Analytical, Diagnostic and Therapeutic Techniques and Equipment Commons^™

Facial Type Analysis Comparison Between Mri, Cbct, And Lateral Cephalometrics, Matthew A. Sanders

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Introduction: Single Cephalometric measurements are comparable between Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRl) and Conventional Lateral Cephalometric (LC) imaging methods. This study evaluated the agreement between the three imaging methods in facial type analysis (using a composite of 5 cephalometric measures).

Methods and Materials: Twenty-two subjects participated in this study. Cranial images were generated via three modalities: LC, CBCT and MRl. Cephalometric landmarks were identified on the three images per subject and a facial type analysis performed. An equally weighted facial type calculation composed of 5 cephalometric measurements (facial axis, facial depth, mandibular plane, lower face height, …

Work Of Fracture In Ceramic Bracket Bonding Systems, Tye A. Roylance

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Introduction: Work of fracture (WOE) is a method of analysis of the toughness or resilience of a bracket bonding system. It is an indication of a bracket bonding systems ability to withstand forces in the mouth below the force at which failure occurs. Work of fracture gives an indication of how much abuse the bracket/bonding system can withstand and still maintain an adequate adhesion to the tooth surface. This analysis incorporates shear bond strength and displacement and is determined in part by the elasticity and resilience of the specimen being studied.

Materials and Methods: One hundred and eighty bovine teeth …

Creating Prediction Models For Obstructive Sleep Apnea Based On Gender, Jeffrey Hwang

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Introduction: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common chronic disorder that is characterized by repetitive episodes of airflow cessation or reduction occurring during sleep as a result of partial or complete upper airway obstruction. These recurrent events have a tremendous impact on the cardiovascular system with a multitude of dangerous consequences. Numerous studies have been conducted determining etiological risk factors for OSA including anatomical predictors which have been observed with multiple imaging techniques. Cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) is a low-radiation mode of imaging that can be used to accurately identify anatomical landmarks and measure craniofacial relationships and airway dimensions. …

A Monocular Marker-Free Gait Measurement System, Jane Courtney, Annraoi M. De Paor

Articles

This paper presents a new, user-friendly, portable motion capture and gait analysis system for capturing and analyzing human gait, designed as a telemedicine tool to monitor remotely the progress of patients through treatment. The system requires minimal user input and simple single-camera filming (which can be acquired from a basic webcam) making it very accessible to nontechnical, nonclinical personnel. This system can allow gait studies to acquire a much larger data set and allow trained gait analysts to focus their skills on the interpretation phase of gait analysis. The design uses a novel motion capture method derived from spatiotemporal segmentation …

Evaluation Of The Quantitative Accuracy Of A Commercially-Available Positron Emission Mammography Scanner, Adam Springer

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Objective: The PEM Flex Solo II (Naviscan, Inc., San Diego, CA) is currently the only commercially-available positron emission mammography (PEM) scanner. This scanner does not apply corrections for count rate effects, attenuation or scatter during image reconstruction, potentially affecting the quantitative accuracy of images. This work measures the overall quantitative accuracy of the PEM Flex system, and determines the contributions of error due to count rate effects, attenuation and scatter.

Materials and Methods: Gelatin phantoms were designed to simulate breasts of different sizes (4 – 12 cm thick) with varying uniform background activity concentration (0.007 – 0.5 μCi/cc), cysts and …

Review Of Randomized Control Trials Assessing The Efficacy Of Noninvasive Ventilation (Niv) In Acute Hypoxemic Respiratory Failure (Ahrf) In Non-Copd And Non-Trauma Cases, Marja Alyami

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: In the last two decades, there has been strong evidence supporting the use of noninvasive ventilation (NIV) in COPD cases. While there are advocates in favor of the use of NIV in patients presented with acute hypoxemic respiratory failure (AHRF) non-related to COPD nor chest trauma, efficacy of NIV in these cases is still heatedly debated in the medical research field.

