Analytical, Diagnostic and Therapeutic Techniques and Equipment Commons^™

Neuromotor Changes In Participants With A Concussion History Can Be Detected With A Custom Smartphone App, Christopher K. Rhea, Masahiro Yamada, Nikita A. Kuznetsov, Jason T. Jakiela, Chanel T. Lojacono, Scott E. Ross, F. J. Haran, Jason M. Bailie, W. Geoffrey Wright

Rehabilitation Sciences Faculty Publications

Neuromotor dysfunction after a concussion is common, but balance tests used to assess neuromotor dysfunction are typically subjective. Current objective balance tests are either cost- or space-prohibitive, or utilize a static balance protocol, which may mask neuromotor dysfunction due to the simplicity of the task. To address this gap, our team developed an Android-based smartphone app (portable and cost-effective) that uses the sensors in the device (objective) to record movement profiles during a stepping-in-place task (dynamic movement). The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which our custom smartphone app and protocol could discriminate neuromotor behavior between …

Theta Burst Brain Stimulation In Painful Diabetic Neuropathy Patients: Investigating Neural Mechanisms, Bhushan Thakkar

Theses and Dissertations

Chronic pain (CP) is a significant contributor to disability and disease burden globally. In 2019, approximately 50.2 million adults (20.4% of the US population) experienced chronic pain, contributing to $560-635 billion in direct medical costs. In addition, the worldwide prevalence of diabetes mellitus has reached epidemic proportions and is set to increase to 629 million by 2045. Almost 50% of patients with diabetes present with diabetic neuropathy (DN), and one in five patients with diabetes presents with painful DN (pDN) which is the most common cause of neuropathic pain (NP) in the US. Symptomatic treatment is the mainstay of management …

Modeling Of Patient-Specific Periaortic Mechanics And Pulmonary Artery Hemodynamics Based On Phase-Contrast Magnetic Resonance Imaging Sequences., Johane H. Bracamonte

Theses and Dissertations

Inverse modeling in cardiovascular medicine is a collection of methodologies that can provide non-invasive patient-specific estimations of clinical risk factors using medical imaging as inputs. Its incorporation into clinical practice has the potential to improve diagnosis and treatment planning with low associated risks and costs.

Herein, three different phase contrast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) modalities were implemented as input data, displacement encoding with stimulated echoes (DENSE MRI) applied, and time-resolved velocity encoding phase-contrast MRI, in 1D and 3D, applied to pulmonary artery (PA) hemodynamics.

A model to account for the effect of periaortic interactions due to static and dynamic structures …

A Novel Computational Network Methodology For Discovery Of Biomarkers And Therapeutic Targets, Qing Ye

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Lung cancer has the second highest cancer incidence rate and the top cancer-related mortality worldwide. An estimate from the American Cancer Society shows that, in 2022, there will be about 236,740 lung cancer cases (117,910 men and 118,830 women) in the US. To date, there are no prognostic/predictive biomarkers to select chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and radiotherapy in individual non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. There is an unmet clinical need to identify patients with early-stage NSCLC who are likely to develop recurrence and to predict their therapeutic responses. This dissertation developed a novel computational methodology for modeling molecular gene association networks …

Deep Learning Approach To Improved Image Quality For Medical Diagnostics, Olivia Loesch, Katie Leyba, Halyley Chan, Craig Goergen

Discovery Undergraduate Interdisciplinary Research Internship

The United Nation’s health-related Sustainable Development Goals are difficult to achieve in low- and middle-income countries due to workforce shortages and inadequate health surveillance systems. However, with the growth of artificial intelligence (AI) and computer algorithms, it is possible to apply AI to healthcare technologies to improve progress towards these UN standards. This project aims at using and improving computer algorithms and deep learning to aid in the extraction of important structural and functional information from murine carotid artery ultrasound and photoacoustic images. First, we created a large database of simulated photoacoustic images to optimize the algorithms. These images were …

Discovery Of Phosphotyrosine-Binding Oligopeptides With Supramolecular Target Selectivity, Ana S. Pina, Leonor Morgado, Krystyna L. Duncan, Sara Carvalho, Henrique F. Carvalho, Armenio J. M. Barbosa, Beatriz De P. Mariz, Ines P. Moreira, Daniela Kalafatovic, Bruno M. Morais Faustino, Vishal Narang, Tong Wang, Charalampos G. Pappas, Isabel Ferreira, A. Cecılia A. Roque, Rein V. Ulijn

