Biomedical Engineering and Bioengineering Commons^™

The Effects Of Parkinson's On Fixational Stability, Erin L. Mallahan

Theses and Dissertations

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive, neurological movement disorder. The stability of eye movements in PD is not well understood but many patients report difficulty doing tasks that require stabilized fixation and gaze. The ability to stabilize an image on the retina is critical is acquiring visual information. The purpose of this study was to compare the stability of fixational eye movements of PD patients to those of age-matched controls. Eye movements during simple fixation tasks were recorded from 66 subjects (ages 52 to 84), and 36 age-matched controls (ages 58-85). The absolute velocity of the fixational eye movements were …

Myocardial Perfusion Imaging With Rb-82 Pet, George Nittil Francis

Theses and Dissertations

Myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) is an effective technique used to study the left ventricular ejection function (LVEF), myocardial perfusion, wall motion, and wall thickening. Positron emission tomography (PET) and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) are two modalities that can be used to quantify the left global and regional perfusion at rest and stress. While PET and SPECT rely on similar principles to produce images, important differences in instrumentation and experimental applications are dictated by inherent differences in their respective physics of radioactive decay. With a sensitivity > 90% in combination with a high specificity, PET is today the best available …

The Extraction Of Type Ii Collagen And The Electrospinning Of Nano-Fibrous Scaffolds, Danielle Careen Knapp

Theses and Dissertations

Articular cartilage lining joints, such as in the knee, functions to reduce friction and absorb shock. Collagen type II is the largest constituent in the extracellular matrix of articular cartilage and its restoration is of the highest interest to tissue engineers. Cartilage has little ability to naturally regenerate due to the absence of vascularity and the inability of the chondrocytes to proliferate at a high rate. It would be ideal to create a mimicking extracellular matrix/scaffold from type II collagen that could possibly be used to replace damaged articular cartilage that has the same function and morphology. Three different groups …

Iterative Methods For The Reconstruction Of Tomographic Images With Unconventional Source-Detector Configurations, Abey Mukkananchery

Theses and Dissertations

X-ray computed tomography (CT) holds a critical role in current medical practice for the evaluation of patients, particularly in the emergency department and intensive care units. Expensive high resolution stationary scanners are available in radiology departments of most hospitals. In many situations however, a small, inexpensive, portable CT unit would be of significant value. Several mobile or miniature CT scanners are available, but none of these systems have the range, flexibility or overall physical characteristics of a truly portable device. The main challenge is the design of a geometry that optimally trades image quality for system size. The goal of …

Real Time Frequency Analysis Of Signals From Lasso Catheter For Radiofrequency Ablation During Atrial Fibrillation, Prashant Yadav

Theses and Dissertations

Real time spectrum analysis of signals obtained through lasso catheter during radiofrequency ablation of pulmonary vein was performed to determine the channel with dominant frequency. Threshold algorithm was used for signals which could be classified as type I and type II AF. Type III AF Signals which were highly fractionated or differentiated were evaluated for frequency content by performing Fast Fourier Transform. Data from Seven patients was collected and an episode of 180 ± 40 seconds was recorded and analyzed for each pulmonary vein that showed electrical activation. Frequency spectra for one second segment of signal for each channel were …

Joint Center Movement Analysis And 3d Motion Modeling Of Upper Arm - Comparison Of Several Algorithms With The Visual 3-D Program, Leena Joseph

Theses and Dissertations

600 out of every 100,000 people in the United States today suffer from some form of cerebellar disease that causes major abnormalities in the equilibrium and aligned, coordinated movement of the body. Hence it becomes essential to diagnose the extent of the movement and gait disorder and provide required therapy to the patients. Various developments have been made in the designing and application of interactive software system for body positioning. Object oriented design techniques are used in the field of software engineering for interactive geometric representation of system behavior. Motion analysis of the upper and lower extremities of the body …

The Use Of Computerized Dynamic Posturography To Assess The Balance In Individuals With Parkinson's Disease, Theresa Erin Mcguirk

Theses and Dissertations

Postural instability is one of the hallmarks of Parkinson's disease (PD), currently evaluated using several subjective tools. However, the nature and degree of the resulting balance deficit is not well specified by these tools. Computerized dynamic posturography (CDP) provides an objective assessment by isolating and quantifying sensory and motor contributions to balance control. The purpose of this study was to compare balance in individuals with PD to a control group using CDP (NeuroCom Smart Balance Master® system). Testing took place at the Southeast Parkinson's disease Research Education and Clinical Center (PADRECC), an interdisciplinary center of excellence for people with PD …

