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International Journal of Pharmaceutical... 2016Topical metered-dosing dispensers are designed for dosing accuracy and ease-of-use by the patients while protecting the packaged products from environmental exposure and...
Topical metered-dosing dispensers are designed for dosing accuracy and ease-of-use by the patients while protecting the packaged products from environmental exposure and contamination. The objective of this study was to evaluate the accuracy, precision, and residual of available topical metered-dosing dispensers with different types of topical cream for practical application. Triplicate samples of five different dispensers were tested. This test was completed using three types of commercial topical cream-bases of dissimilar Total Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient Load Percentages, Transdermal Penetration Percentages, and Specific Gravities. The dispensers were evaluated according to specified dose-uniformity criteria for a total dispensing capacity of 30 mL at 0.5 mL per dose for 60 doses. The study shows Topi-CLICK performed with the best precision and accuracy of dosing in comparison to the airless-pump type dispensers. While the dispensing was highly variable with airless pumps and may require calibration for each packaged product, remarkably the performance of Topi-CLICK was not affected by different types of cream-bases and does not require additional metering calibration.
Topics: Administration, Topical; Pharmaceutical Preparations
PubMed: 28333665
DOI: No ID Found -
Arthritis Care & Research Apr 2021Little is known regarding what difference in functional performance measures is significant in individuals with chronic medical disease. Our objective was to examine the...
OBJECTIVE
Little is known regarding what difference in functional performance measures is significant in individuals with chronic medical disease. Our objective was to examine the important differences in gait speed in adults with radiographic knee osteoarthritis.
METHODS
Functional performance was measured by gait speed using 20-meter and 400-meter walk tests performed at a self-selected usual pace among adults with radiographic knee osteoarthritis participating in the Osteoarthritis Initiative at baseline and 2 years later. Both distribution-based methods and anchor-based methods were used to calculate the important differences in gait speed. Anchor-based methods used the chair stand rate and self-reported function to estimate gait speed differences related to physical function.
RESULTS
We included 2,527 participants with radiographic knee osteoarthritis. Distribution-based important difference estimates for the 20-meter walk ranged from 4.1 to 6.4 meters/minute and 400-meter walk estimates ranged from 2.9 to 6.5 meters/minute. Prevalent (cross-sectional) anchor-based estimates for the 20-meter walk ranged from 5.4 to 6.9 meters/minute and for the 400-meter walk ranged from 3.0 to 6.9 meters/minute. Longitudinal anchor-based estimates were deemed unreliable. Combining distribution-based with prevalent anchor-based methods showed that an important gait speed difference for the 20-meter walk is between 4.1 and 6.9 meters/minute and for the 400-meter walk is between 2.9 and 6.9 meters/minute.
CONCLUSION
Our results found that the important difference in gait speed for the 20-meter walk and the 400-meter walk is consistent with important difference estimates for older adult populations. These findings can provide benchmarks for assessing and understanding functional performance outcomes when comparing exposure groups and can be used in designing future studies targeting adults with radiographic knee osteoarthritis.
Topics: Aged; Female; Functional Status; Gait Analysis; Humans; Knee Joint; Male; Middle Aged; Osteoarthritis, Knee; Predictive Value of Tests; Prospective Studies; Time Factors; United States; Walking Speed
PubMed: 32004424
DOI: 10.1002/acr.24159 -
Health Physics May 2009Ambient air monitoring for non-research applications (i.e., compliance) occurs throughout the world. Often, air sampling systems employed for these purposes employ...
Ambient air monitoring for non-research applications (i.e., compliance) occurs throughout the world. Often, air sampling systems employed for these purposes employ simple yet robust equipment capable of handling the rigors of demanding sampling schedules and harsh environments. At the Hanford Site (near Richland, Washington) concentrations of radionuclides in ambient air are monitored continuously at 44 locations. In 2004, mechanical dry-gas meters were incorporated into the Hanford Site ambient air sample collection system to allow the direct measurement of sample volumes. These meters replaced an airflow measurement system that required two manual flow measurements and a sample duration measurement to determine sample volume. A six-month evaluation of the dry-gas meters compared sample volumes calculated using the original flow-rate method to the sample volume measured directly by the dry-gas meter. The two methods provided sample volumes that were within 15% of each other 87% of the time. The results indicated that for instances where the sample volume measured by the two methods differed by more than 15%, the dry-gas meter method provided a more accurate sample volume measurement. The results of the evaluation further indicated that the dry-gas meters provided more accurate sample volumes for all samples, resulting in greater confidence in the calculated concentration results.
Topics: Air Pollution, Radioactive; Environmental Monitoring; Gases; Radioisotopes; Reference Standards
PubMed: 19359845
DOI: 10.1097/01.HP.0000343154.15026.17 -
British Journal of Sports Medicine Aug 2006To evaluate if inexpensive Stepping Meters are valid in counting steps in adults in free living conditions.
OBJECTIVES
To evaluate if inexpensive Stepping Meters are valid in counting steps in adults in free living conditions.