Advanced Science Research Center

We demonstrate phage-display screening on self-assembled ligands that enables the identification of oligopeptides that selectively bind dynamic supramolecular targets over their unassembled counterparts. The concept is demonstrated through panning of a phage-display oligopeptide library against supramolecular tyrosine-phosphate ligands using 9-fluorenylmethoxycarbonyl-phenylalanine-tyrosine-phosphate (Fmoc-FpY) micellar aggregates as targets. The 14 selected peptides showed no sequence consensus but were enriched in cationic and proline residues. The lead peptide, KVYFSIPWRVPM-NH2 (P7) was found to bind to the Fmoc-FpY ligand exclusively in its self-assembled state with KD = 74 ± 3 μM. Circular dichroism, NMR and molecular dynamics simulations revealed that the peptide interacts with Fmoc-FpY …

3-In-1 Medical Lancet, Jonathan J. Panella, Gage Vogtlin, Marissa Koski, Benjamin Neyland

Mechanical Engineering

First responders need a quick, sterile, and convenient way to sample blood for glucose testing because glucose levels are a vital metric in assessing time-critical emergency situations. The blood sampling process consists of pre-sterilizing the sample site on the skin with an alcohol pad, pricking the skin with a lancet, and lastly, after sampling, putting a bandage over the prick site. The scope of this project is to design a device which integrates and streamlines the use of the three sub-processes (sterilization, lancing, and bandaging) while upholding the necessary requirements of a single-use medical device and considering other factors which …

Evaluation Of Root-End Resection With Conventional And Ultrasonic Methods: A Single-Blind, Randomized In-Vitro Study, Mohammad Al Shammaa, Roula S. Abiad, Nayer Abo Elsaad

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

The root-end resection is considered critical endodontic surgical procedure. Three millimeters of the root tip is resected and root-end cavity with parallel walls and comparable depth is cut to receive a root-end filling. The literature discussed dentinal cracks after root canal instrumentation and/or root dentine cutting. The aim of the present study was to assess cracks at root ends after resection with conventional versus ultrasonic techniques. Material and Methodology: Thirty-two extracted human lower premolar teeth with single root were used. Their root canals were prepared and received gutta-percha. Sixteen roots Group 1 were resected using tungsten carbide fissure burs, while …

Creating Reel Designs: Reflecting On Arthrogryposis Multiplex Congenita In The Community, Iris Layadi

Purdue Journal of Service-Learning and International Engagement

Because of its extreme rarity, the genetic disease arthrogryposis multiplex congenita (AMC) and the needs of individuals with the diagnosis are often overlooked. AMC refers to the development of nonprogressive contractures in disparate areas of the body and is characterized by decreased flexibility in joints, muscle atrophy, and developmental delays. Colton Darst, a seven-year-old boy from Indianapolis, Indiana, was born with the disorder, and since then, he has undergone numerous surgical interventions and continues to receive orthopedic therapy to reduce his physical limitations. His parents, Michael and Amber Darst, have hopes for him to regain his limbic motion and are …

Pulmon-C: A Real-Time Monitoring Framework Of Pulmonary Function, Md Saiful Islam, Maria Valero, Shahriar Hossain

Symposium of Student Scholars

This project will develop PulMon-C, a real-time monitoring framework of pulmonary function to diagnose COVID-19 patients who are being self-quarantined at home. The tool will identify anomalies in breathe rate and predict pulmonary deterioration to raise alert for immediate actions. The uniqueness of the tool is using non-invasive sensors placed under-mattress that are able to communicate data about the respiratory signal. The customer segment of PulMon-C will be the diagnosed COVID-19 patients and healthcare providers. PulMon-C will assist with the remote monitoring of COVID-19 patients as an urgent need in the USA and will bring larger impact in delivering …

Development Of Quantitative Molecular Photoacoustic Imaging For Noninvasive Cancer Diagnostics, Cayla Zandbergen

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Traditional diagnostic imaging provides clinicians with anatomical information that guides both diagnosis and treatment planning; however, once a tumor has progressed enough to be visible, it has often reached an advanced stage. Molecular imaging techniques allow for real-time visualization of chemical and biological processes via imaging of specific biomarkers, which can facilitate detection of malignancies before they become visible. One biomarker of interest is blood oxygen saturation (SO₂) due to its correlation with hypoxia, which is associated with increased tumor malignancy; some studies have also established SO₂ as an independent biomarker of disease progression. Additionally, because cancerous …

Effect Of Ultrasound Pressure On The Distribution Of Bovine Serum Albumin Delivered By Focused Ultrasound-Mediated Blood-Brain Barrier Opening In Cleared Mouse Brains, Yajie Liu

