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Journal of Clinical Neurophysiology :... Jul 2024It took 50 years for stereoelectroencephalography (SEEG) to cross the Atlantic. Conceived and designed before the advent of computers and modern technology, this method... (Review)
Review
It took 50 years for stereoelectroencephalography (SEEG) to cross the Atlantic. Conceived and designed before the advent of computers and modern technology, this method turned out to be perfectly suited to brain imaging and modern video and electrophysiological tools. It eventually benefited from robotics and signal processing. However, a critical step remains accurate electrode implantation, which is based on individual patients' noninvasive phase I data. A limiting factor, especially in MRI-negative cases, is a thorough perictal and postictal clinical testing for ensuring meaningful electroclinical correlations. Adapted epilepsy monitoring units' architecture and specific technicians and nurses training are required to improve the granularity of information needed to generate valid hypotheses on localization. SEEG interpretation is based on a knowledge base in neural networks, cognitive/behavioral neuroscience, and electrophysiology quite distinct from electroencephalography. Tailored to the needs of focal epilepsy complexity exploration, SEEG does not fit well with simplification. Specific teaching and development of clinical research inside the epilepsy monitoring units will help to flatten the team learning curve and to build knowledge base from shared clinical experience.
Topics: Humans; Electroencephalography; Stereotaxic Techniques; Epilepsy; Brain; Electrodes, Implanted
PubMed: 38935651
DOI: 10.1097/WNP.0000000000001048 -
Military Psychology : the Official... Jun 2024Stress occurs when conditions burden or exceed an individual's adaptive resources. Military personnel are often tasked with maintaining peak performance under such...
Stress occurs when conditions burden or exceed an individual's adaptive resources. Military personnel are often tasked with maintaining peak performance under such stressful conditions. Importantly, the effects of stress are nuanced and may vary as a function of individual traits and states. Recent interdisciplinary research has sought to model and identify such relationships. In two previously reported efforts, Soldiers first completed a comprehensive battery of trait assessments across four general domains thought to be predictive of performance: cognitive, health, physical, and social-emotional, and then completed the Decision-Making under Uncertainty and Stress (DeMUS) virtual reality task that probed spatial cognition, memory, and decision-making under stress and variable uncertainty. The present analysis explores whether cognitive, health, physical, and social-emotional trait assessments, as well as physiological state measures, predict or modulate DeMUS performance outcomes under stress. Multiple regression analyses examined the effect of each trait predictor and stress responsiveness on quantitative task performance outcomes. Results revealed that one measure of state stress reactivity, salivary cortisol, predicted lower recognition memory sensitivity. Further, trait measures of healthy eating, agility, flexibility, cognitive updating, and positive emotion predicted enhanced spatial orienting and decision-making performance and confidence. Together, the results suggest that select individual states and traits may predict cognition under stress. Future research should expand to ecologically relevant military stressors during training and operations.
PubMed: 38935408
DOI: 10.1080/08995605.2024.2370708 -
Military Medicine Jun 2024The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of environmental conditions on body composition, upper body power, and lower body power throughout a ∼4-week...
INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of environmental conditions on body composition, upper body power, and lower body power throughout a ∼4-week military mountain training exercise. We hypothesized that countermovement jump and ballistic push-up performance would decrease as a result of extended mountain field training and that winter (cold) conditions would result in greater decrements compared to fall (temperate) conditions. We also expected to observe a strong positive correlation between changes in performance and changes in skeletal muscle mass. Finally, we expected acute changes in performance upon altitude exposure.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
A total of 111 U.S. Infantry Marines (110 M; 1 F) provided written informed consent to participate in this study according to a protocol approved by the Naval Health Research Center. There were 54 participants in the fall cohort and 57 in the winter cohort. Maximum effort countermovement jump and ballistic push-up performance were assessed at different timepoints: (1) baseline at the sea level, (2) before training at ∼2100 m, (3) midpoint of training at ∼2100 m, (4) end of training at ∼2100 m, and (5) after 3 to 4 weeks of recovery at the sea level. The fall cohort trained at moderate temperatures (average day/night, 20°C/3°C), whereas the winter cohort trained under snowy winter conditions (7°C/-14°C).