METHODS
For six days, 35 healthy volunteers wore a criterion Yamax Digiwalker and five Stepping Meters every day until all 973 pedometers had been tested. Steps were recorded daily, and the differences between counts from the Digiwalker and the Stepping Meter were expressed as a percentage of the valid value of the Digiwalker step counts. The criterion used to determine if a Stepping Meter was valid was a maximum deviation of 10% from the Digiwalker step counts.
RESULTS
A total of 252 (25.9%) Stepping Meters met the criterion, whereas 74.1% made an overestimation or underestimation of more than 10%. In more than one third (36.6%) of the invalid Stepping Meters, the deviation was greater than 50%. Most (64.8%) of the invalid pedometers overestimated the actual steps taken.
CONCLUSIONS
Inexpensive Stepping Meters cannot be used in community interventions as they will give participants the wrong message.
Topics: Adult; Equipment Design; Ergometry; Female; Health Promotion; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Monitoring, Ambulatory; Pilot Projects; Reproducibility of Results; Walking
PubMed: 16790485
DOI: 10.1136/bjsm.2005.025296 -
The New Zealand Medical Journal Oct 2023There has long been concern about the exposure of children and young people to alcohol advertising, which places them at risk. This study aimed to measure the... (Observational Study)
Observational Study
AIM
There has long been concern about the exposure of children and young people to alcohol advertising, which places them at risk. This study aimed to measure the prevalence, type and location of alcohol advertisements within a 500-metre radius of schools in Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand.
METHODS
A cross-sectional observational study was used to quantify alcohol advertisements within a 500-metre radius of 52 Auckland schools selected using stratified random sampling.
RESULTS
Over half of all schools sampled (56%) had at least one alcohol advertisement within 500 metres, and this was highest among low-decile schools (63%). Nearby licensed premises were responsible for 75% of advertisements.
CONCLUSION
Alcohol advertising near Auckland schools is common. Mechanisms available to Territorial Authorities, District Licensing Committees and the Government to restrict alcohol advertising in communities can be used to regulate areas around schools.
Topics: Child; Humans; Adolescent; Advertising; Cross-Sectional Studies; New Zealand; Schools
PubMed: 37856752
DOI: No ID Found -
Journal of Aerosol Medicine and... Apr 2010Conventional aerosol delivery systems and the availability of new technologies have led to the development of "intelligent" nebulizers such as the I-neb Adaptive Aerosol... (Review)
Review
Conventional aerosol delivery systems and the availability of new technologies have led to the development of "intelligent" nebulizers such as the I-neb Adaptive Aerosol Delivery (AAD) System. Based on the AAD technology, the I-neb AAD System has been designed to continuously adapt to changes in the patient's breathing pattern, and to pulse aerosol only during the inspiratory part of the breathing cycle. This eliminates waste of aerosol during exhalation, and creates a foundation for precise aerosol (dose) delivery. To facilitate the delivery of precise metered doses of aerosol to the patient, a unique metering chamber design has been developed. Through the vibrating mesh technology, the metering chamber design, and the AAD Disc function, the aerosol output rate and metered (delivered) dose can be tailored to the demands of the specific drug to be delivered. In the I-neb AAD System, aerosol delivery is guided through two algorithms, one for the Tidal Breathing Mode (TBM), and one for slow and deep inhalations, the Target Inhalation Mode (TIM). The aim of TIM is to reduce the treatment time by increasing the total inhalation time per minute, and to increase lung deposition by reducing impaction in the upper airways through slow and deep inhalations. A key feature of the AAD technology is the patient feedback mechanisms that are provided to guide the patient on delivery performance. These feedback signals, which include visual, audible, and tactile forms, are configured in a feedback cascade that leads to a high level of compliance with the use of the I-neb AAD System. The I-neb Insight and the Patient Logging System facilitate a further degree of sophistication to the feedback mechanisms, by providing information on long term adherence and compliance data. These can be assessed by patients and clinicians via a Web-based delivery of information in the form of customized graphical analyses.
Topics: Administration, Inhalation; Aerosols; Algorithms; Drug Delivery Systems; Equipment Design; Humans; Medication Adherence; Nebulizers and Vaporizers; Pharmaceutical Preparations; Respiratory Mechanics; Technology, Pharmaceutical; Time Factors
PubMed: 20373904
DOI: 10.1089/jamp.2009.0791 -
Applied Optics Jan 1999The design of integrating cavity absorption meters of general geometry is analyzed for cases in which the incident illumination of the cavity is spatially uniform and...
The design of integrating cavity absorption meters of general geometry is analyzed for cases in which the incident illumination of the cavity is spatially uniform and isotropic, such as the meter of Fry et al. [Appl. Opt. 31, 2055 (1992)]. The analysis by Kirk [Appl. Opt. 34, 4397 (1995)] for the probability of photon survival in a spherical meter is extended to general geometries. An estimate of the effect of the shape of the cavity on the estimated absorption coefficient is given.
PubMed: 18305634
DOI: 10.1364/ao.38.000456 -
Physics in Medicine and Biology Dec 2014The air kerma-area product (KAP) is used for settings of diagnostic reference levels. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) recommends that doses in diagnostic...
