bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Videogames as Therapy
Authors: Griffiths Mark , Kuss Daria J. , Ortiz de Gortari Angelica B.
Published: June 2013

There is a long history of using videogames in a therapeutic capacity, including rehabilitation for stroke patients, people with traumatic brain injuries, burns victims, wheelchair users, Erb’s palsy sufferers, children undergoing chemotherapy, children with muscular dystrophy, and autistic children. This chapter briefly examines a number of areas including: (1) videogames as physiotherapy and occupational therapy, (2) videogames as distractors in the role of pain management, (3) videogames and cognitive rehabilitation, (4) videogames and the development of social and communication skills among the learning disabled, (5) videogames and impulsivity/attention deficit disorders, (6) videogames and therapeutic benefits in the elderly, (7) videogames in psychotherapeutic settings, (8) videogames and health care, and (9) videogames and anxiety disorders. It is concluded that there has been considerable success when games are designed to address a specific problem or to teach a certain skill. However, generalizability outside the game-playing situation remains an important consideration.
Optical Fiber Technology for eHealthcare
Authors: Alberto Nélia Jordão , Bilro Lúcia Maria Botas , Antunes Paulo Fernando da Costa , Leitão Cátia Sofia Jorge , Lima Hugo Filipe Teixeira , André Paulo Sérgio de Brito , Nogueira Rogério Nunes , Pinto João de Lemos
Published: June 2013

In the last years, optical fiber based sensors and systems for ehealthcare attracted the attention of the scientific community. Over this chapter, optical fiber technology is presented, referring the different types of optical fibers, its main characteristics, and advantages over other sensing methodologies. In addition, optical fiber based sensors and sensing techniques are discussed and several works reported in the literature are reviewed showing that they are a valuable technique to improve healthcare service to the community and as a potential solution to answer different problems. The final section of the chapter consists of the description of three applications of optical sensors in healthcare, namely monitoring of human joint movement, measuring strain of biological tissues, and characterization of medical materials.
A Design Framework for a Market Intelligence System for Healthcare Sector
Authors: Jamil George , Furbino Lorena , Santos Leandro , Alves Marcus , Santiago Rafael , Loyola Silvia
Published: June 2013

The healthcare market is a dynamic sector, where marketing decisions are decisive and critical. Strategic and tactical planning demand data and information to produce knowledge, which will capacitate firms for business maneuvers as product positioning, pricing, and technological implementation for optimal business development. Marketing data and information must be provided from a variety of sources to produce knowledge, in a process that can be characterized as “organizational intelligence.” Collected contents from healthcare associated industrial sectors, such as chemical and pharmaceutical, have the potential to produce integrated value chain knowledge, improving analysis and decision processes. Approaching the healthcare market, a framework for an intelligence system for marketing decisions is discussed in this chapter. Initially reviewing the literature, a conceptual base is formed, which delimits the evaluation of intended framework. As an exam of practical marketing intelligence system application, case studies of real decisions observed in Brazilian market are done at the end of the chapter to evaluate how intelligence and knowledge, as conceptualized in the literature review, serve in typical healthcare marketing competition, as managerial support for problem solutions.
Using Global Shape Descriptors for Content Medical-Based Image Retrieval
Authors: Mahmoudi Saïd , Benjelloun Mohammed
Published: June 2013

In this chapter, the authors propose a new method belonging to content medical-based image retrieval approaches and that uses a set of region-based shape descriptors. The search engine discussed in this work allows the classification of newly acquired medical images into some well known categories and also to get the images that are more similar to a query image. The final goal is to help the medical staff to annotate these images. To achieve this task, the authors propose a set of three descriptors that are based on: (1) Hu, (2) Zernike moments, and (3) Fourier transform-based signature, which are considered as region descriptors. The advantage of using this kind of global descriptor is that they are very fast, real time, and they do not need any segmentation step. The authors propose also a comparative study between these three approaches. The search engines are tested by using a database composed of 75 images that have different sizes, and that are classified into five classes. The results provided by the proposed retrieval approaches are given with high precision. The comparison between the three approaches is achieved using classification matrices and the recall/precision curves. The three proposed retrieval approaches produce accurate results in real time. This proves the advantage of using global shape features as a preliminary classification step in an automated aided diagnosis system.
Home Healthcare in Cloud Computing
Authors: Deng Mina , Petkovic Milan , Nalin Marco , Baroni Ilaria
Published: June 2013

Cloud computing is one of the emerging technologies that has an increasing impact on both private and public sectors. It represents an on-demand service model for delivering computing resources ranging from storage and data access, via computation and software provisioning. This chapter describes an application of Cloud Computing in home healthcare by introducing several use cases and application architecture based on the cloud. A comprehensive methodology is used to integrate security and privacy engineering process into the development lifecycle and to identify challenges for building security and privacy in the proposed cloud-based home healthcare system. Moreover, a functional infrastructure plan is provided to demonstrate the integration between the proposed application architecture with the cloud infrastructure. Finally, this chapter discusses several mitigation techniques putting the focus on patient-centric control and policy enforcement via cryptographic technologies, and consequently on digital rights management and attribute-based encryption technologies.
A Multichannel Framework for Multimedia Content Deployment in E-Health Environments
Authors: Gallo Crescenzio
Published: June 2013

