Correlation of the exposure to a pollutant with a task-related action or workplace: the CAPTIV system.
(9/1017)
Usually, measurement of pollution at the workplace is performed by air sampling on solid absorbents and filters. The information obtained is the mean value of worker exposure over the sampling period. The use of specific sensors for chemicals can give complementary information, namely continuous exposure information. The CAPTIV system permits one to centralize and store this information along with a video system which restores the images of the workplace. Also, the stored video sequences, correlated to specified exposures, can be found automatically. This gives a rich information resource. In particular it allows one to correlate the occupational activity with the exposure level. The analysis of collected information may lead to advice on good practice at the workplace or even to proposals for modification of existing equipment and processes. A huge quantity of information to be processed is obtained with this new approach. The best use of it can only be made with the help of a high capacity processing tool. That is the reason why CAPTIV has been equipped with a data processor support system. At the end of this paper, we present an example of using CAPTIV to study a stone-cutting work station. (+info)
Video-assisted replacement or bypass grafting of the descending thoracic aorta with a new sutureless vascular prosthesis: an experimental study.
(10/1017)
PURPOSE: The feasibility of the video-assisted insertion of a new sutureless vascular prosthesis was studied. METHODS: Seven sheep, weighing 25 to 35 kg, were operated on under general anesthesia. The animals were intubated with a single-lumen endotracheal tube and placed in the right lateral decubitus position. A thoracoscope was introduced in the 11th intercostal space, and a minithoracotomy (4 to 5 cm) was performed in the seventh intercostal space. After retraction of the lung, a short segment (10 cm) of the descending thoracic aorta was exposed. Our prosthesis was made of Dacron and was specifically designed to be inserted without a suture. After systemic heparinization, the aorta was cross-clamped with two vascular clamps introduced into the thoracic cavity through two 5-mm thoracic incisions. The aorta was either replaced (five cases) or bypass grafted (two cases). At the completion of the procedure, blood pressure was pharmacologically increased (5 mg intravenous bolus of epinephrine), and each anastomosis was checked for bleeding. All animals were killed, and the prosthesis was retrieved for macroscopic examination. RESULTS: The procedure was completed in each case without extension of the minithoracotomy. Insertion of the prosthesis was easy and fast, and completion of each anastomosis required 10 to 15 minutes. A 3- to 4-mm space between each clip was sufficient for proper attachment. All procedures were performed in less than 120 minutes. No bleeding was observed at the level of each anastomosis, even when a sustained high blood pressure was induced. The proper insertion of the prosthesis and the absence of any anastomotic stenosis was confirmed by means of macroscopic examination. CONCLUSION: Video-thoracoscopic replacement or bypass grafting of the descending thoracic aorta was easy with this new sutureless vascular prosthesis. Minimally invasive vascular surgery might be facilitated with such a prosthesis. However, long-term animal studies are required before human implantation can be undertaken. (+info)
Correlates of family-oriented physician communications.
(11/1017)
BACKGROUND: Family orientation in patient care has long been one of the primary tenets of the practice of family medicine. Yet we know surprisingly little about how frequently family-oriented transactions occur in actual doctor-patient encounters, or about what other aspects of physician communication patterns might be associated with increased family orientation. The purpose of this study was to investigate both frequency and correlates of family orientation in a residency-based practice. METHODS: Sixty videotapes representing 38 second and third-year residents interviewing a range of multiethnic patients over a 2-year period at a community clinic were analysed for evidence of family-oriented communications, as well as other interaction behaviours such as information exchange and partnership building. Inter-rater agreement was 78%. RESULTS: Asking for medical information, clarifying patient information, and giving medical information and explanations were the most common types of resident actions. Family orientation was much less common, but was more frequently observed than the eliciting of a patient-centered agenda or suggestion of a psychosocial intervention or referral. Family orientation was associated with longer interviews, non-interpreted interviews, more physician questions and clarifying behaviours, and greater tendency to elicit the patient's agenda. CONCLUSIONS: Findings of this investigation suggest that family orientation in the medical interview is enhanced by having more time and a shared language, as well as a generally probing, clarifying, patient-centered style on the part of the physician. (+info)
Can 40 seconds of compassion reduce patient anxiety?