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

Most common diagnosis and therapeutic methods have low effectiveness when used on brain diseases. The key obstacle is that the blood-brain barrier (BBB) prevents most drugs from entering the brain. Some strategies have been developed to improve the efficiency of drug delivery crossing BBB. Among all these strategies, focused ultrasound-mediated BBB opening (FUS-BBB Opening) stands out since it is noninvasive and can be located to the target area. Detailed studies are required on the distribution of drugs delivered by FUS-BBB opening and the effects of FUS parameters on the distribution. This thesis proposes a pipeline involving tissue clearing and lightsheet …

Detection Methods And Clinical Applications Of Circulating Tumor Cells In Breast Cancer, Hongyi Zhang, Xiaoyan Lin, Yuan Huang, Minghong Wang, Chunmei Cen, Shasha Tang, Marcia R. Dique, Lu Cai, Manuel A. Luis, Jillian Smollar, Yuan Wan, Fengfeng Cai

Publications and Research

Circulating Tumor Cells (CTCs) are cancer cells that split away from the primary tumor and appear in the circulatory system as singular units or clusters, which was first reported by Dr. Thomas Ashworth in 1869. CTCs migrate and implantation occurs at a new site, in a process commonly known as tumor metastasis. In the case of breast cancer, the tumor cells often migrate into locations such as the lungs, brain, and bones, even during the early stages, and this is a notable characteristic of breast cancer. Survival rates have increased significantly over the past few decades because of progress made …

Maintaining Root Canal Curvatures After Preparation With Different Nickel-Titanium Rotary Systems (A Comparative In Vitro Study), Wael Betbout, Mohammad Al Shammaa, Roula S. Abiad

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

The ongoing advancement of materials and methods for root canal instrumentation is resulting in improved techniques with minimal variations to the canal morphology. One standard for assessment of the shaping quality of curved root canals is preparation-induced straightening of the canal. The aim of the study: To compare the effects of 2 Nickel-Titanium rotary systems, 2Shape (Micro-Mega, Besançon, France) and ProTaper Next (Dentsply,Sirona, Ballaigues, Switzerland), on maintaining the distobuccal canals curvature of extracted human maxillary molar teeth using periapical radiographs. Materials and methods: In this study a total of 26 distobuccal roots of upper maxillary molars were used and divided …

Optimal Analytical Methods For High Accuracy Cardiac Disease Classification And Treatment Based On Ecg Data, Jianwei Zheng

Computational and Data Sciences (PhD) Dissertations

This work constitutes six projects. In the first project, a newly inaugurated research database for 12-lead electrocardiogram signals was created under the auspices of Chapman University and Shaoxing People's Hospital (Shaoxing Hospital Zhejiang University School of Medicine). This database aims to enable the scientific community in conducting new studies on arrhythmia and other cardiovascular conditions. In the second project, we created a new 12-lead ECG database under the auspices of Chapman University and Ningbo First Hospital of Zhejiang University that aims to provide high quality data enabling detection of the distinctions between idiopathic ventricular arrhythmia from right ventricular outflow tract …

App Development For Wearable Sensors, Connor Pittman, Christopher Chappie, Patrick A. Tetreault

Thinking Matters Symposium

The objective of this research project was to create a wearable device that monitors bodily functions for the user to view on their smartphone. Sensor data is processed using the Arduino Nano 33 BLE microcontroller. The sensors used in this project include: proximity, temperature, humidity, heart rate, pressure, and skin impedance. This project takes advantage of the Arduino's Bluetooth low energy (BLE) capabilities so that all the data can be transmitted to a smartphone. This presentation shows the challenges faced during the project and how they were overcome. Some of these challenges include: programming, how heart rate sensors work, and …

Who Will Be Liable For Medical Malpractice In The Future? How The Use Of Artificial Intelligence In Medicine Will Shape Medical Tort Law, Scott J. Schwelkart

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.

Zein And Lignin-Based Nanoparticles As Delivery Systems: Pesticide Release And Nanoparticle Health Impact On Soybean Plants, Fallon Polette Salinas Gonzalez

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This research examined the effect of biodegradable, polymeric, lignin-based nanoparticles (LNPs, 113.8±3.4, negatively charged) and zein nanoparticles (ZNP, 141.6±3.9, positively charged) on soybean plant health. The LNPs were synthesized from lignin, covalently linked to poly(lactic-co-glycolic) acid by emulsion evaporation. ZNPs were synthesized by nanoprecipitation. Soybeans grown hydroponically were treated with three concentrations (0.02, 0.2, and 2 mg/ml) of NPs at 28 days after germination. The effect of ZNPs and LNPs on plant health was determined through analysis of root and stem length, chlorophyll concentration, dry biomass of roots and stem, as well as carbon, nitrogen, and micronutrient absorption after 1, …

