scholarly journals A study of hand-movement gestures to substitute for mouse-cursor placement using an inertial sensor

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-104 ◽  
Author(s):  
Romy Budhi Widodo ◽  
Reyna Marsya Quita ◽  
Rhesdyan Setiawan ◽  
Chikamune Wada

Abstract. This paper examines the new study of hand orientation as a substitute for computer-mouse movement and is evaluated based on ISO/TS 9241 part 411: Ergonomics of human–system interaction-evaluation methods for the design of physical input devices. Two pairs of hand-orientation candidates were evaluated, using, for example, pitch–roll and pitch–yaw to substitute for up–down and left–right mouse-cursor movements. The up–down cursor movement was generated from the pitch orientation, while the left–right cursor movement was generated from the roll or yaw orientation, depending on the evaluation of the proposed gesture. The research employed a standard computer mouse as a baseline comparison for the study. The empirical study was conducted to evaluate quantitative performance such as throughput and movement time. The best impression resulted when the throughput had the greatest value as well as the shortest movement time. The performance test was based on Fitts's law using a multi-directional tapping test as suggested by ISO/TS 9241-411. The test was divided into several levels of difficulty, including high, medium, low, and very low. The other assessment is qualitative and was performed using the comfort-rating scale questionnaire and rating of perceived exertion of comfortability and fatigue. The quantitative results show that pitch–yaw throughput is slightly higher than for the pitch–roll gesture, and that the movement time in pitch–yaw is slightly less than in pitch–roll, although there is no statistically significant difference between the two. We also found that pitch–yaw movements have a higher level of comfort based on the comfort-rating scale test. Since the test was divided into levels of difficulty, we identified those gestures suitable for the task with a low and very low level of difficulty based on throughput, movement time, and error-rate results. Finally, this study suggests that pitch–roll and pitch–yaw movements of the hand can be used as substitutes for the mouse, and that pitch–yaw movements are superior in regard to causing less fatigue than pitch–roll movements. Furthermore, this study provides a new suggestion for a suitable level of difficulty when using an inertial sensor as an emulator for the movement of a mouse cursor in the field of human–computer interaction.

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 92
Author(s):  
Pongsakorn Chaisurin ◽  
Jakkrit Klapajone ◽  
Pongson Yaicharoen

Objectives: Our objective was to investigate physiological effects of three types of sounds (synchronous, non-synchronous and white noise) on heart rate, rating of perceived exertion (RPE) and satisfactory level during aerobic exercise.Study design: Pilot cross-over study, single-blindSetting: SuanDok fitness center, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University.Subjects: Fifteen healthy individuals, aged 18-40 years (mean ± SD = 30.2 ± 4.0) with no prior history of pain, musculoskeletal disorders, cardiopulmonary diseases, neurological diseases and hearing impairment.Methods: Subjects who were asked to exercise to exhaustion (with target heart rate in an aerobic zone) on elliptical machines were randomly assigned to listen to 1) a music with beats matching the exercise cadence; synchronous music or 2) a music with variable beats not matching the cadence; asynchronous music or 3) a control sound using white noise in each of 3 exercise sessions. Heart rate and Borg’s Ratings of Perceived Exertion (RPE) were measured at 10 and 20 minutes after starting the exercise. Satisfactory level was also assessed.Results: All fifteen participants with an average age of 30.2 ± 4.0 years completed the exercise protocol. The synchronous music session gave a significant reduction in heart rate at 10 and 20 minutes when compared with asynchronous and white noise sessions. There was no significant difference of heart rate between asynchronous music and white noise sessions at 10 and 20 minutes. Regarding Borg’s RPE, the synchronous session showed significantly lower RPE at 10 and 20 minutes when compared with asynchronous music and white noise sessions. There was no significant difference between RPE in asynchronous music and white noise session. Overall satisfaction using numeric rating scale of 0-10 revealed average satisfactory levels for synchronous music, asynchronous music and white noise of 8.27 ± 1.16, 5.2 ± 2.65 and 2.73 ± 1.62 respectively. Conclusion: Synchronous music had a positive impact on an exercise as it could reduce heart rate and perceived exertion during the exercise. A consistent pace could be auditorily stimulated by coupling exercise cadence on the elliptical machine to the synchronous music tempo, leading to better auditory-motor synchronization.Keywords: synchronous music, exercise, RPE, tempo, elliptical machine 


