26 research outputs found
Surrogate pointing device for cognitive sensory feedback
No full textOne of the challenges within the field of prosthetics is to restore the missing sensory function that comes with an amputation. Throughout the years several techniques have been designed and tested to provide amputees with sensory feedback as a replacement for the lost function. This study seeks to design a surrogate pointing device for cognitive sensory feedback for a simple two-dimensional movement. A screen cursor was adapted as pointing device in target reaching tasks in response to the centre-out task being controlled by a human subject through an analog joystick. The sensory feedback was im-plemented as non-invasive vibro-tactile sensations projected onto the skin of the subject, i.e. imitat-ing the cursors movement on the screen. The experiments were conducted in five trials, slowly enhancing the learning curve for the subject, before tests were conducted where the subject had to solely rely on the vibration feedback as orien-tation of the cursors movements. The results showed a steep learning curve when the visual feed-back was taken away. Furthermore, it proved that small targets (target<10x10) were almost impossi-ble to reach with the proximity of the feedback given. Results further showed that a combination of visual and sensation feedback proved effective in the target reaching tasks and could even reduce the efficacy by almost 3 second
How eHealth literacy and perceived usefullness affect the use of 'Min Laege'
No full textIntroduktion:Den demografiske udvikling i Danmark bærer præg af flere ældre og færre yngre. Der er behov for patientinddragelse for at imødekomme denne udvikling. Patientportaler kan være med til at øge patientinddragelsen. Det skyldes, at patientportaler blandt andet skaber bedre forudsætninger for kommunikation mellem patient og læge samt overblik over egne sundhedsinformationer. Eksisterende litteratur vurderer, at anvendelsen af disse portaler er utilstrækkelig. Der ses en tendens til, at e-sundhedskompetence og nytteværdi påvirker anvendelsen af patientportaler. Derfor findes det relevant at undersøge, hvordan de to elementer påvirker anvendelsen af 'Min Læge'.Metode:I specialet er der anvendt mixed method i form af interview og en spørgeskemaundersøgelse af patienter, der dels anvender, dels ikke anvender 'Min Læge'. Derudover er der foretaget et ekspertinterview. Resultater:Resultaterne viser, at personer, der anvender 'Min Læge', har overvejende bedre e-sundhedskomptence end dem, der ikke anvender applikationen. Der er ingen sammenhæng mellem de to grupper målt på nytteværdi. Derudover ses det, at mænd i højere grad anvender 'Min Læge'. I de tilfælde, hvor den ikke bliver anvendt, er årsagen oftest manglende kendskab til applikationen. Interviewene viser, 1) at informanterne i nogen grad anvender internettet til informationsøgning, 2) at informanterne forstår flere af de sundhedsfaglige termer, der bruges, 3) at det er tidsbesparende, og 4) at det skaber overblik at bruge patientportaler.Konklusion:Høj e-sundhedskompetence påvirker anvendelsen af 'Min Læge' positivt, hvorimod nytteværdi af patientportaler ikke har en påvirkning på anvendelsen.Introduction:The demographic development in Denmark is characterised by an aging population which calls for patient engagement. Patient portals is a tool, which enhances patient engagement. That is because these tools create better preconditions for communication between patient and doctor, and the possibility for personal health information overviews. However these portals are not being used sufficiently. Existing literature shows that eHealth literacy and perceived usefulness can influence adoption of patient portals which makes it relevant to investigate how these aspects affect adoption of ‘Min Læge’. Methods:The methodology of the thesis is based on a mixed method research design in the form of interviews and patient questionnaires. Furthermore, an expert interview has also been conductedResults:The results of this paper show that patients who uses ‘Min Læge’ have better eHealth literacy than patients who do not use the ‘Min Læge’ application. There is no difference between the two groups measured by perceived usefullness. Furthermore this the results from the questionnaires show that men have adopted the application often than women and the reason for not using the application is not knowing about its existence. The interviews points out that the internet is used to search for information about health and that the interviewees have some knowledge about medical language. The interviewees also feel that the patient portals help them save time and creates an overview of their current healthConclusion:A higher level of eHealth literacy affects the adoption of ‘Min Læge’ positively. In opposition perceived usefullness have no effect on adoption
Training health care staff in hand hygiene the Usefulness of a virtual reality app
No full textIntroduktion: Sundhedssektorerhvervede infektioner anslås at være skyld i 37000 dødsfald årligt i EU. En af årsagerne til sundhedssektorerhvervede infektioner er overførsel af patogener via sundhedspersonalets hænder. Sundhedspersonalets compliance i forhold til overholdelse af retningslinjer for håndhygiejne er 40%. WHO angiver uddannelse og træning som et af de vigtigste tiltag til at sikre korrekt håndhygiejne. Tork Essity har udviklet en virtual reality app til at træne sundhedspersonale i at udføre håndhygiejne på de rigtige tidspunkter. Projekters formål er at vurdere anvendeligheden af appen ”VR Clean Hands” til at træne håndhygiejne blandt sundhedspersonale.Metode: Mixed methodes blev anvendt. Kvalitativ dataindsamling var semistrukturerede interviews med tre informanter, der have havde anvendt appen 6 gange, samt et mailinterview med en hygiejnesygeplejerske. Kvantitativ dataindsamling bestod af træningsstatisk fra deltagere (N=7), der trænede md appen 6 gange over 14 dage, samt spørgeskemaundersøgelse med brug af TAM, PQ og SSQ, hvor nogle respondenterne (N=10) have anvendt appen 1 gang og andre 6.Resultater/ fund: Der er statistisk signifikant forskel i compliance fra 1 til 6 træningsgang. Der er ikke påvist sammenhænge mellem TAM, PQ eller SSQ i spørgeskemaundersøgelse. Fund viser, at der kan være tekniske udfordringer, der gør det svært at komme i gang med at bruge appen, men at den opfattes som anvendelig til at få skabt opmærksomhed på, hvornår der bør udføres håndhygiejne. Konklusion: ”VR Clean Hands” kan anvendes til at træne udførsel af håndhygiejne på de rigtige tidspunkter, når der er opnået en fortrolighed med teknologien.<br/