In this chapter, the authors examine the technical background behind the general problem of multimedia content deployment, and the architectural and technical choices and legal implications to be considered in order to build an effective client/server multimedia content deployment platform. This platform is suited for the implementation and spreading of a series of services, integrated with the Health Information System and the related educational and recreational facilities and support activities. Such infrastructure requires a strong convergence of expertise and innovative technologies to integrate system components and guarantee security, usability, and interoperability as recommended by IHE.
New Models for ICT-Based Medical Diagnosis
Authors: Ciufudean Calin , Ciufudean Otilia , Filote Constantin
Published: June 2013

This chapter is focused on evaluation of the links between physiology of human body and human emotional states in order to help specialists to perform a correct diagnosis correlated to patient’s expectations and emotional states, as denoted here “the Trust Diagnosis” (TD). The approach in these techniques is different from the previous ones. Instead of observing and classifying the people’s responses to external stimuli or internal emotional factors, the authors are interested in developing a mechanism that appropriately describes the doctor-patient interaction via emotional states caused by disease and/or by doctor’s examination, and that can lead to a TD. The authors intend to develop this approach in two stages: the first stage is focused on emotion models expressed in a qualitative formalism capable to link analytic tools to emotion expressions and deliver significant information for both laboratory analysis methods and doctors’ diagnoses. The second stage is focused on the improvement of the automated medical diagnosis based on biological feature selection and classification, as biological features represent patterns of important information.
Telehealth-Based Systems for Diagnosis, Management, and Treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorders
Authors: Angjellari-Dajci Fiorentina , Lawless William F. , Agarwal Nitin , Oberleitner Ron , Coleman Barbara , Kavoossi Masoud
Published: June 2013

The prevailing system for diagnosis, treatment, and management of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) in the US—the in-person service delivery—has been unable to address the increase in the demand for services and societal costs for those served, and the unattained societal benefits for those not diagnosed early enough or not offered early and intensive behavioral interventions. The authors discuss new developments in telehealth for diagnostic evaluation and ASD treatment in the US. They build a theoretical model to capture telehealth system’s potential in reaching ASD screening market equilibrium under the constraint of full utilization of provider hours and other stylized facts. The authors estimate the market demand for ASD screening in the US for year 2011. They present their progress with a case study that focuses on the potential impacts of increased access to care of technology-based telehealth on the Georgia-South Carolina border. The authors use social network analysis to envision the future of telehealth service delivery for ASDs.
Definition of a Retrospective Health Information Policy Based on (Re)Use Study
Authors: Gonçalves Fernanda , David Gabriel
Published: June 2013

Medical information produced in hospitals is, simultaneously, used (1) to support health care provided to patients, (2) in research work performed by internal and external health professionals, and (3) as legal proof with various objectives. The co-existence of electronic and paper health information, the integration constraints of the various computer applications, and the storage of massive volumes of retrospective paper-based patient records are dominant concerns for São João Hospital Center (SJHC). These problems must be considered in the adoption of an Electronic Patient Record (EPR) in order to ensure that hospitals and patients fully benefit from the technological investments. The contribution of this chapter is the design and conduction of a (re)use study, which consisted of an analysis of the paper-based records management activities and of the patients’ records content. A survey on the (re)use of the paper-based patient records has been conducted in order to characterize the (re)use in terms of objective and type of hospital encounter, and documents accessed were identified and organized in an access frequency table. The results support the paper-based patient records strategy to implement in SJHC integrated in the Hospital EPR adoption project.
ICT Supplier Evaluation Criteria in Large University Hospitals
Authors: Bal Canan Gamze , Ada Serkan
Published: June 2013

Supplier evaluation of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in healthcare institutions is a crucial problem, and the success of the healthcare system is significantly affected by this decision. In this chapter, several criteria, such as physical characteristics, cost, efficiency, speed, security, productivity, providing advanced technology, technical service and warranty, capable personnel, and in-service training, have been examined in the context of healthcare ICT supplier evaluation. These criteria are evaluated by both medical and administrative executives (N = 48) in 26 university hospitals operating in various provinces in Turkey. Findings show that medical and administrative executives and female and male executives in hospitals differ in terms of their evaluation of ICT suppliers. Overall, this study proposes to contribute to the relevant literature and practice, and reflects the perspective of a developing country, Turkey.
Peer-to-Peer Service Quality in Virtual Communities
Authors: Valtakoski Aku , Peltonen Juhana , Laine Mikko O. J.
Published: June 2013