Author(s):  
Florian Naye ◽  
Simon Décary ◽  
Yannick Tousignant-Laflamme

BACKGROUND: A framework to establish the biopsychosocial patient profile for persons with low back pain has been recently proposed and validated: The Pain and Disability Drivers Management model (PDDM). In order to facilitate its clinical integration, we developed the PDDM rating scale. OBJECTIVES: To determine the inter-rater agreement of the PDDM rating scale. A second objective was to determine if this inter-rater agreement varies according to the complexity of patients’ clinical presentation. METHODS: We recruited physiotherapists during workshops on the PDDM. We asked each participant to assess two clinical vignettes using the rating scale. One vignette presented a typical clinical presentation (moderate level of difficulty) and one presented an atypical presentation (complex level of difficulty). We determined inter-rater agreement with the proportion of participants who gave the same answer for each PDDM domain. RESULTS: For the typical vignette, the inter-rater agreement per domain was moderate to good (between 0.54 and 0.97). For the complex vignette, the inter-rater agreement per domain was poor to good (between 0.49 and 0.81). The comparison between the two vignettes showed a significant difference (p< 0.01) for nociceptive and cognitive-emotional domains. CONCLUSION: Overall performance indicates that the rating scale present adequate agreement for clinical use, but specific domains require further development.


Author(s):  
Gurumayum Sonachand Sharma ◽  
Anupam Gupta ◽  
Meeka Khanna ◽  
Naveen Bangarpet Prakash

Abstract Objective The aim of the study is to observe the effect of post-stroke depression on functional outcomes during inpatient rehabilitation. Patients and Methods The design involved is prospective observational study. The location involved is Neurological Rehabilitation unit in a tertiary care university hospital. The study period ranges from October 2019 to April 2020. The participants involved are the patients with first ever stroke, male and female with age ≥18 years and duration less than 1 year. All participants were assessed at admission and after 14 sessions of inpatient rehabilitation by depression subscale of Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS-D) and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS). The stroke outcomes measures used were: Barthel Index (BI), Scandinavian Stroke Scale (SSS), and Modified Rankin Scale (MRS). Results There are a total of 30 participants (18 males) with median stroke duration of 90 days. The median age of the patients was 58 years. Sixteen patients had ischemic and 14 had hemorrhagic stroke. Out of these, 57% (n = 17) had symptoms of depression (HADS-D >7). Participants in both groups (with and without depression) showed improvement in all the functional outcome measures (BI, SSS, MRS) at the time of discharge as compared with admission scores. The changes in the outcome measures were statistically significant within groups (p < 0.05) but not significant between the groups (p > 0.05). Conclusion The post-stroke depression is common among stroke survivors of less than 1 year duration. There was no significant difference in the functional outcomes between stroke patients with depression and those without depression with inpatient rehabilitation program.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyoungwon Baik ◽  
Seon Myeong Kim ◽  
Jin Ho Jung ◽  
Yang Hyun Lee ◽  
Seok Jong Chung ◽  
...  

AbstractWe investigated the efficacy of donepezil for mild cognitive impairment in Parkinson’s disease (PD-MCI). This was a prospective, non-randomized, open-label, two-arm study. Eighty PD-MCI patients were assigned to either a treatment or control group. The treatment group received donepezil for 48 weeks. The primary outcome measures were the Korean version of Mini-Mental State Exam and Montreal Cognitive Assessment scores. Secondary outcome measures were the Clinical Dementia Rating, Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale part III, Clinical Global Impression scores. Progression of dementia was assessed at 48-week. Comprehensive neuropsychological tests and electroencephalography (EEG) were performed at baseline and after 48 weeks. The spectral power ratio of the theta to beta2 band (TB2R) in the electroencephalogram was analyzed. There was no significant difference in the primary and secondary outcome measures between the two groups. However, the treatment group showed a significant decrease in TB2R at bilateral frontotemporoparietal channels compared to the control group. Although we could not demonstrate improvements in the cognitive functions, donepezil treatment had a modulatory effect on the EEG in PD-MCI patients. EEG might be a sensitive biomarker for detecting changes in PD-MCI after donepezil treatment.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maxime Fieux ◽  
Antoine Gavoille ◽  
Fabien Subtil ◽  
Sophie Bartier ◽  
Stéphane Tringali