Objective: To critically assess the existing scientific evidence regarding efficacy of NIV as an adjunct therapy, the endotracheal intubation rate, intensive care and hospital length of stay, fatal complications, and mortality rate in patients presented with AHRF in …

Macrophages Loaded With Gold Nanoshells For Photothermal Ablation Of Glioma: An In Vitro Model, Amani Riad Makkouk

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The current median survival of patients with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the most common type of glioma, remains at 14.6 months despite multimodal treatments (surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy). This research aims to study the feasibility of photothermal ablation of glioma using gold nanoshells that are heated upon laser irradiation at their resonance wavelength. The novelty of our approach lies in improving nanoshell tumor delivery by loading them in macrophages, which are known to be recruited to gliomas via tumor-released chemoattractive agents. Ferumoxides, superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) nanoparticles, are needed as an additional macrophage load in order to visualize macrophage accumulation in …

Asian Race/Ethnicity As A Risk Factor For Bile Duct Injury During Cholecystectomy., Stephanie R. Downing, Ghazala Datoo, Tolulope A. Oyetunji, Terrence Fullum, David C. Chang, Nita Ahuja

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Iatrogenic bile duct injury (BDI) is an uncommon but serious complication of cholecystectomy, with identified risk factors of acute cholecystitis, male sex, older age, and aberrant biliary anatomy. The Nationwide Inpatient Sample (1998-2006) was queried for cholecystectomy performed on hospital day 0 or 1. Bile duct injury repair procedure codes were used as a surrogate for BDI. We identified 377,424 patients who underwent cholecystectomy, with 1124 BDIs (0.3%). On multivariate logistic regression analysis, Asian race/ethnicity was a significant risk factor for BDI (odds ratio [OR], 2.26; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.59-3.23; P < .001). This persisted for laparoscopic (OR, 2.62; 95% CI, 1.28-5.39; P = .009) and open (2.21; 1.59-3.07; P < .001) cholecystectomies. No other race/ethnicity was identified as a risk factor for BDI. We report a new finding that Asian race/ethnicity is a significant risk factor for BDI in laparoscopic and open cholecystectomies.

Effect Of Acute Administration Of Angiopoietin-1 In Experimental Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury: Magnetic Resonance Imaging And Neurobehavioral Studies, Chirag B. Patel

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a devastating condition that affects people in the prime of their lives. A myriad of vascular events occur after SCI, each of which contributes to the evolving pathology. The primary trauma causes mechanical damage to blood vessels, resulting in hemorrhage. The blood-spinal cord barrier (BSCB), a neurovascular unit that limits passage of most agents from systemic circulation to the central nervous system, breaks down, resulting in inflammation, scar formation, and other sequelae. Protracted BSCB disruption may exacerbate cellular injury and hinder neurobehavioral recovery in SCI.

In these studies, angiopoietin-1 (Ang1), an agent known to reduce …

Chitosan Wound Dressing, Staci Ann Mcadams, William David Block, Simon John Mccarthy, Kenton W. Gregory, Hal Oien

Technology Transfer - Patents

Dental dressing assemblies are formed from hydrophilic polymer sponge structures, such as a densified chitosan biomaterial. The invention also contemplates systems and methods that can be used in conjunction with stents and periodontal dressings to promote hemostasis and secondary healing in free gingival graft palatal donor sites and all other oral and maxillofacial surgical sites.

Hiv: Make The Diagnosis And Take The Next Step, Julie G. Stewart, Amy R. Weinberg

Nursing Faculty Publications

With the CDC urging screening for all willing patients, providers will be testing and managing a growing number of HIV-positive individuals.

The CDC estimates that with more than 40,000 new infections annually, more than 1.2 million people in the United States are living with HIV-and 24% to 27% may not be aware of their infection status.1 Studies have shown that HIV is often diagnosed late in the disease process, when the individual has already developed AIDS, which typically occurs 8 to 11 years after HIV infection.2 Research also points to missed opportunities to offer HIV testing and diagnose the infection …

Comparison Of Spectrophotometer, Digital Camera And Scanner In Reproducing Facial Skin Colour., Humam Laith Mahmood

Student Works (2010-2019)

Introduction: The success of a well-fitting and anatomically correct maxillofacial prosthesis is compromised if the colour does not match the adjoining tissues. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to examine the ability of the spectrophotometer, digital camera and scanner in reproducing skin colour and to create a system of classifying skin colour in a sample of the Malaysian population. Materials and methods: Two image capturing devices (digital camera and flat-bed scanner) and a colour measuring device (spectrophotometer) were used to characterize the shade of the forehead in 90 adults from 3 ethnic groups in Malaysia – Malays, Chinese and …

Rapid Multi-Class Multi-Residue Method For The Confirmation Of Chloramphenicol And Eleven Nitroimidazoles In Milk And Honey By Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry, Mark Cronly, Patrice Behan, Barry Foley, Liam Regan, Sheila Martin, Michael Doyle, Edward Malone

