Correlation between nasal anatomical characteristics in newborns and short binasal prong dimensions.

Objective: To correlate the nasal anatomical characteristics of newborns with the dimensions of short binasal prongs.

Method: Observational, cross-sectional study carried out in two hospitals in southern Brazil. The authors evaluated 1620 newborns with neonatal data and nasal dimensions.

Mechanomyography-Based Metric Scale for Spasticity: A Pilot Descriptive Observational Study.

(1) Background: The Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) is commonly used clinically to evaluate spasticity, but its qualitative nature introduces subjectivity. We propose a novel metric scale to quantitatively measure spasticity using mechanomyography (MMG) to mitigate these subjective effects. (2) Methods: The flexor and extensor muscles of knee and elbow joints were assessed with the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) during the acquisition of mechanomyography (MMG) data.

Reciprocal Inhibition and Coactivation of Ankle Muscles in Low- and High-Velocity Forward and Backward Perturbations.

Reciprocal inhibition and coactivation are strategies of the central nervous system used to perform various daily tasks. In automatic postural responses (APR), coactivation is widely investigated in the ankle joint muscles, however reciprocal inhibition, although clear in manipulative motor actions, has not been investigated in the context of APRs. The aim was to identify whether reciprocal inhibition can be observed as a strategy in the recruitment of gastrocnemius Medialis (GM), Soleus (So) and Tibialis Anterior (TA) muscles in low- and high-velocity forward and backward perturbations.

Placental and Neonatal Serum Leptin Levels in Premature Infants After Phototherapy: Are They Determining Factors for the Safe Indication of Passive Exercises?

Purpose: To analyze leptin levels in placental tissue and premature infants undergoing phototherapy and to evaluate the potential for prescribing passive exercise after phototherapy in this population.

Patients And Methods: This analytical, longitudinal, prospective cohort study included 108 parturients and their respective premature infants. Variables examined included weight, gestational age, body mass index, sex, serum leptin levels in placental tissue, serum bilirubin levels, and reticulocyte count.

Satisfaction of Health Professionals Regarding the Short Binasal Prong Used as a Non-Invasive Ventilation Interface in Neonatology.

Purpose: To evaluate the health professionals' satisfaction regarding the short binasal prong used in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU), evaluate the difficulties related to its use, and present possible improvements in the design of this device.

Patients And Methods: Observational, cross-sectional study with prospective data collection carried out in the NICU of a public hospital in southern Brazil. This research was presented into two stages.

Investigation of the Use of Hollow Elastic Biomodels Produced by Additive Manufacturing for Clip Choice and Surgical Simulation in Microsurgery for Intracranial Aneurysms.

Background: Intracranial aneurysms (IAs) are dilatations of the cerebral arteries, whose treatment is commonly based on the implant of a metallic clip on the aneurysm neck. Despite the dissection and understanding of the surgical anatomy of the IA when often only parts of it are visible, the choice of the ideal clip to be used is one of the surgical difficulties. Although current imaging tests guarantee IA visualization, currently there is no planning method that allows for a real three-dimensional (3D) visualization for optimal choice of clip prior to surgery.

Thermal changes in the sacral region with different mattresses used in the prevention of pressure injuries.

Background: Pressure Injury (PI) is a severe health problem that affects millions of people. As a preventive strategy for high-risk ICU patients, the appropriate selection of a support surface is essential for preventing PI, along with risk assessment and repositioning. Increasing skin temperature has been associated with a higher susceptibility to PI development.

More than a feeling: Scalp EEG and eye signals in conscious tactile perception.

Understanding the neural basis of consciousness is a fundamental goal of neuroscience, and sensory perception is often used as a proxy for consciousness in empirical studies. However, most studies rely on reported perception of visual stimuli. Here we present behavior, high density scalp EEG and eye metric recordings collected simultaneously during a novel tactile threshold perception task.

Detecting bone lesions in the emergency room with medical infrared thermography.

Introduction: Low- to high-energy impact trauma may cause from small fissures up to extended bone losses, which can be classified as closed or opened injuries (when they are visible at a naked eye).

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of clinical diagnosis of bone trauma through medical infrared thermography, in a hospital emergency room.

Methods: Forty-five patients with suspected diagnosis of bone fracture were evaluated by means of medical infrared images, and the data correlated with the gold standard radiographic images, in the anteroposterior, lateral, and oblique views, at the orthopedic emergency department.

Forehead, Temple and Wrist Temperature Assessment of Ethnic Groups using Infrared Technology.

Non-contact infrared sensors are widely used as a diagnostic tool for elevated body temperature during initial screening for coronaviruses. The aim of this study was to investigate the thermal differences at three anatomical points: temple, forehead, and wrist, in the initial screening for temperature indicative of febrile and non-febrile states in skin pigmentation variations in Black, Half-Black and Caucasian skins, correlated with height and weight variables. Temperatures were obtained by means of an infrared thermometer in 289 volunteers with mean age of 18.

Ergonomics of anatomical bra models for breastfeeding: a contribution of nursing.

Objectives: to analyze the ergonomics of two models of breastfeeding bras.

Methods: descriptive study carried out with 152 infants in a Brazilian university hospital. The prototypes were separated into two groups (A and B).

Evaluation of Tibia Bone Healing by Infrared Thermography: A Case Study.

Background: Thermal imaging has been used as a clinical follow-up technique in several medical specialties.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of using medical thermography in the diagnosis and follow-up assessment of a severe orthopedic trauma that requires the use of an external circular fixator.

Patients And Methods: Twenty clinical follow-ups of thermal imaging correlated with X-ray images were performed in a male volunteer, diagnosed with bone nonunion, during 11 months of treatment, in the hospital trauma and reconstruction department.