Abstract Background The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the surgical training of residents. There is a real concern that trainees will not be able to meet their training requirements. Low-fidelity surgical simulation appears to be an alternative for surgical training. The educational benefits of repeating ossiculoplasty simulations under a microscope have never been evaluated. With this study we aimed to evaluate the differences in performance scores and on a global rating scale before and after training on an ossiculoplasty simulator. Methods In this quasi-experimental, prospective, single-centre, before-after study with blinded rater evaluation, residents performed five microscopic ossiculoplasty tasks with a difficulty gradient (sliding beads onto rods, the insertion of a partial prosthesis, the insertion of a total prosthesis, and the insertion of a stapedotomy piston under microscopic or endoscopic surgery) before and after training on the same simulator. Performance scores were defined for each task, and total performance scores (score/min) were calculated. All data were collected prospectively. Results Six out of seven intermediate residents and 8/9 novices strongly agreed that the simulator was an effective training device and should be included in the ENT residency program. The mean effect of training was a significant increase in the total performance score (+ 0.52 points/min, [95 % CI, 0.40–0.64], p < 0.001), without a significant difference between novice and intermediate residents. Conclusions This preliminary study shows that techniques for middle-ear surgery can be acquired using a simulator, avoiding any risk for patients, even under lockdown measures.


Author(s):  
Leah Shelef ◽  
Jessica M Rabbany ◽  
Peter M Gutierrez ◽  
Ron Kedem ◽  
Ariel Ben Yehuda ◽  
...  

Past suicide attempts are a significant risk factor for future suicidality. Therefore, the present military-based study examined the past suicidal behavior of soldiers who recently made a severe suicide attempt. Our sample consisted of 65 active-duty soldiers (61.5% males), between the ages of 18 and 28 years old (M = 20.4, SD ± 1.3). The inclusion criterion was a recent severe suicide attempt, requiring at least a 24 h hospitalization. This sample was divided into two groups, according to previous suicidal behavior, namely whether their first suicide attempt was before or after enlistment (n = 25; 38.5% and n = 40; 61.5%, respectively). We then examined the lethality and intent of the recent event in regard to this division. Four measures were used to assess the subjects’ suicidal characteristics: the Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale, the Self-Harm Behavior Questionnaire, the Suicidal Behaviors Questionnaire-Revised, and the Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation. No significant difference in the severity of the suicide attempts (either actual or potential severity) were found between those who had suicide attempts before enlistment and those who had their first attempt in the service. As a matter of fact, most of the suicide attempts that occurred for the first time during military service had used a violent method (58.3%, n = 21). Finally, using multivariate analyses, we found that current thoughts and behavior, rather than past suicidality, was the strongest predictor for the lethality of suicide attempts.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 687
Author(s):  
Valentina Varalta ◽  
Paola Poiese ◽  
Serena Recchia ◽  
Barbara Montagnana ◽  
Cristina Fonte ◽  
...  

Background: Parkinson’s disease (PD) is characterized by motor and cognitive dysfunctions that can usually be treated by physiotherapy or cognitive training, respectively. The effects of consecutive physiotherapy and cognitive rehabilitation programs on PD deficits are less investigated. Objective: We investigated the effects of 3 months of physiotherapy (physiotherapy treatment group) or consecutive physiotherapy and cognitive (physiotherapy and cognitive treatment group) rehabilitation programs on cognitive, motor, and psychological aspects in 20 PD patients. Methods: The two groups switched programs and continued rehabilitation for another 3 months. The outcomes were score improvement on cognitive (Montreal Cognitive Assessment, Frontal Assessment Battery, Trail Making Test, Verbal Phonemic Fluency, Digit Span, and Rey Auditory Verbal Learning), motor (Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale-III, Berg Balance Scale, Two-Minute Walking Test, and Time Up and Go), and psychological (Beck Depression Inventory and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory) scales. Results: Between-group comparison revealed a significant difference in functional mobility between the two rehabilitation programs. Improvements in walking abilities were noted after both interventions, but only the patients treated with consecutive training showed better performance on functional mobility and memory tasks. Conclusion: Our findings support the hypothesis that consecutive physiotherapy plus cognitive rehabilitation may have a greater benefit than physiotherapy alone in patients with PD.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey D. Voigt ◽  
Andrew F. Leuchter ◽  
Linda L. Carpenter