Virtual communities are an increasingly popular way to conduct business over the Internet. However, from the service provider’s point of view they pose special challenges. In particular, unless the provider itself engages in content or service provision, the service relies entirely on its members for provision of services. The members should thus be seen as resources for service provision. This type of networked service production system implies challenges in terms of service quality management and, subsequently, value creation for community members. This paper explores these issues by revisiting service marketing and service operations literature on service quality. Analysis of the literature indicates that firms facilitating virtual communities need to ensure the quality of their service by not only ensuring technical quality but also by nurturing the social aspects of the community that have an impact on the willingness of community members to provide service to each other.
Unfolding the Diminishing Image Control in Online Self Presentation
Authors: Lin Chien-nai , Lin Yu-Tzu , Hsieh Ching-Cha
Published: June 2013

As the young generations grow up using applications like Facebook and as fans of social networking technologies, understanding the presentations of self in a virtual community becomes a worthwhile topic to be addressed. Drawing on the theory of dramaturgical theory (Goffman, 1959), this interpretive research was conducted to observe the self presentation of the participants in a virtual community to analyze their online behaviors and interactions. The observations found that only in the early stage of interaction, people can have a high degree of control over the ideal images creation; however, the clues to reveal actual images are accumulated over time and across cyberspaces. This research suggested that personal control over image delivery in a virtual community weakens over time, which challenged the assumption made by prior literature regarding how people have greater control in creating ideal images in the virtual community. The findings of this research could provide insight for people who use virtual community to search for credible personal information or to build ideal images. Besides, this research suggested that although Internet technologies facilitate access to a rich source of information, the convenience in information acquisition and verification comes at the expense of personal privacy.
Contextual and Personalized Mobile Recommendation Systems
Authors: Sang Jitao , Mei Tao , Xu Changsheng , Li Shipeng
Published: June 2013

Mobile devices are becoming ubiquitous. People are getting used to using their phones as a personal concierge to discover what is around and decide what to do. Mobile recommendation therefore becomes important to understand user intent and simplify task completion on the go. Since user intents essentially vary with users and sensor contexts (time and geo-location, for example), mobile recommendation needs to be both contextual and personalized. While rich user mobile data is available, such as mobile query, click-through, and check-in record, there exist two challenges in utilizing them to design a contextual and personalized mobile recommendation system: exploring characteristics from large-scale and heterogeneous mobile data and employing the uncovered characteristics for recommendation. In this chapter, the authors talk about two mobile recommendation techniques that well address the two challenges. (1) One exploits mobile query data for local business recommendation, and (2) one exploits mobile check-in record to assist activity planning.
WayFinder
Authors: Mehigan Tracey J. , Pitt Ian
Published: June 2013

Navigating a university campus can be difficult for visitors and incoming students/staff, particularly those who are blind or vision-impaired. Universities around the world, including University College Cork (UCC), generally rely on physical sign-posting and map-based information (available as a download from the university Website) to direct visitors, staff, and students. These methods are not appropriate for those with vision-impairments. Mobility training is provided by UCC’s Disability Support Service (DSS) to enable blind/vision-impaired staff and students to safely and independently navigate campus, but the training is route-specific, time-consuming, and expensive. A navigation solution that facilitates all campus users, both sighted and vision-impaired, could be provided via mobile and wireless technologies. Research has been conducted to assess the needs of those navigating campus, to evaluate relevant technologies, and to assess the state-of-the-art in regard to the provision of navigational information. The results suggest that no off-the-shelf solution exists that fully meets the requirements of UCC. Existing systems fall short in various respects, in particular in the accuracy and reliability of the localization information and the nature of the feedback provided to the user. This chapter summarizes the results obtained from the review. A system is described which has been designed, in the light of the review findings, to enable visitors, staff, and students (both sighted and vision-impaired/blind) to safely and independently navigate the campus using a smart-phone. This system has potential for use at other universities and institutions. The development and initial testing of the user interface layer of the system is described.
The Maldives National University Library
Authors: Riyaz Aminath
Published: June 2013

The Maldives National University Library is the main academic library and the one and only university library in the small island developing state of the Maldives. The library is made up of seven branch libraries and caters to the university community located in Malé and three smaller campuses in the outer regions of the country. This chapter attempts to demonstrate the swift developmental milestones taken by the library. It also outlines the challenges in managing the library at an acceptable level to the academic community needs, given the shortage of human resources, financial resources, and lack of local information sources. Presenting this information to the international community, as shared experience for other similar developing countries, is one of the motivating factors in writing this chapter.
Decision Trees and Random Forest for Privacy-Preserving Data Mining
Authors: Szucs Gábor
Published: June 2013

The objective of this chapter is to present brief literature and new results of research in privacy-preserving data mining as an important privacy issue in the e-business area. The chapter focuses on classification problems in business analytics, where the enterprises can gain large profit using predicted results by classification. The decision tree is a well-known classification technique, and its modification by the Randomized Response technique is described for privacy-preserving data mining. This algorithm is developed for all types of attributes. The largest contribution of this chapter is a new method, so called Random Response Forest, consisting of many decision trees and a randomization technique. Random Response Forest is similar to Random Forest, but it is able to solve privacy problems. This consists of many shallow trees, where a shallow tree is a special decision tree with a Randomized Response technique, and the precision of Random Response Forest is better than at a tree.
A Practical Cloud Services Implementation Framework for E-Businesses
Authors: Venkatraman Ramanathan , Venkatraman Sitalakshmi , Asaithambi Suriya Priya
Published: June 2013