Focused Ultrasound-Mediated Drug Delivery To The Brainstem, Dezhuang Ye

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

Brainstem gliomas are tumors that occur in the brainstem, the brain region that connects the brain to the spinal cord and controls vital body functions. The critical anatomic location of the brainstem precludes surgical intervention and limits the use of invasive therapeutic techniques. Moreover, the frequently intact blood-brain barrier (BBB) of most brainstem gliomas prevents therapeutic agents from reaching the diseased site. The currently available techniques for brain drug delivery are either invasive (e.g., convection-enhanced delivery) or lack targeting to the diseased site (e.g., intranasal brain drug delivery). Novel techniques that can noninvasively overcome the BBB are critically needed for …

Opioid Medication Use And Education Following Sports Medicine Procedures: An Evidence-To-Practice Review, Caitlin S. O’Mara, Michael G. Ward, Zachary K. Winkelmann

Clinical Practice in Athletic Training

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), illicit and prescription drug overdoses are responsible for 128 deaths every day in the United States. In 2018, 70% of all overdose related deaths involved opioids. Efforts to minimize the opioid epidemic focus on community education, research, partnership, and healthcare support. Under the CDC guidelines, current practices include monitoring trends of drug use and drug related deaths, conducting research to recognize areas in need of improvement and to analyze effectiveness of current treatments, partner with community organizations and healthcare systems that deal firsthand with opioid users, and educate the public on drug …

Electromyographic And Mechanomyogrpahic Signal Changes With Fatigue In Adults, Rehana Koilpillai

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Surface electromyography (sEMG) and mechanomyography (MMG) are well-studied signals that can reveal information about the physiological behavior of muscles during contraction. The purpose of this study was to quantify, characterize, and analyze the electrical and mechanical muscle responses to submaximal, isometric contractions in the rectus femoris in adults. Previous studies have investigated the use of EMG to monitor muscle fatigue. However, more information appears to be needed about the use of MMG to measure muscle fatigue during submaximal isometric contraction in the rectus femoris. In this study, the utility of MMG as a measure of muscle fatigue or muscle state …

Test-Retest Reliability And Minimal Detectable Change Of The Computerized Dynamic Posturography Proprio For Adults With Chronic Traumatic Brain Injury, Guilherme Manna Cesar, Thad W. Buster, Judith M. Burnfield

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Faculty Publications

Purpose: Balance deficits after brain injury, including reactive recovery from unexpected perturbations, can persist well after rehabilitation is concluded. While traditional clinical assessments are practical, the anticipatory nature of the tasks may mask perceptible balance control. Computerized dynamic posturography can directly quantify capacity to respond to unexpected, external perturbations. This study examined the reliability of the computerized dynamic posturography assessment with the device PROPRIO® 4000 in adults with traumatic brain injury and created the minimal detectable change for its standardized test.

Methods: Ten adults (ages 21–55 years) with chronic (average 10 ± 6 years post-injury) severe (loss of consciousness 2–75 …

A Deblurring/Denoising Corrected Scintigraphic Planar Image Reconstruction Model For Targeted Alpha Theory, Charles Ross Schmidtlein, Matthew Maroun, Andrzej Krol, Howard Gifford, Lisa Bodei, Joseph O'Donoghue, Ida Häggström, Yuesheng Xu, Si Li

Mathematics & Statistics Faculty Publications

Scintigraphy is a common nuclear medicine method to image molecular target’s bio-distribution and pharmacokinetics through the use of radiotracers and gamma cameras. The patient’s images are obtained by using a pair of opposing large flat gamma ray detectors equipped with parallel-hole lead or tungsten collimators that preferentially detect gamma-rays that are emitted perpendicular to the plane of the detector. The resulting images form an anterior/posterior (A/P) planar image pairs. The obtained images are contaminated by noise and contain artifacts caused by gamma-ray attenuation, collimator penetration, scatter and other detrimental factors. Post-filtering of the images can reduce the noise, but at …

Ecg Monitoring In Athletes, Jalal Jwayyed, Kelly Purgason, Joseph Linder, Annamarie Alfery, Silvia Furman

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Athletes and medical personnel need reliable methods to monitor vital signs and detect potentially life-threatening issues before they occur. Electrocardiograph (ECG) monitors are currently the best method of detecting heart-related health issues. Current ECG monitors worn by athletes are difficult to use and lack the ability to track ECGs in real time. Through research and interviews with various clinicians, further problems have been identified that include poor electrode adhesion, and a lack of compatibility with the equipment worn by athletes. Our team proposes to develop solutions that will improve performance and comfort associated with ECG monitors for athletic applications. This …

