Wavelet analysis of voluntary cough sound in patients with respiratory diseases.

Changes in the characteristics of the cough sound may refer to some specific pathological processes and their evolution. In this pilot study we analyzed voluntary cough sound properties in subjects with asthma bronchiale (AB) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and discriminated them from the control cough sound in healthy subjects. The wavelet transform was used due to a nonstationarity of cough sound recordings.

The effect of the pulsatile electromagnetic field in children suffering from bronchial asthma.

From the bibliography it is well known that pulsatile electromagnetic field has an anti-inflammatory and analgesic effect. It causes vasodilatation, myorelaxation, hyper-production of connective tissue and activation of the cell membrane. Therefore our aim was to study the possible therapeutic effect of pulsatile electromagnetic field in asthmatic children.

Analysis of the cough sound frequency in adults and children with bronchial asthma.

It is well known that the frequency distribution of cough sound varies in different pathological conditions. Its identification could have diagnostic value. In this study the cough sound frequency in adults (n=20, 51.

The effect of the pulsatile electromagnetic field in patients suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and bronchial asthma.

Pulsatile electromagnetotherapy (PETh) stimulates biological tissues and processes; it modulates ion exchange across cell membranes and thus regulates the tone of smooth muscles. On the basis of these effects we hypothetized that PETh might treat COPD and bronchial asthma. We examined 117 (61 females, 56 males) adult patients who were decided in 4 groups.

The expiration reflex from the vocal folds.

The authors present their 30 years' experience with expiration reflex. The reflex can be elicited from vocal folds by mechanical, chemical or electrical stimulation of the superior laryngeal nerve of man and laboratory animals, except mice and rats. It manifests itself by a short, forcible expiratory effort without a preceding inspiration which is indispensable for cough effort.

The sensitivity of tussiphonography for assessing the effectiveness of treatment.

Our previous studies have demonstrated that tussiphonogram is suitable not only for the detection of pathological condition in the respiratory tract but also for treatment effectiveness assessment. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the possibilities of tussiphonography in detection of already little pathological changes in the airways and lungs. Therefore the changes of voluntary cough sound indexes were compared with pulmonary function tests in selected group of asthmatics before and after a pulsatile electromagnetic therapy in which the effect of therapy on pulmonary function tests was minimal.

[Personal experience in the use of magnetotherapy in diseases of the musculoskeletal system].

Therapeutic application of pulsatile electromagnetic field in disorders of motility is recently becoming more frequent. Despite this fact information about the effectiveness of this therapy in the literature are rare. The aim of this study was therefore the treatment of 576 patients who suffered from vertebral syndrome, gonarthritis and coxarthritis.

[Use of recording methods and sound analysis of cough in the study of sound phenomena associated with respiration].

The objective registration of the human body functions is one of the main tasks of the modern and prospective medicine. The registration of the heart, brain, muscles etc. activity have a long tradition.

Analysis of the cough sound: an overview.

Coughing is presented by a sudden air expulsion from the airways which is characterized by a typical sound. This sound is so characteristic that it allows identification of the cough and its distinction from other vocal manifestations. The cough sound is a very important symptom of well over 100 diseases and other conditions of medical significance.

Effect of experimental lung oedema on cough sound creation.

We have assessed the importance of changes in lung structure on the pattern of cough sound and its creation with 13 anaesthetized cats. Acute lung injury with oedema was induced by i.v.

Influence of simulated mucus on cough sounds in cats.

Although in the clinic the presence of mucus in the airways is known to be an important factor influencing the sound of coughing in pathological conditions, this observation has not been established experimentally. We have substituted mucus in the airways of anaesthetized cats with 0.5 ml of natural undiluted egg albumin (EA) from hens' eggs, or with 1 ml of 10% pig gastric mucin (PGM) in saline.

Relationship between the antitussic and analgesic activity of substances.

The authors studied relationship between the antitussic and analgesic activity of substances. The antitussic effect of codeine, tilidine, tramadol and pentazocine has been studied in nonanesthetized healthy cats. The drugs except tilidine, were administered intraperitoneally in a dose of 10 mg/kg body weight.

[Objective characterization of cough sounds].

Objectification of the amplitude of the cough sound is important in determining its physiological or pathological nature. To achieve this aim an assembly for computer analysis in the time and frequency region was tested in an attempt to substitute the special equipment used at present by less expensive and readily available computer technique. At the same time the possibilities were assessed for using some statistical characteristics as diagnostic parameters in determining pathological changes of the cough sound.

Spectra of the voluntary first cough sounds.

The voluntary cough sounds recorded according to Korpas and Sadlonova-Korpasova were sampled at a frequency of 20.000Hz and spectra of six consecutive windows of 50ms were estimated. To digitize signals an autotrigger mode was used.

Effects of atropine, acetylsalicylic acid, FPL 55712, and phentolamine on increased histamine responsiveness of cat lung strips under conditions of airway inflammation.

Our recent in vitro studies on airway smooth muscles of cats with turpentine oil inflammation showed an increase of isometric tension of the lung strips to histamine application. This communication describes the effect of atropine, acetylsalicylic acid, FPL 55712, and phentolamine on the histamine contractions of the lung strips derived from control and experimental groups of cats. Pretreatment of the lung strips with atropine and acetylsalicylic acid had no significant effect on histamine induced contraction.

Objective assessment of cough suppressants under normal and pathological experimental conditions.

The influences of the antitussive activity of glaucine were studied in 56 non-anaesthetized cats under normal and pathological conditions. Cough was induced by mechanical stimulation of the airways with a nylon fibre. The authors found that if glaucine was administered at a dose of 5.

[Electrophysiological evaluation of the intensity of protective respiratory reflexes].

The impulse activity of bulbar respiratory neurons and the electrical activity of main respiratory muscles were studied stereotaxically and electromyographically on 21 male and female cats anesthetized with pentobarbital (40 mg/kg, i.p.) during defensive respiratory (expiratory and coughing) reflexes.

Spectral analysis of cough sounds recorded with and without a nose clip.

The voluntary cough sounds of healthy volunteers, patients with chronic rhinitis, chronic rhinitis with bronchial asthma and asthma were recorded with and without a nose clip. A gated series of signals of the first cough sound lasting 200 ms was analysed by a system with a 20 ms delay of the first signal. In the case of filtered cough sounds, low-cut digitally, the mean values of averaged spectra of the healthy volunteers showed a first peak around 350 Hz, similar to the expiratory spectra of respiratory sounds.

The origin of cough sounds.

We have analyzed the origin of the first and second cough sounds recorded by tussiphonography. About 10,000 tussiphonograms were performed in about 1,000 healthy and diseased subjects. Changes in the first cough sound are due to pathological processes in the airways, for example, the presence of mucus or acute inflammatory disease.