This chapter proposes a strategic framework with practical guidelines for the key players, namely, cloud service providers, cloud architects, and consumers, which would facilitate in successful adoption of cloud-based service-oriented solutions for e-businesses. In this context, we discuss the security, privacy, and governance issues related to cloud implementations, as well as the possible benefits that cloud services could offer. Additionally, the various models and dimensions of the cloud that aid in the understanding and strategic planning of the cloud implementation in e-businesses are discussed. Underpinning these aspects is the proposed service-oriented strategic framework that provides a step-wise guideline for a successful cloud adoption exemplified with an e-business case.
Mediating Message Heterogeneity in Service Compositions
Authors: Doshi Prashant , Vembu Nithya
Published: June 2013

Atomic Web Services (WS) may not always be sufficient for service requests. For such cases, several services may have to be assembled to create a new composite service of added functionality and value. Establishing message exchange between related but independently developed Web Services is a key challenge faced during WS composition which has hereto received inadequate attention. One of the challenges lies in resolving the differences in the schema of the messages that are input to and output from the Web Services involved. Data mediation is required to resolve these challenges. This chapter introduces a formal model for data mediation that considers the types and semantics of the message elements. Based on this model, it proposes methods for resolving different kinds of message-level heterogeneity. These methods are evaluated on synthetic and real-world pairs of Web Services, with the ultimate aim of integrating the data mediation techniques presented within WS composition tools.
Enterprise Mobile Service Architecture
Authors: Tang Longji , Tsai Wei-Tek , Dong Jing
Published: June 2013

Today, enterprise systems are integrated across wired and wireless networks. Enterprise Mobile Service Computing (EMSC) is a recent development style in distributed computing, and Enterprise Mobile Service Architecture (EMSA) is a new enterprise architectural style for mobile system integration. This chapter introduces the concepts of EMSC, discusses the opportunities, and addresses mobile constraints and challenges in EMSC. The mobile constraints include aspects relating to mobile hardware, software, networking, and mobility. Many issues such as availability, performance, and security are encountered due to these constraints. To address these challenges in EMSC, the chapter proposes seven architectural views: Enterprise Mobile Service, Enterprise Mobile Service Consumer, Enterprise Mobile Service Data, Enterprise Mobile Service Process, Enterprise Mobile Service Infrastructure, Enterprise Mobile Service Management, and Enterprise Mobile Service Quality. Each is described with principles, design constraints, and emerging technologies. In order to illustrate a practical implementation of EMSA, the chapter presents a major shipping and delivery services enterprise as a case study to describe the integration of Service-driven mobile systems in the enterprise.
Novel Swimming Mechanism for a Robotic Fish
Authors: Masoomi Sayyed Farideddin , Chen XiaoQi , Gutschmidt Stefanie , Sellier Mathieu
Published: June 2013

Efficient cruising, maneuverability, and noiseless performance are the key factors that differentiate fish robots from other types of underwater robots. Accordingly, various types of fish-like robots have been developed such as RoboTuna and Boxybot. However, the existing fish robots are only capable of a specific swimming mode like cruising inspired by tuna or maneuvering inspired by labriforms. However, for accomplishing marine tasks, an underwater robot needs to be able to have different swimming modes. To address this problem, the Mechatronics Group at University of Canterbury is developing a fish robot with novel mechanical design. The novelty of the robot roots in its actuation system, which causes its efficient cruising and its high capabilities for unsteady motion like fast start and fast turning. In this chapter, the existing fish robots are introduced with respect to their mechanical design. Then the proposed design of the fish robot at University of Canterbury is described and compared with the existing fish robots.
Ellipse Detection-Based Bin-Picking Visual Servoing System
Authors: Liu Kai , Li Hongbo , Sun Zengqi
Published: June 2013

In this chapter, the authors tackle the task of picking parts from a bin (bin-picking task), employing a 6-DOF manipulator on which a single hand-eye camera is mounted. The parts are some cylinders randomly stacked in the bin. A Quasi-Random Sample Consensus (Quasi-RANSAC) ellipse detection algorithm is developed to recognize the target objects. Then the detected targets’ position and posture are estimated utilizing camera’s pin-hole model in conjunction with target’s geometric model. After that, the target, which is the easiest one to pick for the manipulator, is selected from multi-detected results and tracked while the manipulator approaches it along a collision-free path, which is calculated in work space. At last, the detection accuracy and run-time performance of the Quasi-RANSAC algorithm is presented, and the final position of the end-effecter is measured to describe the accuracy of the proposed bin-picking visual servoing system.
Smart Sensor Systems
Authors: Wakaumi Hiroo
Published: June 2013