RESULTS
The results suggested that seasonal conditions did not significantly affect changes in body composition or physical performance. Furthermore, no acute effects of altitude on physical performance were detected. Training exercise did, however, cause performance decrements in countermovement jump height, countermovement jump peak power, and ballistic push-up height. Repeated measure correlation analyses suggested that there was a weak positive correlation between the decrease in skeletal muscle mass and the decrease in countermovement jump peak power throughout the training.
CONCLUSIONS
The results of our study suggest that explosive movements are negatively affected by extended military training, seemingly independent of environmental training conditions or temperature. Planning and execution of military training should account for the likelihood that warfighter physical power will decline and may not return to pretraining levels within the month following the training event. It may also be advised to consider targeted exercises to aid in recovery of muscular strength and power. Future work should consider additional factors that likely influenced the decrease in physical performance that occurs during extended military training, such as nutrition, sleep, and psychological and cognitive stresses.
PubMed: 38935393
DOI: 10.1093/milmed/usae329 -
Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Jun 2024Training in interventional endoscopy is offered by nonaccredited advanced endoscopy fellowship programs (AEFPs). The number of these programs has increased dramatically...
BACKGROUND AND AIMS
Training in interventional endoscopy is offered by nonaccredited advanced endoscopy fellowship programs (AEFPs). The number of these programs has increased dramatically with a concurrent increase in the breadth and complexity of interventional endoscopy procedures. Accreditation is governed by competency-based education, yet what constitutes a "high-quality" nonaccredited AEFP has not been defined. Using an evidence-based consensus process, we aimed to establish standards for AEFPs.
METHODS
The RAND UCLA appropriateness method, a well-described modified Delphi process to develop quality indicators, was used. A task force established by the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy drafted potential quality indicators (structure, process, and outcome) in 6 categories: activity preceding training; structure of AEFPs; training in ERCP, EUS, and EMR; and luminal stent placement. Three rounds of iterative feedback from 20 experts were conducted. Round 0 involved discussion of project details. In round 1, experts independently ranked proposed quality indicators on a 9-point interval scale ranging from highly inappropriate (1) to highly appropriate (9). Next, proposed quality indicators were discussed and reworded in a group meeting followed by round 2, in which experts independently reranked proposed quality indicators and provided benchmarks (when applicable). The median score for each quality indicator was calculated. Mean absolute deviation from the median was calculated, and appropriateness of potential quality indicators was assessed using the BIOMED concerted action on appropriateness definition, P value method, and interpercentile range adjusted for symmetry definition. A quality indicator was deemed appropriate if the median score was ≥7 and met criteria for appropriateness using all 3 defined statistical methods.
RESULTS
Of 89 proposed quality indicators, 37 statements met criteria as appropriate for a quality indicator (activity preceding training, 2; structure of AEFPs, 10; training in ERCP, 7; training in EUS, 8; training in EMR, 7; luminal stent placement, 3). Minimum thresholds were defined for 19 relevant quality indicators for number of trainers, procedures during fellowship, and procedures before assessment of competence. Among the final appropriate quality indicators were that all trainees should undergo qualitative and quantitative competence assessments using validated tools at least quarterly with documented feedback throughout the training period and that trainees should track outcomes and relevant quality metrics for specific procedures.
CONCLUSIONS
This consensus process using validated methodology established standards for an AEFP in an effort to ensure adequate training in the most commonly taught interventional endoscopic procedures (ERCP, EUS, EMR, and luminal stent placement) during fellowship. An important component of an AEFP is the use of competency-based assessments that are compliant with the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education's Next Accreditation System, with the goal of ensuring that trainees achieve specific milestones in their progression to achieving cognitive and technical competency.
PubMed: 38935016
DOI: 10.1016/j.gie.2024.03.025 -
Frontiers in Rehabilitation Sciences 2024TBI incidence and distribution are largely overrepresented in low- to middle-income countries (LMICs), such as South Africa (SA), with substantial associated human and...
INTRODUCTION
TBI incidence and distribution are largely overrepresented in low- to middle-income countries (LMICs), such as South Africa (SA), with substantial associated human and financial costs. However, access to rehabilitation for the public is severely limited and not standard practice in SA. Given this background, studies demonstrating the successful implementation of neuropsychological rehabilitation in a LMIC setting are important. Published studies of this nature are generally lacking in this context. Further, there is a need to evaluate interventions that can be implemented at a low cost. To this end, we report on a neuropsychological rehabilitation program for an individual with severe TBI in a LMIC context, aimed at improving his capacity for activities of daily living.