The air kerma-area product (KAP) is used for settings of diagnostic reference levels. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) recommends that doses in diagnostic radiology (including the KAP values) be estimated with an accuracy of at least ± 7% (k = 2). Industry standards defined by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) specify that the uncertainty of KAP meter measurements should be less than ± 25% (k = 2). Medical physicists willing to comply with the IAEA's recommendation need to apply correction factors to KAP values reported by x-ray units. The aim of this work is to present and evaluate a calibration method for built-in KAP meters on clinical x-ray units. The method is based on (i) a tandem calibration method, which uses a reference KAP meter calibrated to measure the incident radiation, (ii) measurements using an energy-independent ionization chamber to correct for the energy dependence of the reference KAP meter, and (iii) Monte Carlo simulations of the beam quality correction factors that correct for differences between beam qualities at a standard laboratory and the clinic. The method was applied to the KAP meter in a Siemens Aristos FX plus unit. It was found that values reported by the built-in KAP meter differed from the more accurate values measured by the reference KAP meter by more than 25% for high tube voltages (more than 140 kV) and heavily filtered beams (0.3 mm Cu). Associated uncertainties were too high to claim that the IEC's limit of 25% was exceeded. Nevertheless the differences were high enough to justify the need for a more accurate calibration of built-in KAP meters.
Topics: Calibration; Radiation Dosage; Radiation Equipment and Supplies; Reference Values
PubMed: 25369212
DOI: 10.1088/0031-9155/59/23/7195 -
Radiation Protection Dosimetry Dec 2014According to the International Electro-technical Commission, manufacturers of X-ray equipment should indicate the number of radiation doses to which a patient can be...
According to the International Electro-technical Commission, manufacturers of X-ray equipment should indicate the number of radiation doses to which a patient can be exposed. Dose-area product (DAP) meters are readily available devices that provide dose indices. Collimators are the most commonly employed radiation beam restrictors in X-ray equipment. DAP meters are attached to the lower surface of a collimator. A DAP meter consists of a chamber and electronics. This separation makes it difficult for operators to maintain the accuracy of a DAP meter. Developing a comprehensive system that has a DAP meter in place of a mirror in the collimator would be effective for measuring, recording the dose and maintaining the quality of the DAP meter. This study was conducted through experimental measurements and a simulation. A DAP meter built into a collimator was found to be feasible when its reading was multiplied by a correction factor.
Topics: Computer Simulation; Diagnostic Imaging; Feasibility Studies; Humans; Monte Carlo Method; Radiation Dosage; Radiation Protection; Radiography; X-Rays
PubMed: 24353031
DOI: 10.1093/rpd/nct339 -
Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics Jun 2009Handheld blood glucose (BG) meters are convenient tools that are widely used to measure the BG levels. However, the hematocrit (Hct) value has been identified as a...
Glutest Neo Super--a new handheld blood glucose meter-corrects for the effects of the hematocrit values in both hematocrit-adjusted samples and samples obtained from anemic patients.
BACKGROUND
Handheld blood glucose (BG) meters are convenient tools that are widely used to measure the BG levels. However, the hematocrit (Hct) value has been identified as a confounding factor for accurate BG measurement. Some BG meters are equipped with an Hct-correcting feature, whose effectiveness has been tested previously. Nevertheless, the measurements yielded by many BG meters are confounded by the Hct values. Recently, a new BG meter equipped with an Hct-correcting feature has been developed; however, its effectiveness has not yet been confirmed.
STUDY DESIGN
Venous blood samples were collected from two healthy volunteers, and the Hct values in the samples were adjusted to approximately 0%, 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, and 60%. Further, venous blood samples were collected from 10 anemic patients (Hct <40%). The whole BG (WBG) levels in the samples were measured using two devices-the new BG meter (Glutest Neo Super [Sanwa Kagaku Kenkyusho Co. Ltd., Nagoya, Japan]) and a standard BG meter (OneTouch Ultra [Life Scan Inc., Milpitas, CA]). For reference, plasma glucose (PG) levels were measured using a machine at our hospital laboratory (GA08 [A&T Co., Kanagawa, Japan]). The bias in the measurements was calculated as follows: bias = ([WBG - PG]/PG) x 100. Further, the correlation between the Hct values and the bias was assessed by performing linear regression analysis.
RESULTS
In both the Hct-adjusted samples and the samples obtained from anemic patients, the WBG levels measured using Glutest Neo Super were minimally affected by the Hct values, while those measured using OneTouch Ultra were affected by the Hct values to a statistically significant extent.
CONCLUSIONS
The Hct-correcting feature of the new BG meter Glutest Neo Super was effective. The use of this new device for BG measurements may lead to more appropriate treatment selection.
Topics: Anemia; Blood Glucose; Blood Glucose Self-Monitoring; Equipment Design; Hematocrit; Heparin; Humans; Reference Values
PubMed: 19459765
DOI: 10.1089/dia.2008.0095