This chapter addresses smart sensor systems. In recent years, goods identification technology using a soft magnetic barcode, radio frequency identification, and automated wheelchair guidance technology using a magnetic field usable in dirty environments as part of Robotics and Mechatronics are becoming important in many areas, such as factories, physical distribution, office, security, etc. These identification and guidance technologies are based on sensing of magnetic field. Therefore, smart magnetic sensing technologies suitable for these identification and guidance techniques are described in this chapter.
Design and Development of Teleoperation for Forest Machines
Authors: Milne Bart , Chen XiaoQi , Hann Chris , Parker Richard , Milliken Paul
Published: June 2013

Teleoperation of forestry machinery is a difficult problem. The difficulties arise because forestry machines are primarily used in unstructured and uncontrolled environments. However, improvements in technology are making implementation of teleoperation for forestry machines feasible with off-the-shelf computing and networking hardware. The state-of-the-art in teleoperation of forestry machinery is reviewed as well as teleoperation in similarly unstructured and uncontrolled environments such as mining and underwater. Haptic feedback in a general sense is also reviewed, as while haptic feedback has been implemented on some types of heavy machinery it has not yet been implemented on forestry machinery.
Cyberinfra Product Concept and its Prototyping Strategies
Authors: Pillai Balan , Salminen Vesa
Published: June 2013

The Knowledge-Intensive Sustainable Evolution Dynamics (KISBED) (patent pending), a platform the authors use in their “use-cases,” shows that it works. Cyber, infrastructure, and product are integrated in the Cyberinfra Product “function.” The perception properties are not long tagged or have no carriers, and the signal travels a short distance before it collides. The authors prove the KISBED through some examples.
Leading Across Generations
Authors: Stevenson Carolyn N.
Published: June 2013

Today’s workplace is composed of four generational groups of employees, each with varying degrees of technological expertise, career expectations, and professional experience. As such, higher education administrators need to identify differences among generations of workers and develop a strategic plan for managing and motivating across the generations. This case study addresses the following question: “How do higher education administrators lead and motivate multi-generational employees and online students?” An understanding of the common characteristics of each generational group is the first step for developing a strategy for motivating all employees and students in higher education. Communication, mentoring programs, training, respect, and opportunities for career advancement are components valued by all. It is important for higher education administrators to understand the values, work ethic, and communication style of the different generations. The implications for higher education administrators lie in establishing an organizational culture that promotes satisfaction for all individuals in the higher education setting.
Quality Assurance in Transnational Education Management
Authors: Ahamer Gilbert
Published: June 2013

This chapter deals with quality assessment for interdisciplinary university curricula. As a case study, it analyses the recently established “Global Studies” (GS) developmental curriculum at Graz University, Austria. After reviewing literature on concepts of quality for curricula, key concepts for multi-disciplinarity, inter-disciplinarity, and trans-disciplinarity, approaches for their monitoring, and necessary ingredients for multi-paradigmatic inputs, processes, and outputs, this chapter applies these criteria to the ethically and globalization-oriented curriculum Global Studies at Graz University, Austria. A practical set of criteria assessing quality in curricula and in courses is identified, a list of assessment exercises that have been performed so far is provided, and assessment of academic performance and suggestions for future improvements are given. Recommendations focus on the implementation of inter-paradigmatic mutual understanding and include setting up a regular, peer-oriented discourse among all stakeholders and founders of the curriculum and the inclusion of expertise into the curricula commission. All such concrete measures shall underpin the key capability of inter-paradigmatic studies, namely to see complex phenomena as perceived by other stakeholders, friend or foe.
University Student Absenteeism
Authors: Triado Xavier M. , Aparicio-Chueca Pilar , Guàrdia-Olmos Joan , Jaría-Chacón Natalia , Cebollero Maribel Peró , Ejjaberi Amal Elasri
Published: June 2013

Work on university student absenteeism is an interesting topic that treats motivation problems and its important consequences, like dropout, but is not easy to measure. In this chapter, the authors make a revision of the concept and an empirical approach to the possible reasons of student absenteeism through multivariate analyses—which the students themselves believe to be justified—and those offered by the faculty members in the case of the authors’ big school (with nine studies and 12,000 students), of the authors’ university (with 70,000 students), in the authors’ country. The analysis was carried out on two samples (1,161 students and 181 professors), which indicates that the reasons offered by each population are not the same. Through a cluster analysis, it is possible to identify six student performance profiles, which sheds some light on understanding this fact and the opportunity to suggest some ways of action.
Emergence of Successful Online Courses
Authors: Sedivy-Benton Amy L. , Hunt Andrew , Hunt Teri L. , Fetterly James M. , Wood Betty K.
Published: June 2013