The connection between mental well-being as well technological competencies with application of digital technology in diabetic patients
No full textNon-Invasive Sensory Input Results in Changes in Non-Painful and Painful Sensations in Two Upper-Limb Amputees
Get PDFDesigns of active prostheses attempt to compensate for various functional losses following amputation. Integration of sensory feedback with the functional control re-enables sensory interaction with the environment through the prosthetic. Besides the functional and sensory loss, amputation induces anatomical and physiological changes of the sensory neural pathways, both peripherally and centrally, which can lead to phantom limb pain (PLP). Additionally, referred sensation areas (RSAs) likely originating from peripheral nerve sprouting, regeneration, and sensory reinnervation may develop. RSAs might provide a non-invasive access point to sensory neural pathways that project to the lost limb. This paper aims to report on the sensory input features, elicited using non-invasive electrical stimulation of RSAs that over time alleviated PLP in two upper-limb amputees. The distinct features of RSAs and sensation evoked using mechanical and electrical stimuli were characterized for the two participants over a period of 7 and 9 weeks, respectively. Both participants received transradial and transhumeral amputation following traumatic injuries. In one participant, a relatively low but stable number of RSAs provided a large variety of types of evoked phantom hand (PH) sensations. These included non-painful touch, vibration, tingling, stabbing, pressure, warmth/cold as well as the perception of various positions and movements of the phantom hand upon stimulation. Discomforting and painful sensations were induced with both mechanical and electrical stimuli. The other participant had a relatively large number of RSAs which varied over time. Stimulation of the RSAs provided mostly non-painful sensations of touch in the phantom hand. Temporary PLP alleviation and a change in the perception of the phantom hand from a tight to a more open fist were reported by both participants. The specificity of RSAs, dynamics in perception of the sensory input, and the associated alleviation of PLP could be effectively exploited by designs of future active prostheses. As such, techniques for the modulation of the sensory input associated with paradigms from interaction with the environment may add another dimension of protheses towards integrating personalized therapy for PLP
Measurement of coronary lumen area using an impedance catheter:finite element model and in vitro validation
No full textUdgivelsesdato: DE
Neural magnetic stimulation with conic magnetic core coil:coil geometry effect on the induced current
No full textMapping sensor activation time for typing tasks performed with a tongue controlled oral interface
No full textTwo tetraplegic subjects performed typing tasks on a computer in an experiment using a tongue controlled oral interface. This paper reports mapping of the sensor activation time for a full alphabet text input using 10 inductive sensors. A small cylindrical piece of soft ferromagnetic material activated the sensors when placed at or glided along the surface of the sensor. The activation unit was attached to the tongue as the upper ball of a piercing. The tasks consisted of typing characters according to ordered (rows and columns) or random test strings during 30 seconds, with and without deleting characters typed by mistake. Visual feedback assisted the subjects to perform the typing tasks. Average activation times were of 0.82+/−0.38 and 1.06 +/−0.27 seconds respectively for the two subjects. Analysis of activation times may be useful in characterization of the tongue ability to activate the interface as well as in design optimization of the layout of the sensors
Alteration in Cortical Activity and Perceived Sensation Following Modulated TENS
Get PDFOver the last decades, conventional transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) has been utilized as an efficient rehabilitation intervention for alleviation of chronic pain, including phantom limb pain (PLP). However, recently the literature has increasingly focused on alternative temporal stimulation patterns such as pulse width modulation (PWM). While the effect of non-modulated high frequency (NMHF) TENS on somatosensory (SI) cortex activity and sensory perception has been studied, the possible alteration following PWM TENS at the SI has not yet been explored. Therefore, we investigated the cortical modulation by PWM TENS for the first time and conducted a comparative analysis with the conventional TENS pattern. We recorded sensory evoked potentials (SEP) from 14 healthy subjects before, immediately, and 60 min after TENS interventions (PWM and NMHF). The results revealed suppression of SEP components, theta, and alpha band power simultaneously associated with the perceived intensity reduction when the single sensory pulses applied ipsilaterally to the TENS side. The reduction of N1 amplitude, theta, and alpha band activity occurred immediately after both patterns remained at least 60 min. However, the P2 wave was suppressed right after PWM TENS, while NMHF could not induce significant reduction immediately after the intervention phase. As such, since PLP relief has been shown to be correlated with inhibition at somatosensory cortex, we, therefore, believe that the result of this study provides further evidence that PWM TENS may also be potential therapeutic intervention for PLP reduction. Future studies on PLP patients with PWM TENS sessions is needed to validate our result.</p