Articles

A confirmatory method has been developed to allow for the analysis of eleven nitroimidazoles and also chloramphenicol in milk and honey samples. These compounds are classified as A6 compounds in annex IV of council regulation 2377/90 and therefore prohibited for the use in animal husbandry. Milk samples are extracted by acetonitrile with addition of NaCl, while honey samples are first dissolved in water before a similar extraction. Honey extracts undergo a hexane wash to remove impurities. Both milk and honey extracts are evaporated to dryness and reconstituted in initial mobile phase. These are then injected onto an LC-MS/MS system and …

A Standoff Approach To Monitoring Infant Apnea, Lauren J. West

Master's Theses

The focus of this thesis was to capture and measure carbon dioxide concentrations upon exhalation to determine if an apnea event is occurring. Research in the fields of respiratory physiology and apnea built the foundation for the design of the standoff infant apnea monitor. The monitor is designed to track infant respiration using carbon dioxide and sound signatures of breath without touching the infant. Each detection system, audio and carbon dioxide, were designed separately and brought together for a final proof-of-concept device. The software was developed using LabView and run on a Netbook. Testing was conducted on healthy adults to …

Initial Experience With A Miniaturized Multiplane Transesophageal Probe In Small Infants Undergoing Cardiac Operations., Sinai C. Zyblewski, Girish S. Shirali, Geoffrey A. Forbus, Tain-Yen Hsia, Scott M. Bradley, Andrew M. Atz, Meryl S. Cohen, Eric M. Graham

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

PURPOSE: There has been reluctance to use intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) in small infants. We assessed the utility and safety of a new miniaturized multiplane micro-TEE probe in small infants undergoing cardiac operations.

DESCRIPTION: Hemodynamic and ventilation variables were prospectively recorded before and after micro-TEE insertion and removal in infants weighing 5 kg or less undergoing cardiac operations.

EVALUATION: The study included 42 patients with a mean weight of 3.6 +/- 0.9 kg (range, 1.7 to 5 kg). All probe insertions were successful. There were no complications or clinically significant changes in hemodynamic or ventilation variables. Information provided by TEE …

A Passive Pure Moment Protocol For Testing Spine Segments: Development And Application, Kyle David Fraysur

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

The pure moment protocol is the accepted standard for performing in-vitro biomechanical testing of spinal devices. Published studies predominantly report range of motion and flexibility data, but information regarding the segment center of rotation is also relevant. Most current pure moment platforms are not sensitive enough to accurately calculate the instantaneous axis of rotation (IAR) for a segment throughout a bending motion. The purpose of this study was to simulate a pure moment protocol using a programmable spine robot, and use the data gathered to calculate the IAR for harvested specimen and those implanted with a constrained total disc replacement …

The Effects Of Cellular Theta Breathing Meditation On Cell Mediated Immune Response: A Controlled, Randomized Investigation Of Altered Consciousness And Health, Marjorie D. Hardgrave

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Medical anthropology is well positioned to make contributions to consciousness research based on biocultural approaches that integrate methodologies from the biological, behavioral and social sciences to explore aspects of human health. The ubiquity and perseverance of health related activities involving altered states of consciousness (ASC) across cultures past and present suggest that these potentials are deeply rooted in human sociocultural evolution. Analyzing the relationship between immune function and meditative ASC represents an effort to empirically investigate the adaptive value of these human potentials.

A controlled, randomized investigation of two meditation practices was conducted at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas …

Commissioning An Anthropomorphic Spine And Lung Phantom For Remote Dose Verification Of Institutions Participating In Rtog 0631, Douglas F. Caruthers

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

The RPC developed a new phantom to ensure comparable and consistent radiation administration in spinal radiosurgery clinical trials. This study assessed the phantom’s dosimetric and anatomic utility. The ‘spine phantom’ is a water filled thorax with anatomy encountered in spinal radiosurgery: target volume, vertebral column, spinal canal, esophagus, heart, and lungs. The dose to the target volume was measured with axial and sagittal planes of radiochromic film and thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLD). The dose distributions were measured with the radiochromic film calibrated to the absolute dose measured by the TLD. Four irradiations were administered: a four angle box plan, a seven …

The Use Of Preclinical Models To Improve The Treatment Of Retinoblastoma, Katie Marie Nemeth