METHOD
A 33-year-old, South African male who sustained a severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) partook in a neuropsychological intervention aimed at remediating functional deficits and enhancing independent functioning. The intervention utilised principles of Goal Management Training and external memory aids, with reliance on procedural memory and errorless learning, to target the participant's impairments in executive functioning and memory through the use of assistive technology-namely smart device applications.
RESULTS
Data collected pre- and post-intervention on formal neuropsychological measures demonstrated no significant change in cognition. However, observational data and qualitative feedback from the participant's family indicated notable improvement in performance on everyday tasks with reduced number of errors and reduced need for external prompting whilst completing intervention tasks across sessions.
DISCUSSION
In the context of severe TBI, neuropsychological rehabilitation can facilitate gains in independent functioning. This study provides support for the value of neurorehabilitation especially for interventions that can be rolled out at low cost and should serve as impetus for further such research in South Africa, where neuropsychological rehabilitation infrastructure and services are lacking.
PubMed: 38933658
DOI: 10.3389/fresc.2024.1393302 -
Journal of Diabetes and Metabolic... Jun 2024Defective insulin signaling in the brain may disrupt hippocampal neuroplasticity resulting in learning and memory impairments. Thus, this study investigated the effect...
Aerobic exercise training improves memory function through modulation of brain-derived neurotrophic factor and synaptic proteins in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex of type 2 diabetic rats.
AIMS/INTRODUCTION
Defective insulin signaling in the brain may disrupt hippocampal neuroplasticity resulting in learning and memory impairments. Thus, this study investigated the effect of aerobic exercise training on cognitive function and synaptic protein markers in diabetic rats.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Twenty male Wistar rats (200-250 g), were fed on high-fat diet and received a low dose of streptozotocin (35 mg/kg, i.p) to induce type 2 diabetes. Then diabetic animals were randomly divided into sedentary and training groups. The exercise training program was treadmill running at 27 m/min for 60 min/day for 8 weeks. One day after the last training session, Morris Water Maze (MWM) task was performed to evaluate spatial learning and memory. Then, the hippocamp and prefrontal cortex tissues were instantly dissected for immunoblotting assay of BDNF, GSK-3β, p-GSK-3β, P38, p-P38, ERK1/2, p-ERK1/2, heat shock protein-27 (HSP27), SNAP-25, synaptophysin, and PSD-95. Independent t-test analysis and two-way ANOVA was used to determine the differences under significance level of 0.05 using the 26th version of IBM SPSS statistical software.
RESULTS
The results showed that aerobic exercise improved memory as assessed in the MWM task. Moreover, aerobic exercise up-regulated HSP27 and BDNF protein levels in the prefrontal cortex, and hippocampus coincided with robust elevations in SNAP25 and PSD-95 levels. Moreover, exercise reduced phosphorylated P38, while increased p-ERK1/2 and p-GSK-3β (p).
CONCLUSION
Our findings suggest that aerobic exercise may debilitate the harmful effects of diabetes on the cognitive function possibly through enhancing synaptic protein markers.
PubMed: 38932906
DOI: 10.1007/s40200-023-01360-9 -
Sheng Wu Yi Xue Gong Cheng Xue Za Zhi =... Jun 2024Motor imagery is often used in the fields of sports training and neurorehabilitation for its advantages of being highly targeted, easy to learn, and requiring no special...
[A study on the effects of transcranial direct current stimulation combined with motor imagery on brain function based on electroencephalogram and near infrared spectrum].
Motor imagery is often used in the fields of sports training and neurorehabilitation for its advantages of being highly targeted, easy to learn, and requiring no special equipment, and has become a major research paradigm in cognitive neuroscience. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), an emerging neuromodulation technique, modulates cortical excitability, which in turn affects functions such as locomotion. However, it is unclear whether tDCS has a positive effect on motor imagery task states. In this paper, 16 young healthy subjects were included, and the electroencephalogram (EEG) signals and near-infrared spectrum (NIRS) signals of the subjects were collected when they were performing motor imagery tasks before and after receiving tDCS, and the changes in multiscale sample entropy (MSE) and haemoglobin concentration were calculated and analyzed during the different tasks. The results found that MSE of task-related brain regions increased, oxygenated haemoglobin concentration increased, and total haemoglobin concentration rose after tDCS stimulation, indicating that tDCS increased the activation of task-related brain regions and had a positive effect on motor imagery. This study may provide some reference value for the clinical study of tDCS combined with motor imagery.