AbstractPatients with major depressive disorder (MDD) may be refractory to or have contraindications that preclude treatment with antidepressant pharmacotherapies. Alternative therapies such as repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) continue to evolve, and include theta burst stimulation (TBS), which has advantages over conventional rTMS. The aim of this study was to identify and meta-analyze efficacy data from all randomized controlled trials (RCTs) investigating TBS as a treatment for MDD. Published reports of RCTs (January 1, 2010 to October 23, 2020) were identified via systematic searches in computerized databases, followed by review of individual reports for inclusion. Inclusion criteria included primary diagnosis of MDD ≥ 1 week duration of therapy with ≥10 sessions, and treatment with any form of TBS. The Cochrane GRADE methodology and PRISMA criteria were used for evaluation of individual trials. Data from ten RCTs were included, representing 667 patients. Of these, 8 RCTs compared TBS to sham treatment and one compared TBS to standard rTMS (i.e., high frequency stimulation over left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex [HFL]). Quality of evidence assessment yielded high confidence in the finding of TBS being superior to sham on response measured by the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HRSD) (RR = 2.4; 95% CI: 1.27 to 4.55; P = 0.007; I2 = 40%). Comparison of HRSD response rates for TBS versus rTMS produced no statistically significant difference (RR = 1.02; 95% CI: 0.85 to 1.23; P = 0.80; I2 = 0%). The incidence of adverse events between TBS and rTMS was not statistically different. The findings of a positive effect of TBS vs. sham, and noninferiority of TBS vs. standard HFL rTMS support the continued development of TBS to treat depression.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shuji Shinohara ◽  
Hiroyuki Toda ◽  
Mitsuteru Nakamura ◽  
Yasuhiro Omiya ◽  
Masakazu Higuchi ◽  
...  

AbstractIn this research, we propose a new index of emotional arousal level using sound pressure change acceleration, called the emotional arousal level voice index (EALVI), and investigate the relationship between this index and depression severity. First, EALVI values were calculated from various speech recordings in the interactive emotional dyadic motion capture database, and the correlation with the emotional arousal level of each voice was examined. The resulting correlation coefficient was 0.52 (n = 10,039, p < 2.2 × 10−16). We collected a total of 178 datasets comprising 10 speech phrases and the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAM-D) score of outpatients with major depression at the Ginza Taimei Clinic (GTC) and the National Defense Medical College (NDMC) Hospital. The correlation coefficients between the EALVI and HAM-D scores were − 0.33 (n = 88, p = 1.8 × 10−3) and − 0.43 (n = 90, p = 2.2 × 10−5) at the GTC and NDMC, respectively. Next, the dataset was divided into “no depression” (HAM-D < 8) and “depression” groups (HAM-D ≥ 8) according to the HAM-D score. The number of patients in the “no depression” and “depression” groups were 10 and 78 in the GTC data, and 65 and 25 in the NDMC data, respectively. There was a significant difference in the mean EALVI values between the two groups in both the GTC and NDMC data (p = 8.9 × 10−3, Cliff’s delta = 0.51 and p = 1.6 × 10−3; Cliff’s delta = 0.43, respectively). The area under the curve of the receiver operating characteristic curve when discriminating both groups by EALVI was 0.76 in GTC data and 0.72 in NDMC data. Indirectly, the data suggest that there is some relationship between emotional arousal level and depression severity.


Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (11) ◽  
pp. 3826
Author(s):  
Cristina Sanchez ◽  
Vanina Costa ◽  
Rodrigo Garcia-Carmona ◽  
Eloy Urendes ◽  
Javier Tejedor ◽  
...  

This study evaluates and compares the suitability for child–computer interaction (CCI, the branch within human–computer interaction focused on interactive computer systems for children) of two devices: a standard computer mouse and the ENLAZA interface, a head mouse that measures the user’s head posture using an inertial sensor. A multidirectional pointing task was used to assess the motor performance and the users’ ability to learn such a task. The evaluation was based on the interpretation of the metrics derived from Fitts’ law. Ten children aged between 6 and 8 participated in this study. Participants performed a series of pre- and post-training tests for both input devices. After the experiments, data were analyzed and statistically compared. The results show that Fitts’ law can be used to detect changes in the learning process and assess the level of psychomotor development (by comparing the performance of adults and children). In addition, meaningful differences between the fine motor control (hand) and the gross motor control (head) were found by comparing the results of the interaction using the two devices. These findings suggest that Fitts’ law metrics offer a reliable and objective way of measuring the progress of physical training or therapy.


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