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

Rodent models play an essential role in the development of new chemotherapeutics and dosing regimes. It is often difficult to carryout a clinical study for pediatric cancers due to the small patient population. Retinoblastoma, a pediatric cancer of the eye, is one example of a pediatric cancer that can benefit from preclinical studies. Over the years various retinoblastoma rodent models have been developed used to test various combination of broad-spectrum systemic chemotherapy. It was found form these studies that the combination of topotecan and carboplatin was effective. However both drugs cause myelosuppression and therefore administrating both of these drugs systemically …

Preosteoblast Behavior On A Synthetic Calcium Phosphate Scaffold Coated With Cell Derived Matrix, Daniel A. Young

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

Bone grafts are commonly used for the treatment of large bone defects. Biodegradable, synthetic bone grafts combined with cells and growth factors as a tissue engineered construct can provide benefits over the common autografts and allografts currently used. Calcium phosphate (CaP) materials offer high biocompatibility and chemical similarity to natural bone tissue. Biodegradable beta-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP) scaffolds with an interconnected porous network have been created to promote tissue ingrowth and regeneration in vitro and in vivo. Extracellular matrix (ECM) coated on titanium and polymer scaffolds has been shown to improve cell response to those material surfaces. Here, we attempted …

Mechanism-Based Strategies To Enhance The Actions Of A, Fabiola C. Gomez

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Heat shock protein 90 (HSP90) is an abundant molecular chaperone that regulates the functional stability of client oncoproteins, such as STAT3, Raf-1 and Akt, which play a role in the survival of malignant cells. The chaperone function of HSP90 is driven by the binding and hydrolysis of ATP. The geldanamycin analog, 17-AAG, binds to the ATP pocket of HSP90 leading to the degradation of client proteins. However, treatment with 17-AAG results in the elevation of the levels of antiapoptotic proteins HSP70 and HSP27, which may lead to cell death resistance. The increase in HSP70 and HSP27 protein levels is due …

Characterization And Optimization Of Antigen-Specific T Cell Responses During Ex Vivo Expansion Of Melanoma Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes, Yufeng Li

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Treatment of metastatic melanoma with tumor reactive T cells (adoptive T cell therapy, ACT) is a promising approach associated with a high clinical response rate. However, further optimization of this treatment modality is required to increase the clinical response after this therapy. ACT in melanoma involves an initial phase (pre-REP) of tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) expansion ex vivo from tumor isolates followed by a second phase, “rapid expansion protocol” (REP) generating the billions of cells used as the TIL infusion product. The main question addressed in this thesis was how the currently used REP affected the responsiveness of the CD8+ T …

Influence Of Anchoring On Miscarriage Risk Perception Associated With Amniocentesis, Regina A. Nuccio

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

INFLUENCE OF ANCHORING ON MISCARRIAGE RISK PERCEPTION ASSOCIATED WITH AMNIOCENTESIS Publication No. ___________ Regina Nuccio, BS Supervisory Professor: Claire N. Singletary, MS, CGC Amniocentesis is the most common invasive procedure performed during pregnancy (Eddleman, et al., 2006). One important factor that women consider when making a decision about amniocentesis is the risk of miscarriage associated with the procedure. People use heuristics such as anchoring, the action of using a prior belief regarding the magnitude of risk as a frame of reference for new information to be synthesized, to better understand risks that they encounter in their lives. This study aimed …

Development And Application Of Computational Tools For The Study And Optimization Of Variable Resolution X-Ray (Vrx) Computed Tomography Scanners, David Alejandro Rendon

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

The overall goal of this project was to develop and apply important computerized aids for the design and implementation of Variable Resolution X-ray (VRX) CT scanners developed at the University of Tennessee, Memphis. VRX scanners take advantage of the “projective compression” principle that allows the same device to image objects of very different sizes with the same level of detail by adjusting the field of view and the reconstruction resolution.

The first part of this project aimed to develop a set of computational tools specifically tailored for the design, implementation and study of VRX scanners. This included creating a reconstruction …

Evaluation Of The Respironics Bipap® Auto Sv And Resmed Vpap Adapt Sv To Lung Simulator Generated Central And Obstructive Sleep Apneic Episodes., Grant Drake, Dawn Alverson

College of Health Sciences Poster Presentations

Background: Recent developments in non-invasive positive pressure ventilation have led to the production of adaptive servo-ventilation devices that examine an individual’s breathing characteristics and adjust pressure levels via a product specific algorithm. We evaluated two adaptive servo-ventilation devices, the Respironics BiPAP® auto SV™ and ResMed VPAP™ Adapt SV to lung simulator generated central and obstructive sleep apneic episodes.