This chapter seeks to investigate the common characteristics that make online courses high quality. With an increase in online education and the increased attention to national standards and accreditation, there is a need for research to focus on the quality of online education. The literature related to online education suggests that more studies compare traditional courses with online courses as well as ways to affect the social climate of online courses and programs than the quality of online education. Questions to be considered range from, “How much time do instructors spend developing online courses compared to traditional courses?” to “What are the students’ perspective of the quality of online courses / instruction?” McGorry (2003) suggests seven constructs “to evaluate quality and learning in online courses: flexibility, responsiveness and student support, student learning, interaction, technology and technical support, and student satisfaction” (p. 162).
Vaginocutaneous fistula and inguinal abcess presented 6 years after tension-free vaginal tape sling
Authors: Sahin Ali Feyzullah , Ilbey Yusuf Özlem , Sahin Nur
Published: June 2013

Surgical treatment of female stress urinary incontinence (SUI) has become very pop- ular after respectable success with minimal invasive surgeries. This is the first report of long term vaginocutaneous fistula (VCF) plus inguinal abcess after tension-free vaginal tape (TVT). A 67 year-old woman with vaginal discharge lasting more than 3 years complained with a painful swelling in the left inguinal area for the last three months. She had a medical history of TVT sling procedure for SUI six years ago. She had no history of pelvic surgery, cancer treatment or pelvic irradiation before or after TVT sling. No urethrovaginal or vesicovaginal fistula was found in physical examination and cystocopy. MRI showed a vaginocutenaous fistula and inguinal abcess. This case highlights the need for a high index of suspicion for VCF after TVT.
Resident training in urology: Bipolar transurethral resection of the prostate - a safe method in learning endoscopic surgical procedure
Authors: Del Rosso Alessandro , Masciovecchio Stefano , Paradiso Galatioto Giuseppe , Vicentini Carlo
Published: June 2013

Introduction: Modern medicine uses increasingly innovative techniques that require more and more capabilities for acquisition. In the urological department is increasing the presence of patients with lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) and transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) is the standard of care in their surgical treatment. We report our surgical experience and learning curve of using bipolar plasmakinetic devices in the training of urological residents to benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) treatment. Materials and Methods: 80 patients with benign prostatic enlargement due to BPH were enrolled in the study. TURP has been performed by three urological residents and by an expe- rienced urologist. Patients were evaluated before and 6 months after the endoscopic bipolar plasmakinetic resection using the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS), maximum uri- nary flow rate (Qmax), postvoid residual urine (PVR) and prostate specific antigen (PSA). Results: Overall 60 procedures were performed, 18 PlasmaKinetic (PK)-TURP procedures were completed by the three residents. In the other 42 cases the procedures were completed by the experienced urologist. In eight cases there was a capsular perforation and the experienced urol- ogist replaced the resident to complete the resection. No complications have been reported in the procedures completed by the senior urologist. All complications caused by the residents were man- aged intraoperatively without changing the course of the procedure. Statistical differences were observed regarding IPSS, quality of life (QoL), and PVR at 6-month follow-up when procedures completed by urological residents were compared to those completed by the senior urologist. Conclusion: Bipolar device represents appropriate tools to acquire endoscopic skills. It is safe and it can be used at the first experience of BPH treatment by a resident who has not previ- ously approached this endoscopic surgical procedure.
A Clinical, Laboratory and Microbiological Evaluation on Efficacy of Dental Air Force Home Dental Cleaning System on Type 2 Diabetic and Nondiabetic Adult Chronic Periodontitis Patients: A 6-Month Clinical Study
Authors: Mani Ameet Madan
Published: June 2013

Aim

The study outlined to evaluate the clinical, laboratory and microbiological efficacy of Dental Air Force home dental cleaning system on type 2 diabetes and nondiabetic adult chronic periodontitis patients.

Materials and methods

A total of 100 adult chronic periodontitis subjects were recruited voluntary for this study. Clinical [plaque index (PI), gingival index (GI) and clinical attachment loss (CAL)], laboratory (C-reactive protein levels and glycated hemoglobin) and microbiological parameters were measured prior to phase 1 therapy; at 3rd and 6th month post phase 1 therapy. Comparative assessment was done among all the patients that were divided into four groups with Student paired t-test and analysis of variance (ANOVA).

Results

The results of this study showed that there was significant decrease in clinical, laboratory and microbiological parameters from baseline to 6 months in all the groups (i.e. p < 0.01). The subjects under groups using Dental Air Force home dental cleaning system showed highly significant reduction to all the parameters as compared to subjects under groups using toothbrush.

Conclusion

There was strong correlation between periodontal diseases and systemic parameters. Dental Air Force home dental cleaning system with the access to interdentally area helps in preventing the accumulation of dental plaque biofilm, thus able to maintain the clinical, laboratory and microbiological parameters at much lower levels as compared to traditional tooth brushing after phase I therapy.

