scholarly journals Methodological and Methodical Issues in Clinical Studies Concerning Values

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 145-155
Author(s):  
E.M. Leontyeva
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Study ◽  
Clinical Studies ◽  
Value Systems ◽  
Normative Values ◽  
Thought Processes ◽  
World Views ◽  
Experimental Conditions ◽  
Psychological Practice ◽  
Psychological Experiments ◽  
Methodological Difficulties

The article presents the purchase to studying value systems in various sciences; psychology, philosophy. The paper describes methodological difficulties in clinical studies of values. The first difficulty; an unspoken conviction held by clinicians that psychologically ill patients are not in possession of values whatsoever, or that there is a difference expressed in the production of certain value clusters. The second difficulty is a lack of normative values and the influence of postmodern world views on psychological practice. The article considers a need for reflections on internal value systems. Thereby the contemporary clinical study of value systems, should lead to solutions to the aforementioned problems. For a holistic study of value systems it is necessary to create special experimental conditions to a reflection and understanding of One's Own value systems by the subjects of the study. The article proposes a set of adequate and necessary requirements for patho-psychological experiments in the field of value thought processes of patients with a diagnosis of schizophrenia. As an example of such a study the author shows a detailed interview following a modelled value based dialogue and the authors methodology of ‘value classification’. Presented is the interview structure, a set of used values, instructions given to participants, and supplementary questions.

scholarly journals Robust Step Detection from Different Waist-Worn Sensor Positions: Implications for Clinical Studies

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 50-58
Author(s):  
Matthias  Tietsch ◽  
Amir Muaremi ◽  
Ieuan Clay ◽  
Felix Kluge ◽  
Holger Hoefling ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Study ◽  
Clinical Studies ◽  
Neurological Diseases ◽  
Human Gait ◽  
Robust Solution ◽  
Step Detection ◽  
Study Protocols ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Impact

Analyzing human gait with inertial sensors provides valuable insights into a wide range of health impairments, including many musculoskeletal and neurological diseases. A representative and reliable assessment of gait requires continuous monitoring over long periods and ideally takes place in the subjects’ habitual environment (real-world). An inconsistent sensor wearing position can affect gait characterization and influence clinical study results, thus clinical study protocols are typically highly proscriptive, instructing all participants to wear the sensor in a uniform manner. This restrictive approach improves data quality but reduces overall adherence. In this work, we analyze the impact of altering the sensor wearing position around the waist on sensor signal and step detection. We demonstrate that an asymmetrically worn sensor leads to additional odd-harmonic frequency components in the frequency spectrum. We propose a robust solution for step detection based on autocorrelation to overcome sensor position variation (sensitivity = 0.99, precision = 0.99). The proposed solution reduces the impact of inconsistent sensor positioning on gait characterization in clinical studies, thus providing more flexibility to protocol implementation and more freedom to participants to wear the sensor in the position most comfortable to them. This work is a first step towards truly position-agnostic gait assessment in clinical settings.

scholarly journals A Concise Review of Silver Diamine Fluoride on Oral Biofilm

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 3232
Author(s):  
Jingyang Zhang ◽  
Sofiya-Roksolana Got ◽  
Iris Xiaoxue Yin ◽  
Edward Chin-Man Lo ◽  
Chun-Hung Chu
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Study ◽  
Streptococcus Mutans ◽  
Bacterial Adhesion ◽  
Clinical Studies ◽  
Antibacterial Properties ◽  
Tooth Surface ◽  
Original Research ◽  
Laboratory Studies ◽  
Oral Biofilm ◽  
Silver Diamine Fluoride