Methods: Each system was adjusted to the following settings: EPAP minimum 4 cmH2O, IPAP maximum 15 cmH2O, adaptive modes, 15 breaths per minute. Each system was tested using its own brand of ventilation circuit and face mask (Respironics Comfort Gel ™Full and …

Optimization Algorithms For Functional Deimmunization Of Therapeutic Proteins, Andrew S. Parker, Wei Zheng, Karl E. Griswold, Chris Bailey-Kellogg

Dartmouth Scholarship

To develop protein therapeutics from exogenous sources, it is necessary to mitigate the risks of eliciting an anti-biotherapeutic immune response. A key aspect of the response is the recognition and surface display by antigen-presenting cells of epitopes, short peptide fragments derived from the foreign protein. Thus, developing minimal-epitope variants represents a powerful approach to deimmunizing protein therapeutics. Critically, mutations selected to reduce immunogenicity must not interfere with the protein's therapeutic activity.

Anxiolytic Effect Of Midazolam Premedication Assessed By Clinical And Platelet Aggregation Profiles, Ehtesham I Khan, Rehana S Kamal, Hameed Ullah

Department of Anaesthesia

BACKGROUND: It is well documented that surgery is associated with increased anxiety, which has an adverse impact on patient's outcome. This study was designed to assess the anxiolytic effect of midazolam in pre-anaesthetic medication by using clinical and platelet aggregation profiles.METHODS: Sixty ASA I and II female patients aged between 35 and 60 years undergoing elective abdominal hysterectomy were randomly divided into two equal groups. Group I received placebo as pre-medication while group II received 0.15 mg/kg midazolam as pre-medication 1 hour preoperatively. They were monitored for visual analogue scale (VAS) for anxiety, observer's anxiety criteria, sedation score, blood pressure, …

Enhancing Student Usability Of The Osmette, Mitchell Foutz

Biomedical Engineering

Precision Systems' Micro-Osmette located in the St. Jude Lab at Cal Poly SLO is a freezing-point depression osmometer capable of measuring the osmolality, the concentration of hydrated species in osmoles per-kilogram of water, with unrivaled speed and accuracy. The Osmette could be used extensively by students in a wide variety of applications if students are able to become acquainted with the device in an accelerated manner. The amount of time required to safely and effectively operate the micro-Osmette using the operator's manual provided with the device is prohibitive of widespread use by students. Revisions and improvements to the existing operator's …

Charge Switch Nucleotides, John G. K. Williams, Gregory R. Bashford, Jiyan Chen, Dan Draney, Nara Narayanan, Bambi L. Reynolds, Pamela Sheaff

Biomedical Imaging and Biosignal Analysis Laboratory

The present invention provides compounds, methods and systems for sequencing nucleic acid using single molecule detection. Using labeled NPs that exhibit charge-switching behavior, single-molecule DNA sequencing in a microchannel sorting system is realized. In operation, sequencing products are detected enabling real-time sequencing as successive detectable moieties flow through a detection channel. By electrically sorting charged molecules, the cleaved product molecules are detected in isolation Without interference from unincorporated NPs and Without illuminating the polymerase-DNA complex.

Partial And Transitional Atrioventricular Septal Defect Outcomes., L Luann Minich, Andrew M. Atz, Steven D. Colan, Lynn A. Sleeper, Seema Mital, James Jaggers, Renee Margossian, Ashwin Prakash, Jennifer S. Li, Meryl S. Cohen, Ronald V. Lacro, Gloria L. Klein, John A. Hawkins, Pediatric Heart Network Investigators, Girish S. Shirali

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

BACKGROUND: Surgical and perioperative improvements permit earlier repair of partial and transitional atrioventricular septal defects (AVSD). We sought to describe contemporary outcomes in a multicenter cohort.

METHODS: We studied 87 patients undergoing primary biventricular repair of partial or transitional AVSD between June 2004 and February 2006 across seven North American centers. One-month and 6-month postoperative data included weight-for-age z-scores, left atrioventricular valve regurgitation (LAVVR) grade, residual shunts, and left ventricular ejection fraction. Paired methods were used to assess 6-month change.

RESULTS: Median age at surgery was 1.8 years; median weight z-score was -0.88. Median days for ventilation were 1, intensive …