1,721,075 research outputs found
Cognitive task to differentiate between visual field deficit and neglect
No full textNeglect patients are able to process visual stimuli even if they do not have an overt perception of them. Indeed, since first studies at the end of 80 s lot of works demonstrated the presence of an implicit information processing, specifically part of them focused on the presence of a semantic activation effect due to the onset of a prime (either word or picture) in neglected space. This kind of effect was not found in patient with visual field deficits. Actually hemianopia determines a variable reduction of visual field width and a consequent partial blindness for the patient. Even though there are different neuroanatomical substrates between neglect and hemianopia, we know that clinical examination (including neuropsychological assessment) may provide confounding results. Not so many studies tried to disentangle neglect from hemianopia even using an implicit information processing task to discriminate. In our previous works we hypothesized that a prime-word in the neglected field should determine a semantic activation effect differently for what expected by prime in hemianopic field. We discussed a single case patient with bilateral brain lesion causing both left neglect and right hemianopia. Our results confirmed a strong repetition priming effect only when prime occurred in neglect hemifield. In this work we will describe the performance of 8 patients with a unilateral brain lesion which causes the presence of left visual neglect or left homonymous hemianopia. The experimental procedure was identical to those one described in our previous work. The patients were required to press the space-bar when the target word belonged to a living category after a prime word onset on six different possible positions of the monitor. We collect data on a small group of patients but our first results have confirmed the hypothesis concerning semantic activation in the space affected by neglect but not in hemianopic field. This test gives than promising results as a tool for differential diagnosis, even if it requires minimal levels of attention to be executed
Rischi di iniquità dell’engagement dei caregiver familiari nei territori montani: riflessioni dal progetto Place4Carer
No full textCREC: Un training per promuovere il pensiero flessibile nell’anziano con problematiche neurologiche
No full textTraining per sviluppare creativita
Giuliano Vanghetti and the innovation of "cineplastic operations"
No full textObjective: Developing functional artificial limbs for amputees has been a centuries-old challenge in medicine. We review the mechanical and neurologic principles of “cineplastic operations” and “plastic motors” used to restore movements in prostheses, with special attention to the work of Giuliano Vanghetti.
Methods: We evaluated original publications describing cineplastic operations, biographic information, writings, drawings, and unpublished letters from the Vanghetti library, preserved in Empoli, Italy, and performed a bibliographic search and comparison for similar procedures in the literature.
Results: Vanghetti’s method for cineplastic operations differs from similar previous methods, being the first aimed at exploiting natural movements of the remnant muscles to activate the mechanical prosthesis, and the first to do so by directly connecting the prosthesis to the residual muscles and tendons. This represented a frame-changing innovation for that time and paved the way for current neuroprosthetic approaches. The first description of the method was published in 1898 and human studies started in 1900. The results of these studies were presented in 1905 and published in 1906 in Plastic and Kinematic Prosthesis. A German surgeon, Ferdinand Sauerbruch, often acknowledged as the inventor of the method, published his first results in 1915.
Conclusions: Vanghetti was the first to accurately performand describe cineplastic operations for patients following an upper arm amputation. He considered the neurologic implications of the problem and, perhaps in an effort to provide more appropriate proprioceptive feedback, he intuitively
applied the prostheses so that they were functionally activated by the muscles of the proximal stum
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
The Value of a Therapeutic Gardening Intervention for Post-Stroke Patients’ Engagement During Rehabilitation: An Exploratory Qualitative Study
No full textSummary: Although horticultural interventions have potential therapeutic effects on patients’ clinical and psychological outcomes, there is a lack of scientific research based on the experience of elderly post-stroke patients involved in therapeutic gardening during their rehabilitation program. This paper explores post-stroke patients’ experience of a person-centered therapeutic gardening intervention within their rehabilitation programs, by: 1) deepening the comprehension of their own psycho-social experience; and 2) evaluating whether therapeutic gardening is perceived by patients as an occasion to foster their engagement toward rehabilitation and self-care. A qualitative phenomenological study was conducted based on semi-structured interviews and diaries of 22 neurological post-stroke patients. Five main themes were identified from interviews and diaries: 1) the positive experience of nature, 2) therapeutic gardening as a protected self-expression space, 3) contact with nature as a boost for self-efficacy, 4) the plant as a catalyst of the patient-therapist relationship, 5) therapeutic gardening as a bridge between the hospital environment and the outside world. Post-stroke patients who engage in therapeutic gardening perceived it as a way to foster their active role in medical care, enabling a proactive and positive attitude towards disease management. It is of vital importance that therapeutic gardening interventions are appropriately evaluated in order to develop the existing evidence base
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