Current Issue : January - March Volume : 2020 Issue Number : 1 Articles : 5 Articles
Background : The Implantable Cardiac Monitor (ICM) is an invaluable tool for detecting\ncardiac arrhythmias by providing physicians. Critical to the success of ICMs depends on\nhow quickly and accurately the data can be transmitted to a physicianâ??s office after an arrhythmic\nevent. Then, the clinical event can be analyzed and the treatment will be provided\naccordingly. However, no reports have been published as to how efficiently the ICM data is\ntransmitted. Methods : There is a retrospective review of 520 patients who received a Medtronic\nReveal LINQTM between 2/01/2015 and 6/01/2017. The time from the arrhythmic\nevent to the time of physician notification was calculated and reason for delay was noted...................
Background: Microelectrode arrays play an important role in prosthetic implants for\nneural signal recording or applying electrical pulses stimulation to target nerve system.\nSafety and long-term reliability are essential requirements for microelectrode arrays\napplied in electrical stimulation. In design and fabrication of the microelectrode array,\nsoft materials are generally chosen to be the substrate for the aim of achieving better\ncompliance with the surrounding tissue while maintaining minimal damage. By flexing\nof the array to the surface, the array is capable of keeping a more stable electrical\ncontact resulting in a significantly improved signal detected.\nMethods: In this study, we design and fabricate a flexible microelectrode array with\ngold as the electrode material and parylene-C as the substrate. The fabrication process\nof the array is presented. The in vitro electrochemical characteristics of the microelectrode\nare investigated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry\nin a three-electrode electrochemical cell containing phosphate-buffered saline.\nCharge injection capacity measurements are carried out by multichannel systems and\nthe CSC of the microarray is calculated..................
Background: Carotid artery geometry is important for recapitulating a pathophysiological\nmicroenvironment to study wall shear stress (WSS)-induced endothelial\ndysfunction in atherosclerosis. Endothelial cells (ECs) cultured with hydrogel have been\nshown to exhibit in vivo-like behaviours. However, to date, studies using hydrogel\nculture have not fully recapitulated the 3D geometry and blood flow patterns of reallife\nhealthy or diseased carotid arteries. In this study, we developed a gelatin-patterned,\nendothelialized carotid artery model to study the endothelium response to WSS.\nResults: Two representative regions were selected based on the computational fluid\ndynamics on the TF-shaped carotid artery: Region ECA (external carotid artery) and\nRegion CS (carotid sinus). Progressive elongation and alignment of the ECs in the\nflow direction were observed in Region ECA after 8, 16 and 24 h. However, the F-actin\ncytoskeleton remained disorganized in Region CS after 24 h. Further investigation\nrevealed that expression of vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) and intercellular\nadhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) was greatly increased in Region CS relative to that in\nRegion ECA. The physiological WSS in the carotid artery system was found to stimulate\nnitric oxide (NO) and prostacyclin (PGI2) release and inhibit endothelin-1 (ET-1) release\nafter 24-h perfusion experiments. The effective permeability (E.P) of fluorescein isothiocyanate\n(FITC)â??dextran 40 kDa in Regions ECA and CS was monitored, and it was found\nthat the turbulence WSS value (in Region CS) was less than 0.4 Pa, and there was a\nsignificant increase in the E.P relative to that in Region ECA, in which laminar WSS value\nwas 1.56 Pa. The tight junction protein (ZO-1) production was shown that the low WSS\nin Region CS induced ZO-1-level downregulation compared with that in Region ECA.\nConclusions: The results suggested that the gelatin-based perfusable, endothelial\ncarotid artery model can be effective for studying the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis\nby which flow dynamics control the endothelium layer function in vitro....
Background: A growing need exists for neuroscience platforms that can perform simultaneous chronic recording and\nstimulation of neural tissue in animal models in a telemetry-controlled fashion with signal processing for analysis of the\nchronic recording data and external triggering capability. We describe the system design, testing, evaluation, and\nimplementation of a wireless simultaneous stimulation-and-recording device (SRD) for modulating cortical circuits in\nphysiologically identified sites in primary somatosensory (SI) cortex in awake-behaving and freely-moving rats. The SRD\nwas developed using low-cost electronic components and open-source software. The function of the SRD was\nassessed by bench and in-vivo testing.\nResults: The SRD recorded spontaneous spiking and bursting neuronal activity, evoked responses to programmed\nintracortical microstimulation (ICMS) delivered internally by the SRD, and evoked responses to external peripheral forelimb\nstimulation.\nConclusions: The SRD is capable of wireless stimulation and recording on a predetermined schedule or can be wirelessly\nsynchronized with external input as would be required in behavioral testing prior to, during, and following ICMS....
Background: Stroke rehabilitation often uses the motor relearning concept that require patients to perform active\npractice of skill-specific training and to receive feedback. Treadmill training augmented with real-time visualisation\nfeedback and functional electrical stimulation may have a beneficial synergistic effect on motor recovery. This study aims\nto determine the feasibility of this kind of enhanced treadmill training for gait rehabilitation among patients after stroke.\nMethods: A system for dynamic visualisation of lower-limb movement based on 3-dimentional motion capture and a\ncomputer timed functional electrical stimulation system was developed. Participants received up to 20-min enhanced\ntreadmill training instead of their over-ground gait training once or twice a week for 6 weeks at Coathill hospital,\nLanarkshire, United Kingdom. Number of training sessions attended, and training duration were used to assess feasibility.\nAnkle kinematics in the sagittal plane of walking with and without functional electrical stimulation support of the pretibial\nmuscles were also compared and used to confirm the functional electrical stimulation was triggered at the targeted\ntime.\nResults: Six patients after stroke participated in the study. The majority of participants were male (5/6) with a age range\nfrom 30 to 84 years and 4/6 had left hemiplegia. All participants suffered from brain infarction and were at least 3 months\nafter stroke. Number of training sessions attended ranged from 5 to 12. The duration of training sessions ranged from 11\nto 20 min. No serious adverse events were reported. The computerised functional electrical stimulation to the pre-tibial\nmuscles was able to reduce plantarflexion angle during the swing phase with statistical significance (p = 0.015 at 80%;\np = 0.008 at 90 and 100% of the gait cycle).\nConclusions: It is safe and feasible to use treadmill gait training augmented with real-time visual feedback and\ncomputer-controlled functional electrical stimulation with patients after stroke in routine clinical practice....
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