(12/1017)
PURPOSE: To use a standardized videotape stimulus to assess the effect of physician compassion on viewers' anxiety, information recall, treatment decisions, and assessment of physician characteristics. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS: One hundred twenty-three healthy female breast cancer survivors and 87 women without cancer were recruited for this study. A randomized pretest/posttest control group design with a standardized videotape intervention was used. Participants completed the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), an information recall test, a compassion rating, and physician attribute rating scales. RESULTS: Women who saw an "enhanced compassion" videotape rated the physician as warmer and more caring, sensitive, and compassionate than did women who watched the "standard" videotape. Women who saw the enhanced compassion videotape were significantly less anxious after watching it than the women in the other group. Nevertheless, information recall was relatively low for both groups, and enhanced compassion did not influence patient decisions. Those who saw the enhanced compassion videotape rated the doctor significantly higher on other positive attributes, such as wanting what was best for the patient and encouraging the patient's questions and involvement in decisions. CONCLUSION: The enhanced compassion segment was short, simple, and effective in decreasing viewers' anxiety. Further research is needed to translate these findings to the clinical setting, where reducing patient anxiety is a therapeutic goal. (+info)
An ethogram of body patterning behavior in the biomedically and commercially valuable squid Loligo pealei off Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
(13/1017)
Squids have a wide repertoire of body patterns; these patterns contain visual signals assembled from a highly diverse inventory of chromatic, postural, and locomotor components. The chromatic components reflect the activity of dermal chromatophore organs that, like the postural and locomotor muscles, are controlled directly from the central nervous system. Because a thorough knowledge of body patterns is fundamental to an understanding of squid behavior, we have compiled and described an ethogram (a catalog of body patterns and associated behaviors) for Loligo pealei. Observations of this species were made over a period of three years (> or = 440 h) and under a variety of behavioral circumstances. The natural behavior of the squid was filmed on spawning grounds off Cape Cod (northwestern Atlantic), and behavioral trials in the laboratory were run in large tanks. The body pattern components--34 chromatic (including 4 polarization components), 5 postural, and 12 locomotor--are each described in detail. Eleven of the most common body patterns are also described. Four of them are chronic, or long-lasting, patterns for crypsis; an example is Banded Bottom Sitting, which produces disruptive coloration against the substrate. The remaining seven patterns are acute; they are mostly used in intraspecific communication among spawning squids. Two of these acute patterns--Lateral Display and Mate Guarding Pattern--are used during agonistic bouts and mate guarding; they are visually bright and conspicuous, which may subject the squids to predation; but we hypothesize that schooling and diurnal activity may offset the disadvantage presented by increased visibility to predators. The rapid changeability and the diversity of body patterns used for crypsis and communication are discussed in the context of the behavioral ecology of this species. (+info)
Blood pressure standards for very low birthweight infants during the first day of life.
(14/1017)
Blood pressures during the first day of life were measured prospectively in 61 very low birthweight infants using umbilical or peripheral arterial lines. Video recordings of real time waveforms were reviewed. Blood pressure correlated linearly with birthweight and gestation. Comparison with available standards showed that infants weighing under 800 g had lower acceptable mean arterial pressure (MAP). The lower limits of MAP for infants between 26 to 32 weeks of gestation were numerically similar to the gestational ages. (+info)
Quantitative study of spontaneous eye blinks and eye tics in Gilles de la Tourette's syndrome.
(15/1017)
Spontaneous eye blink rate and frequency of eye tics were studied in nine Tourette patients during periods of rest, conversation, and video watching. In comparison with controls, the Tourette patients showed a significantly higher blink rate during rest and video watching. Conversation induced a significant increase in blink rate in the control group, but not in the Tourette patients, whereas video watching significantly increased blink rate in both groups. The frequency of eye tics showed a significant decrease during conversation and increased significantly during video watching in Tourette patients. In five patients, a significant positive correlation between blink rate and eye tic frequency was found, whereas one patient showed a significant negative correlation. Our results show that, even though some of our patients were on neuroleptic treatment, blink rate was about twofold to threefold increased versus healthy controls, suggesting increased central dopaminergic activity. Furthermore, these first quantitative data illustrate task specific effects on eye tic frequency and the complexity of their relation with eye blinks. (+info)
High-frequency periodic sources underlie ventricular fibrillation in the isolated rabbit heart.
(16/1017)
The mechanism(s) underlying ventricular fibrillation (VF) remain unclear. We hypothesized that at least some forms of VF are not random and that high-frequency periodic sources of activity manifest themselves as spatiotemporal periodicities, which drive VF. Twenty-four VF episodes from 8 Langendorff-perfused rabbit hearts were studied using high-resolution video imaging in conjunction with ECG recordings and spectral analysis. Sequential wavefronts that activated the ventricles in a spatially and temporally periodic fashion were identified. In addition, we analyzed the lifespan and dynamics of wavelets in VF, using a new method of phase mapping that enables identification of phase singularity points (PSs), which flank individual wavelets. Spatiotemporal periodicity was found in 21 of 24 episodes. Complete reentry on the epicardial surface was observed in 3 of 24 episodes. The cycle length of discrete regions of spatiotemporal periodicity correlated highly with the dominant frequency of the optical pseudo-ECG (R(2)=0.75) and with the global bipolar electrogram (R(2)=0.79). The lifespan of PSs was short (14.7+/-14.4 ms); 98% of PSs existed for <1 rotation. The mean number of waves entering (6.50+/-0.69) exceeded the mean number of waves that exited our mapping field (4.25+/-0.56; P<0.05). These results strongly suggest that ongoing stable sources are responsible for the majority of the frequency content of VF and therefore play a role in its maintenance. In this model, multiple wavelets resulting from wavebreaks do not appear to be responsible for the sustenance of this arrhythmia, but are rather the consequence of breakup of high-frequency activation from a dominant reentrant source. (+info)