Incorporation Of Tetracycline Hydrochloride Into Electrospun Fibrinogen: A Study Of Mechanical Properties And Time Release, Charles Dudley Anderson Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

Electrospinning has the capacity to create fibers of natural or synthetic polymers with dimensions that are similar to analogous fibers in native tissue. Mats consisting of fibers of these sub-micron dimensions have shown promise in provoking little immune response and in offering a habitable environment for cell proliferation. Fibrinogen is a natural protein capable of being electrospun and offers the benefit of existing as part of the natural coagulation cascade. Mats of fibrinogen could be utilized as possible hemostatic dressings or as an early scaffold for cell migration for either wound repair or tissue engineering. The addition of antibiotic into …

Electrospinning As A Processing Method For Electroactive Polymers And Composites, Kristin Joy Pawlowski

Theses and Dissertations

Electrospinning was examined for its potential to create functional materials. Three distinct electroactive materials were electrospun into fibers and fiber mats and then characterized with the intent of determining their utility in aerospace and biomedical applications such as micro-air vehicles and the cardiovascular system. Electrospun Graft Elastomers demonstrated potential as actuators, as electromechanical strain testing showed comparable response to the film form of this material. Further improvement of electroactive response was realized with high dielectric inclusions and fiber orientation. Electrospin processing imparted piezoelectric properties to the fibers of poly(vinylidene fluoride). Differential scanning calorimetry and infrared spectroscopy indicated a degree of …

Novel Apparatus To Control Electrospinning Fiber Orientation For The Production Of Tissue Engineering Scaffolds, Eugene David Boland

Theses and Dissertations

The conception of electrospinning can trace its roots back more than 400 years, when it was observed that rubbed amber can deform a droplet of water on a smooth surface, and is based upon simple concepts of charge separation and surface tension. Since that time, considerable effort has been directed at both the cause and utility of this phenomenon. The specific aim of this dissertation project was to develop an automated electrostatic processing apparatus that was capable of controlling the three-dimensional architecture of an electrospun scaffold to further improve its utility in tissue engineering. The efficacy of using this technique …

A New Device For Performing Simultaneous Sterno-Thoracic Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (Sst-Cpr), Deepak S. Gupta

Theses and Dissertations

There are two different physiological mechanisms that cause blood to circulate around the human body during cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The "cardiac pump" generates blood flow by squeezing blood out of the heart as the sternum is depressed. The "thoracic pump" generates flow by forcing blood out of the heart and the great vessels as the intrathoracic pressure rises due to chest compression.

To date, all CPR techniques try to circulate blood during cardiac arrest by exploiting elite; the cardiac pump or the thoracic pump mechanism of blood flow. No mechanical CPR device thus far invented has tried to exploit both mechanisms …

Design And Evaluation Of An Augmentative Communication Aid For Multiply Impaired Individuals, Mark S. Annett

Theses and Dissertations

Individuals with sensory and multiple physical impairments, which may include the loss of the ability to speak, have very specialized communication needs. Based on the belief that the current technology does not fully meet these needs, a prototype communication aid was developed for an individual who is cortically blind, dysphonic, and motor impaired. Furthermore, the communication device has broader applications beyond the present individual.

The prototype system has a direct selection of "Yes" and "No" responses, scanning access to daily phrases, rate enhancement of all scans, prompted encoding for selection of letters, two letter codes for complete sentences, access to …

Exposure To Phosphine Gas During Application Of Magnesium Phosphide In Stored Product Warehouses, Mark Anthony Harrison

Theses and Dissertations

The use of phosphine gas requires that respiratory protection be used if exposures exceed the OSHA permissible exposure limit. As with other chemical exposures limits many of the references used to establish occupational health guidelines date back to the 1930’s and 1940’s. This is quite common and is the case with phosphine gas. Initial planning for fumigations involving magnesium phosphide requires that a hazard assessment be performed. Expected worker exposures based on previous monitoring or test data was not readily available. Many current practices and procedures for fumigations are based on recommendations from applicators who used the product in the …

Organ Doses In Routine Radiographic Procedures, Yang Han

Theses and Dissertations

There is general agreement that the extent of the risk from x-ray examination is related in some way to the radiation dose. As the dose increases, the likelihood of significant biological effects also increases. If a clear correlation between dose and effect is to be established, a convenient and reasonably accurate method of estimating patient’s absorbed doses during common radiographic examinations will be highly needed. A simple method is developed in this project to determine the two important parameters e exposure at skin entrance (ESE) and half value layer (IIVL), which is essential to get reasonably accurate estimates of absorbed …