Simultaneous Wound Border Segmentation And Tissue Classification Using A Conditional Generative Adversarial Network, Salih Sarp, Murat Kuzlu, Manisa Pipattanasomporn, Ozgur Guler

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

Generative adversarial network (GAN) applications on medical image synthesis have the potential to assist caregivers in deciding a proper chronic wound treatment plan by understanding the border segmentation and the wound tissue classification visually. This study proposes a hybrid wound border segmentation and tissue classification method utilising conditional GAN, which can mimic real data without expert knowledge. We trained the network on chronic wound datasets with different sizes. The performance of the GAN algorithm is evaluated through the mean squared error, Dice coefficient metrics and visual inspection of generated images. This study also analyses the optimum number of training images …

The Enlightening Role Of Explainable Artificial Intelligence In Chronic Wound Classification, Salih Sarp, Murat Kuzlu, Emmanuel Wilson, Umit Cali, Ozgur Guler

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been among the most emerging research and industrial application fields, especially in the healthcare domain, but operated as a black-box model with a limited understanding of its inner working over the past decades. AI algorithms are, in large part, built on weights calculated as a result of large matrix multiplications. It is typically hard to interpret and debug the computationally intensive processes. Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) aims to solve black-box and hard-to-debug approaches through the use of various techniques and tools. In this study, XAI techniques are applied to chronic wound classification. The proposed model classifies …

Evaluation Of Spinal Anatomy Segmentation Methods Using Synthetic Computed Tomography Volumes, Austin Tapp, Michel Audette

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Severe adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) is corrected by surgical procedures that necessitate ligament releases. To determine appropriate release allotments, soft tissues must be localized on a patient-specific basis, However, routine computer tomography (CT) imaging precludes traditional, voxel-based soft tissue localization. Fortunately, recent studies have proposed top-down segmentation methods, which elucidate soft tissues using pre-operative CT volumes. While the accuracy of vertebral segmentations obtained from these methods has not been determined, the accuracy of soft tissue segmentations has not. To ensure the soft tissue segmentation methods are clinically applicable, soft tissue validation must occur. This study presents an evaluation measure for …

Nebulizer-Based Systems To Improve Pharmaceutical Aerosol Delivery To The Lungs, Benjamin M. Spence

Theses and Dissertations

Combining vibrating mesh nebulizers with additional new technologies leads to substantial improvements in pharmaceutical aerosol delivery to the lungs across therapeutic administration methods. In this dissertation, streamlined components, aerosol administration synchronization, and/or Excipient Enhanced Growth (EEG) technologies were utilized to develop and test several novel devices and aerosol delivery systems. The first focus of this work was to improve the poor delivery efficiency, e.g., 3.6% of nominal dose (Dugernier et al. 2017), of aerosolized medication administration to adult human subjects concurrent with high flow nasal cannula (HFNC) therapy, a form of continuous-flow non-invasive ventilation (NIV). The developed Low-Volume Mixer-Heater (LVMH) …

Impact Of Hemodynamic Vortex Spatial And Temporal Characteristics On Analysis Of Intracranial Aneurysms, Kevin W. Sunderland

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Subarachnoid hemorrhage is a potentially devastating pathological condition in which bleeding occurs into the space surrounding the brain. One of the prominent sources of subarachnoid hemorrhage are intracranial aneurysms (IA): degenerative, irregular expansions of area(s) of the cerebral vasculature. In the event of IA rupture, the resultant subarachnoid hemorrhage ends in patient mortality occurring in ~50% of cases, with survivors enduring significant neurological damage with physical or cognitive impairment. The seriousness of IA rupture drives a degree of clinical interest in understanding these conditions that promote both the development and possible rupture of the vascular malformations. Current metrics for the …

Feasibility Of Continuous Fever Monitoring Using Wearable Devices, Benjamin L. Smarr, Kirstin Aschbacher, Sarah M. Fisher, Anoushka Chowdhary, Stephan Dilchert, Karena Puldon, Adam Rao, Frederick M. Hecht, Ashley E. Mason

Publications and Research

Elevated core temperature constitutes an important biomarker for COVID-19 infection; however, no standards currently exist to monitor fever using wearable peripheral temperature sensors. Evidence that sensors could be used to develop fever monitoring capabilities would enable large-scale health-monitoring research and provide high-temporal resolution data on fever responses across heterogeneous populations. We launched the TemPredict study in March of 2020 to capture continuous physiological data, including peripheral temperature, from a commercially available wearable device during the novel coronavirus pandemic. We coupled these data with symptom reports and COVID-19 diagnosis data. Here we report findings from the first 50 subjects who reported …