Effects of hydrotherapy and tactile-kinesthetic stimulation on weight gain of preterm infants admitted in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

Objective: The present study aimed to evaluate the effects of hydrotherapy and tactile-kinesthetic stimulation on the birth weight of preterm infants admitted in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

Method: It was a randomized controlled trial, without blinding, in which 44 preterm infants of both sexes with gestational age between 32 and 34 weeks were included into two groups: hydrotherapy group (n = = 22) and tactile-kinesthetic stimulation group (n = 22). Weight gain was the parameter assessed daily.

Correlation of End-Tidal Carbon Dioxide with Arterial Carbon Dioxide in Mechanically Ventilated Neonates: A Scoping Review.

Monitoring CO levels in intubated neonates is highly relevant in the face of complications associated with altered CO levels. Thus, this review aims to present the scientific evidence in the literature regarding the correlation between arterial carbon dioxide measured by non-invasive methods in newborns submitted to invasive mechanical ventilation. The search was carried out from January 2020 to January 2021, in the Scopus, Medline, The Cochrane Library, Web of Science, CINAHL and Embase databases.

Influence of sensor mass and adipose tissue on the mechanomyography signal of elbow flexor muscles.

Mechanomyography (MMG) is a non-invasive technique that records muscle contraction using sensors positioned on the skin's surface. Therefore, it can have its signal attenuated due to the adipose tissue, directly influencing the results. This study evaluates the influence of different mass added to a sensor's assembly and the adipose tissue on MMG signals of elbow flexor muscles.

Incidence and Severity of Nasal Injuries in Preterm Infants Associated to Non-Invasive Ventilation Using Short Binasal Prong.

Short binasal prongs can cause skin and mucosal damage in the nostrils of preterm infants. The objective of this study was to investigate the incidence and severity of nasal injuries in preterm infants during the use of short binasal prongs as non-invasive ventilation (NIV) interfaces. A prospective observational study was carried out in the public hospital in a Southern Brazil.

Pupil Reactions to Tactile Stimulation: A Systematic Review.

Pupil dynamics can represent an indirect measure of perception; thus, it has been broadly explored in the auditory and visual fields. Although it is crucial for experiencing the outside world, tactile perception is not well-explored. Considering that, we sought to answer the following question via a systematic review: does normal tactile perception processing modulate pupil dilation in mammals (human or not)? The review process was conducted according to PRISMA Statement.

Impact of Spontaneous Breathing Trials in Cardiorespiratory Stability of Preterm Infants.

Background: A spontaneous breathing trial (SBT) is commonly used to determine extubation readiness in patients receiving mechanical ventilation. However, the physiological impact of such a trial in preterm infants has not been well described. This study aimed to investigate the effects of a 3-min SBT on the cardiorespiratory stability of these infants.

Hydrocolloid versus silicone gel for the prevention of nasal injury in newborns submitted to noninvasive ventilation: A randomized clinical trial.

Purpose: To compare the effectiveness of the hydrocolloid and the silicone gel on the nasal protection of the newborns (NBs) during the use of noninvasive ventilation (NIV).

Materials And Methods: Thirty-three NBs were selected. They were randomly divided into three groups of 11 NBs, according to the type of nasal protection used: hydrocolloid, thick silicone gel, and thin silicone gel.

Nasal Prongs: Risks, Injuries Incidence and Preventive Approaches Associated with Their Use in Newborns.

Purpose: To assess the incidence of nasal injury in newborns submitted to non-invasive ventilation (NIV) via binasal prongs, to identify risks that come with using this interface, and to present actions for nasal injury prevention.

Patients And Methods: Observational and descriptive study performed in neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of a public hospital in the south of Brazil. This research was divided into three stages.

Virtual keyboard with the prediction of words for children with cerebral palsy.

One in every 200 people worldwide cannot express orally because of cognitive, motor, neurological, or emotional problems. Assistive technologies can help people with impairments to use computers to perform their daily life activities independently and to communicate with others. This paper presents a Hidden Markov Model-based word prediction method that allows keyboard emulation software to predict words so that children with disabilities can type texts more quickly.

Three-Dimensional Hollow Elastic Models for Intracranial Aneurysm Clipping Election - A Case Study.

We describe a method for fabricating a three-dimensional hollow and elastic aneurysm model, which is useful for surgical clipping simulation. In this paper, we explain the generation of such hollow elastic model, based on 3D printing. Also, we report on the effects of applying it to presurgical clipping election and simulation.

Development and Evaluation of a Customized Wrist-Hand Orthosis using 3D Technology for a Child with Cerebral Palsy - A Case Study.

Cerebral Palsy (CP) is a disability that affects more than 100 million children. More than 60% of these children have significant difficulties within their hand abilities, affected by involuntary movements and spasticity. So, to overcome this issue, orthoses are being employed as therapeutic intervention and can allow children with CP to have an opportunity to better use their hands.

Fatigue in complete spinal cord injury and implications on total delay.

The use of neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) to artificially restore movement in people with complete spinal cord injury (SCI) induces an accelerated process of muscle fatigue. Fatigue increases the time between the beginning of NMES and the onset of muscle force (Delay ). Understanding how much muscle fatigue affects the Delay in people with SCI could help in the design of closed-loop neuroprostheses that compensate for this delay, thus making the control system more stable.

Additive Manufacturing of 3D Biomodels as Adjuvant in Intracranial Aneurysm Clipping.

One of the main difficulties in intracranial aneurysms (IA) surgery refers to the choice of the appropriate clip(s) to be implanted. Although the imaging exams currently available ensure visualization of IA's morphology, they do not bring an accurate reference positioning for the surgeon in executing the surgery procedure nor efficiently contribute to planning the surgery. Unfortunately, for IA's largely inaccessible regions, there is not an efficient method of treatment planning.