Studies have shown that silver diamine fluoride (SDF) is an effective agent to arrest and prevent dental caries due to its mineralizing and antibacterial properties. While plenty of studies have investigated the mineralizing properties, there are few papers that have examined its antibacterial effect on oral biofilm. The objective of this study was to identify the effect of silver diamine fluoride on oral biofilm. Method: The keywords used were (silver diamine fluoride OR silver diammine fluoride OR SDF OR silver fluoride OR AgF AND biofilm OR plaque). Two reviewers screened the titles and abstracts and then retrieved the full text of the potentially eligible publications. Publications of original research investigating the effect of SDF on oral biofilm were selected for this review. Results: This review included 15 laboratory studies and six clinical studies among the 540 papers identified. The laboratory studies found that SDF could prevent bacterial adhesion to the tooth surface. SDF also inhibited the growth of cariogenic bacteria, including Streptococcus mutans, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Streptococcus sobrinus, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Actinomyces naeslundii, and Enterococcus faecalis, thus contributing to its success in caries arrest. One clinical study reported a decrease in Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus sp. in arrested caries after SDF treatment, and another clinical study found that SDF inhibited the growth of periodontitis microbiota, including Porphyromonas gingivalis, Tannerella forsythia, and Prevotella intermedia/nigrescens. However, three clinical studies reported no significant change in the microbial diversity of the plaque on the tooth after SDF treatment. Moreover, one laboratory study and one clinical research study reported that SDF inhibited the growth of Candida albicans. Conclusion: Not many research studies have investigated the effects of SDF on oral biofilm, although SDF has been used as a caries-arresting agent with antibacterial properties. However, a few publications have reported that SDF prevented bacterial adhesion to the teeth, inhibited the growth of cariogenic and periodontal bacteria, and possessed antifungal properties.

Nosological validity of dysthymia. Part I: historical, epidemiological and clinical data

1998 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 173-180 ◽  
Author(s):  
L Waintraub ◽  
JD Guelfi
Keyword(s):  
Major Depression ◽  
Clinical Data ◽  
Clinical Studies ◽  
Clinical Pattern ◽  
The World ◽  
Diagnostic Label ◽  
Methodological Difficulties

SummaryDysthymia is the last diagnostic label introduced after a series of precursors to describe a disorder whose nosological status has long been dubious. The results of published epidemiological, as well as clinical studies about its presentation, course and outcome partly support the validity of this construct — although their interpretation is limited by methodological difficulties: same prevalence in many locations in the world, always lower than that of major depression, somewhat specific clinical pattern, course and outcome.

Global Rating, Symptoms, Behavior, and Cognitive Performance as Indicators of Efficacy in Clinical Studies with Nimodipine in Elderly Patients with Cognitive Impairment Syndromes

1992 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 89-99 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Schmage ◽  
M. Bergener
Keyword(s):  
Cardiac Arrest ◽  
Clinical Studies ◽  
Brain Function ◽  
Severe Head Injury ◽  
Global Rating ◽  
Experimental Conditions ◽  
Selective Action ◽  
Sciatic Nerves ◽  
Gait Abnormalities ◽  
Methodological Aspects

Nimodipine is a calcium antagonist which improves learning and memory in brain-lesioned or aged animals (LeVere & Sandin, 1989; Schuurman & Traber, 1989). It also accelerates the recovery of experimentally damaged sciatic nerves (van der Zee et al., 1987) and reduces age-associated gait abnormalities in aging rats (Schuurman et al., 1987). Selective action on cerebral vessels has also been proven. Vasoconstriction was prevented or reduced with nimodipine under experimental conditions (Toward, 1981) and cerebral blood flow could be increased (Kazda et al., 1982). The drug has been tested in subarachnoid hemorrhage, stroke, severe head injury, cerebral resuscitation after cardiac arrest, impaired brain function in old age, and dementia. Methodological aspects of clinical studies with this agent are examined in this paper.

