. RESULTS: 918 subjects were obstructive according to the fixed FEV1/FVC cutpoint; 389 (42%) of them were non-obstructive according to the LLN cutpoint. In smokers, postbronchodilator FEV1 decline was 21 (SE 3) ml/year in those non-obstructive according to both cutpoints, 21 (7) ml/year in those obstructive according to the fixed but not according to the LLN cutpoint, and 50 (5) ml/year in those obstructive according to both cutpoints (p = 0.004). CONCLUSION: This study showed that respiratory symptomatic 40+ smokers and non-smokers who show FEV1/FVC values below the fixed 0.70 cutpoint but above their age/gender specific LLN value did not show accelerated FEV1 decline, in contrast with those showing FEV1/FVC values below their LLN cutpoint