How to cite this article

Mani S, Mani AM, Saini R. A Clinical, Laboratory and Microbiological Evaluation on Efficacy of Dental Air Force Home Dental Cleaning System on Type 2 Diabetic and Nondiabetic Adult Chronic Periodontitis Patients: A 6-Month Clinical Study. Int J Experiment Dent Sci 2013;2(1):1-8.
Minimally Aggressive Orthodontic/Prosthetic Treatment in Patient with Falciform Anemia
Authors: Pithon Matheus Melo
Published: June 2013

The aim of the present article was to describe interdisciplinary orthodontic/prosthetic treatment performed in a patient with falciform anemia. The patient presented with the loss of several teeth and required prosthetic rehabilitation after tooth position correction with the use of an orthodontic appliance. After having orthodontic treatment performed with the application of forces as close as possible to the intensity of physiologic forces, rehabilitation was performed with removable partial dentures in the maxillary and mandibular arches. The results achieved were an improvement in tooth positioning, re-establishment of masticatory function and dental esthetics.

How to cite this article

Pithon MM, Saini R. Minimally Aggressive Orthodontic/Prosthetic Treatment in Patient with Falciform Anemia. Int J Experiment Dent Sci 2013;2(1):60-65.
Self-Reported Versus Objectively Assessed Exercise Adherence
Authors: Yuen Hon K. , Wang Ed , Holthaus Katy , Vogtle Laura K. , Sword David , Breland Hazel L. , Kamen Diane L.
Published: June 2013

OBJECTIVE. We examined agreement of data between self-reported and objectively assessed exercise adherence among women with systemic lupus erythematosus.

METHOD. Eleven participants completed weekly exercise logs on date and duration of exercise during a 10-wk Wii Fit™ home-based program. Afterward, exercise data from the log were compared with those recorded in the Wii console.

RESULTS. Of the paired data, the mean duration of exercise recorded in the Wii was 29.5 min and that recorded in the log was 33.3 min. The composite intraclass correlation for exercise duration between exercise log and the Wii Fit was 0.4. The 95% limits of agreement indicated large between-subjects variability.

CONCLUSION. Exercise logs exhibit a marginally acceptable agreement with Wii estimation of exercise duration at a group level. However, caution should be applied when using the exercise log as a measure of a person’s exercise behavior because of the tendency to overreport.
Los aspectos erotéticos de la ciencia: el caso de la genética
Authors: Lorenzano Pablo
Published: June 2013

El objetivo de este trabajo es mostrar, en la línea sugerida por Nickles (1980, 1981) y desarrollada por Sintonen (1985, 1996), no sólo que el enfoque de resolución de problemas y el enfoque de teorías no son contrapuestos, sino que este último, mediante la versión de la concepción semántica de las teorías conocida bajo el nombre de “estructuralismo metateórico”, puede ser utilizado para aportar precisión al enfoque de resolución de problemas, a través de la caracterización más precisa del contexto teórico en el que se plantean los problemas y, de este modo, de su individuación e historia, pudiéndose así distinguir dos tipos de “cambio problemático”: “cambio en un problema” y “cambio de problema”. Para ello, se presentará dicha propuesta y luego será aplicada al caso de los dos primeros programas de investigación en el campo de la genética: el “mendelismo” de Bateson y la “genética clásica” de Morgan.
O conceito de função na ecologia contemporânea
Authors: Freitas Nunes-Neto Nei , Santos do Carmo Ricardo , Niño El-Hani Charbel
Published: June 2013

O discurso funcional é tanto ubíquo quanto central na ecologia contemporânea, principalmente no contexto das pesquisas sobre biodiversidade e funcionamento ecossistêmico, que emergiram nos anos 1990 em meio à crise da biodiversidade. Entretanto, a despeito dessa forte presença na ecologia, o discurso funcional ainda não tem sido investigado de maneira adequada nesta ciência (ou em sua filosofia), na medida em que muitos problemas fundamentais a respeito do tema ainda permanecem sem respostas claras. Por um lado, os ecólogos que lançam mão de explicações funcionais parecem simplesmente tomar como dado ou autoevidente o conceito de função. Contudo, ele nada tem de trivial, tendo em vista os problemas filosóficos suscitados pela linguagem funcional ou teleológica nas explicações biológicas, pelo menos desde Aristóteles. Por outro lado, poucos filósofos da ciência têm se mostrado especialmente interessados nos problemas epistemológicos associados ao discurso funcional em ecologia. Tomando essa situação como ponto de partida, nossa abordagem neste artigo se dá em três etapas. Inicialmente, procedemos a uma análise conceitual de função na ecologia atual, com ênfase nos estudos que relacionam a biodiversidade às propriedades ecossistêmicas. Esboçamos três significados principais do conceito, mostrando os pressupostos e as implicações associados a cada um deles. Num segundo momento, procedemos a uma análise das razões que levam a suspeitas ou objeções contra a linguagem funcional na ecologia. Por fim, num terceiro momento, lançamos algumas sugestões sobre como fundamentar ou dar mais clareza ao discurso funcional na ecologia contemporânea.
A sociabilidade insociável e a antropologia kantiana
Authors: Klein Joel Thiago
Published: June 2013