Experimental Studies of the Mental Speed of Schizophrenics

1958 ◽  
Vol 104 (437) ◽  
pp. 1123-1129 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne Broadhurst
Keyword(s):  
Reaction Time ◽  
Problem Solving ◽  
Motor Performance ◽  
Psychiatric Patients ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Thought Processes ◽  
Mental Functioning ◽  
Experimental Conditions ◽  
Experimental Control ◽  
Schizophrenic Patients

It has been clinically observed that psychiatric patients in general (6, 11) and schizophrenic patients in particular (1, 4) show abnormalities of mental speed, being “retarded” or slower than normals on many measures. Confirmatory evidence on this point is to be found but much of the early work on speed of schizophrenic reactivity used measures of speed of motor performance (12, 13) or of reaction time under various conditions (6), ignoring more fundamental slowness of thought processes. The present studies are concentrated on the recent finding that schizophrenics show abnormally slow mental speed measured in a problem-solving situation (4, 18, 19). The aim of the investigation was to discover the exact conditions under which this abnormality appears, and, thence, by manipulating the experimental conditions, to be able to bring speed of mental functioning under experimental control. This paper describes the attempt to bring speed under control by means of drugs. A second paper (2) deals with the effect of practice upon mental speed.

scholarly journals Diffusion tensor imaging of the roots of the brachial plexus: a systematic review and meta-analysis of normative values

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 419-431 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryckie G. Wade ◽  
Alexander Whittam ◽  
Irvin Teh ◽  
Gustav Andersson ◽  
Fang-Cheng Yeh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Brachial Plexus ◽  
Diffusion Tensor ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Mean Diffusivity ◽  
Normative Values ◽  
Spinal Root ◽  
Experimental Conditions ◽  
Tissue Microstructure ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Generalised Linear Modelling

Abstract Purpose Diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging (DTI) characterises tissue microstructure and provides proxy measures of myelination, axon diameter, fibre density and organisation. This may be valuable in the assessment of the roots of the brachial plexus in health and disease. Therefore, there is a need to define the normal DTI values. Methods The literature was systematically searched for studies of asymptomatic adults who underwent DTI of the brachial plexus. Participant characteristics, scanning protocols, and measurements of the fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) of each spinal root were extracted by two independent review authors. Generalised linear modelling was used to estimate the effect of experimental conditions on the FA and MD. Meta-analysis of root-level estimates was performed using Cohen’s method with random effects. Results Nine articles, describing 316 adults (1:1 male:female) of mean age 35 years (SD 6) were included. Increments of ten diffusion sensitising gradient directions reduced the mean FA by 0.01 (95% CI 0.01, 0.03). Each year of life reduced the mean MD by 0.03 × 10–3 mm2/s (95% CI 0.01, 0.04). At 3-T, the pooled mean FA of the roots was 0.36 (95% CI 0.34, 0.38; I2 98%). The pooled mean MD of the roots was 1.51 × 10–3 mm2/s (95% CI 1.45, 1.56; I2 99%). Conclusions The FA and MD of the roots of the brachial plexus vary according to experimental conditions and participant factors. We provide summary estimates of the normative values in different conditions which may be valuable to researchers and clinicians alike.

scholarly journals Avoiding the Inherent Limitations in Datasets Used for Measuring Aesthetics When Using a Machine Learning Approach

Complexity ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrian Carballal ◽  
Carlos Fernandez-Lozano ◽  
Nereida Rodriguez-Fernandez ◽  
Luz Castro ◽  
Antonino Santos
Keyword(s):  
State Of The Art ◽  
Learning Approach ◽  
Aesthetic Value ◽  
Experimental Conditions ◽  
Generative Art ◽  
Machine Learning Approach ◽  
Evolutionary Art ◽  
The Aesthetic ◽  
Psychological Experiments

An important topic in evolutionary art is the development of systems that can mimic the aesthetics decisions made by human begins, e.g., fitness evaluations made by humans using interactive evolution in generative art. This paper focuses on the analysis of several datasets used for aesthetic prediction based on ratings from photography websites and psychological experiments. Since these datasets present problems, we proposed a new dataset that is a subset of DPChallenge.com. Subsequently, three different evaluation methods were considered, one derived from the ratings available at DPChallenge.com and two obtained under experimental conditions related to the aesthetics and quality of images. We observed different criteria in the DPChallenge.com ratings, which had more to do with the photographic quality than with the aesthetic value. Finally, we explored learning systems other than state-of-the-art ones, in order to predict these three values. The obtained results were similar to those using state-of-the-art procedures.

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