The Hycel-M multichannel analyzer--a model for evaluation.
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We evaluated the Hycel-M Multichannel Analyzer on behalf of the British Department of Health and Social Security. The purpose of the evaluation was to determine the precision of the instrument over a prolonged period of time, to compare its results with those of well-tried laboratory procedures, and to determine how the instrument would perform under the rigors of routine analysis. In addition, experiments were designed and carried out to test specifically certain new features of the instrument. Some new approaches to the analysis of the data generated have been examined and are discussed. The findings are presented as a demonstration of an evaluation procedure. (+info)
Data handling and reporting for microbiology specimens with a small laboratory computer system.
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A small laboratory computer system designed for general application in chemistry, haematology, and urinalysis has been adapted for the bacteriology section of the laboratory using the same available programming routines. Specimens are requisitioned according to predetermined common site codes, with both preliminary and final reporting allowed for where desired. Sensitivity data also appended and entered where required, even for different organisms in the same culture. (+info)
Amblyopic eyes have longer reaction times.
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The RT (reaction time) to a 0.25 degree spot of light was measured monocularly on 25 normal subjects and 36 strabismic patients. The overall mean RT and the delta RT (difference in RT between the right and left eyes) for the 19 strabismic patients without amblyopia did not differ significantly from that of the normal subjects. The overall mean RT of the dominant eyes of the 17 amblyopic patients did not differ significantly from that of either the faster of slower eyes of the normal subjects. The overall mean RT of the amblyopic eyes was significantly longer than that of the normal subjects. The delta RT was significantly larger in the amblyopic patients. A regression analysis of the visual acuity of the amblyopic eye and the delta RT showed that the data was best fit by a linear equation. The coefficient of correlation was +0.82. Additional experiments showed that the longer Rt of the amblyopic eyes was not caused by eccentric fixation or by the reduced visual acuity. (+info)
Quality control of scintillation cameras using a minicomputer.
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A minicomputer-based technique compiles objective indicators of scintigraphic system performance. The evaluation begins with the acquisition of a single image of an orthogonal hole pattern from which quantitative and regional measurements of point-source sensitivity, spatial resolution, and spatial linearity are derived. Two computer programs offer the user different but complementary features. The first program is the basis of an evaluation performed by a technologist for purposes of quality control. Operator intervention is minimal, and the entire protocol, including data acquisition and processing, can be completed in 20 min. The results are automatically compiled and displayed as graphs showing 100 consecutive sets of daily performance measurements. A second computer program is designed as an interactive diagnostic and research tool to display measurements as histograms and functional images. The operator can use the program to determine the quantitative and spatial characteristics of the system's intrinsic performance measurements made during the quality-control evaluations. (+info)
Microfiche as a medium for the long-term storage of laboratory computer records.
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The chemical pathology requests on 180 000 patients a year are stored on microfiche, occupying 72 mm of shelf space. They are produced by a sequence of three computer programs which remove data from disc on to magnetic tape using the laboratory's Digital Equipment Corporation PDP 11/34 minicomputer. Processing on to microfiche is performed by a bureau. The magnetic tape is available for retrospective research and management studies in one-month periods. (+info)
Diagnosis of alcoholic cirrhosis with the right-to-left hepatic lobe ratio: concise communication.
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Since scans of cirrhotic livers commonly show a reduction in size and colloid uptake of the right lobe, a quantitative measure of uptake was made using a minicomputer to determine total counts in regions of interest defined over each lobe. Right-to-left ratios were then compared in 103 patients. For normal patients the mean ratio +/- 1 s.d. was 2.85 +/- 0.65, and the mean for patients with known cirrhosis was 1.08 +/- 0.33. Patients with other liver diseases had ratios similar to the normal group. The normal range of the right-to-left lobe ratio was 1.55-4.15. The sensitivity of the ratio for alcoholic cirrhosis was 85.7% and the specificity was 100% in this patient population. The right-to-left lobe ratio was more sensitive and specific for alcoholic cirrhosis than any other criterion tested. An hypothesis is described to explain these results. (+info)
An automatic sleep-stage analysis system with off-line high-speed processing using a super mini-computer.
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An automatic sleep analysis system using a super mini-computer was developed. The system improved and expanded the data processed by the mini-computer. It had the following features: 1) wave-forms were collected and analyzed at a high speed (reproduced at 10 or 20 times the speed of a data recorder) by an off-line procedure to utilize the computer resources more efficiently; 2) all information and the original wave-forms were output to a laser printer because of the lower cost and more efficient arrangement of the data; 3) various wave-form parameters were measured by wave-form analysis; 4) the application program was based on general-purpose language; and 5) wave-form reanalysis and reconstruction of the logic was easily implemented for automatic evaluation of the sleep stages. Automatic analysis of the sleep stages was impossible for 15 of 1484 periods (20 sec per period) with one of the cases analyzed, and 142 of 1484 periods had to be corrected because of erroneous identification. (+info)
Force pattern of hypoxic myocardium applied to oxygenated muscle preparations: comparison with effects of regional ischemia on the contraction of non-ischemic myocardium.
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OBJECTIVE: To examine the basis for local wall motion abnormalities commonly seen in patients with ischemic heart disease, computer-controlled isolated muscle studies were carried out. METHODS: Force patterns of physiologically sequenced contractions (PSCs) from rat left ventricular muscle preparations under well-oxygenated conditions and during periods of hypoxia and reoxygenation were recorded and stored in a computer. Force patterns of hypoxic-reoxygenating and oxygenated myocardium were applied to oxygenated and hypoxic-reoxygenating myocardium, respectively. RESULTS: Observed patterns of shortening and lengthening closely resemble those obtained from ischemic and non-ischemic myocardial segments using ultrasonic crystals in intact dog hearts during coronary occlusion and reperfusion, and are similar to findings reported in angiographic studies of humans with coronary artery disease. CONCLUSION: The current study, demonstrating motions of oxygenated isolated muscle preparations which are similar to those in perfused segments of intact hearts with regional ischemia, supports the concept that the multiple motions of both ischemic and non-ischemic segments seen in regional myocardial disease can be explained by interactions of strongly and weakly contracting muscle during the physiologic cardiac cycle. (+info)