Neste artigo apresenta-se o significado do conceito de sociabilidade insociável e de sua importância para a filosofia histórico-política de Kant. Defendem-se aqui duas teses importantes: primeira, que esse conceito se insere essencialmente num paradigma biológicoteleológico em vez de físico-mecânico; segunda, que a insociabilidade deve ser compreendida como se referindo a inclinações e não a paixões, o que, por sua vez, permite pensá-la em concordância com um progresso moral também dos indivíduo.
High‐pressure, high‐temperature deformation of CaGeO3 (perovskite)±MgO aggregates: Implications for multiphase rheology of the lower mantle
Authors: Wang Yanbin , Hilairet Nadege , Nishiyama Norimasa , Yahata Naoya , Tsuchiya Taku , Morard Guillaume , Fiquet Guillaume
Published: June 2013

Sintered polycrystalline “rocks” of two‐phase aggregate CaGeO3 perovskite (GePv) + MgO and single‐phase GePv were deformed at pressure, temperature, and strain rates of 4–10 GPa, 600–1200 K, and ∼1–3 × 10−5 s−1, respectively, with maximum bulk strains up to ∼20%. The as‐synthesized two‐phase aggregate, produced from the reaction CaMgGeO4 (olivine) → GePv+MgO (MgO occupying ∼28% in volume), possessed a load‐bearing framework (LBF) texture indistinguishable from that of (Mg,Fe)2SiO4 → (Mg,Fe)SiO3 perovskite + (Mg,Fe)O reported in previous studies. Stress states of the two phases in the deforming aggregate were evaluated based on systematic distortion of lattice spacings over the entire 360° diffraction azimuth angle. Compared with the single‐phase GePv sample, stresses of GePv in the two‐phase composite were about 10–20% higher at similar strain and strain rates. Stresses of MgO are about a factor of ∼2 lower than GePv in the same two‐phased rock. Volumetrically averaged bulk stresses in the two samples were therefore virtually identical. Texture analyses showed that both samples deformed by dislocation glide, with the dominant slip systems {1 0 0}<1 1 0> (in cubic setting) for both GePv and MgO. These results show that, at low bulk strains up to ∼20%, the two‐phase aggregate remains a LBF fabric, with rheological properties of GePv controlling those of the bulk. These experimental findings are in quantitative agreement with previous numerical simulations. Implications of the results to the silicate counterparts and dynamics of the lower mantle are discussed.
Lower Risk of Major Cardiovascular Events Associated with Adherence to Colesevelam HCI
Authors: Ye Xin , Qian Chunlin , Liu Jiannong , St. Peter Wendy L.
Published: June 2013

Study Objective

To examine the relationship between adherence to colesevelam and the risk of major cardiovascular events (acute myocardial infarction [AMI] and stroke) among patients newly treated with colesevelam.

Design

Retrospective cohort study using administrative claims data.

Data Source

MarketScan commercial and Medicare databases (2005–2011).

Patients

A total of 42,549 adults with hyperlipidemia and/or type 2 diabetes mellitus who newly started colesevelam between January 1, 2005, and September 30, 2011, and who had continuous enrollment in employer‐sponsored commercial health insurance or Medicare supplemental benefit plans for at least 6 months before and 12 months after the date of colesevelam initiation.

Measurements and Main Results

Adherence was measured as the proportion of days covered (PDC) by prescription claims for colesevelam during the 1‐year period after the drug initiation date. Patients were assigned to one of three adherence cohorts: adherent, PDC of 0.8 or more; partially adherent,PDC of 0.5–0.8; or nonadherent, PDC of less than 0.5. The primary outcome was time to the first hospitalization with a primary diagnosis for AMI or stroke during the follow‐up period. Association of colesevelam adherence with the primary outcome was examined by multivariate Cox regression models, adjusting for demographics, comorbidity, and concomitant drugs. A sensitivity analysis between propensity score‐matched cohorts was conducted to compare the outcome between adherent and nonadherent groups. Of the 42,549 patients included in the analysis, 7968 (18.7%) were adherent, 6197 (14.6%) were partially adherent, and 28,384 (66.7%) were nonadherent. Compared with nonadherent patients, adherent patients were older, more likely to be male and from the Northeast or North Central regions of the United States, and had more cardiovascular risk factors and concomitant drugs. Controlling for patient demographic and clinical characteristics, adherent patients were about 43% less likely to experience an AMI or stroke hospitalization during the follow‐up period compared with nonadherent patients (hazard ratio 0.57, 95% confidence interval[CI] 0.44–0.73, p<0.0001). Results of the sensitivity analysis using propensity score matching techniques were consistent.

Conclusion

Adherence to colesevelam was associated with lower risk of major cardiovascular events (AMI and stroke) among patients with hyperlipidemia and/or type 2 diabetes. Research to assess interventions to improve adherence to colesevelam and subsequently to evaluate the effects of these interventions on cardiovascular outcomes is warranted.
Subcutaneous Island Pedicle Flaps
Authors: DZUBOW LEONARD M.
Published: June 2013

Abstract. Aesthetic reconstruction of cutaneous defects is dependent on the availability of matching regional tissue. The ability to transfer comparable local skin can be enhanced by the use of the subcutaneous island pedicle flap. The design, implementation, and anatomy of this flap are discussed and illustrated.