Topics: Humans; Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation; Electroencephalography; Spectroscopy, Near-Infrared; Brain; Imagination; Motor Cortex; Hemoglobins; Young Adult
PubMed: 38932533
DOI: 10.7507/1001-5515.202310029 -
Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) Jun 2024Violin is one of the most complex musical instruments to learn. The learning process requires constant training and many hours of exercise and is primarily based on a...
Violin is one of the most complex musical instruments to learn. The learning process requires constant training and many hours of exercise and is primarily based on a student-teacher interaction where the latter guides the beginner through verbal instructions, visual demonstrations, and physical guidance. The teacher's instruction and practice allow the student to learn gradually how to perform the correct gesture autonomously. Unfortunately, these traditional teaching methods require the constant supervision of a teacher and the interpretation of non-real-time feedback provided after the performance. To address these limitations, this work presents a novel interface (Visual Interface for Bowing Evaluation-VIBE) to facilitate student's progression throughout the learning process, even in the absence of direct teacher intervention. The proposed interface allows two key parameters of bowing movements to be monitored, namely, the angle between the bow and the string (i.e., α angle) and the bow tilt (i.e., β angle), providing real-time visual feedback on how to correctly move the bow. Results collected on 24 beginners (12 exposed to visual feedback, 12 in a control group) showed a positive effect of the real-time visual feedback on the improvement of bow control. Moreover, the subjects exposed to visual feedback judged the latter as useful to correct their movement and clear in terms of the presentation of data. Although the task was rated as harder when performed with the additional feedback, the subjects did not perceive the presence of a violin teacher as essential to interpret the feedback.
Topics: Humans; Music; Feedback, Sensory; Students; Female; Male; Learning
PubMed: 38931745
DOI: 10.3390/s24123961 -
Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) Jun 2024The phonocardiogram (PCG) can be used as an affordable way to monitor heart conditions. This study proposes the training and testing of several classifiers based on SVMs...
The phonocardiogram (PCG) can be used as an affordable way to monitor heart conditions. This study proposes the training and testing of several classifiers based on SVMs (support vector machines), k-NN (k-Nearest Neighbor), and NNs (neural networks) to perform binary ("Normal"/"Pathologic") and multiclass ("Normal", "CAD" (coronary artery disease), "MVP" (mitral valve prolapse), and "Benign" (benign murmurs)) classification of PCG signals, without heart sound segmentation algorithms. Two datasets of 482 and 826 PCG signals from the Physionet/CinC 2016 dataset are used to train the binary and multiclass classifiers, respectively. Each PCG signal is pre-processed, with spike removal, denoising, filtering, and normalization; afterward, it is divided into 5 s frames with a 1 s shift. Subsequently, a feature set is extracted from each frame to train and test the binary and multiclass classifiers. Concerning the binary classification, the trained classifiers yielded accuracies ranging from 92.4 to 98.7% on the test set, with memory occupations from 92.7 kB to 11.1 MB. Regarding the multiclass classification, the trained classifiers achieved accuracies spanning from 95.3 to 98.6% on the test set, occupying a memory portion from 233 kB to 14.1 MB. The NNs trained and tested in this work offer the best trade-off between performance and memory occupation, whereas the trained k-NN models obtained the best performance at the cost of large memory occupation (up to 14.1 MB). The classifiers' performance slightly depends on the signal quality, since a denoising step is performed during pre-processing. To this end, the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) was acquired before and after the denoising, indicating an improvement between 15 and 30 dB. The trained and tested models occupy relatively little memory, enabling their implementation in resource-limited systems.
Topics: Humans; Phonocardiography; Machine Learning; Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted; Algorithms; Neural Networks, Computer; Wearable Electronic Devices; Support Vector Machine
PubMed: 38931636
DOI: 10.3390/s24123853 -
Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) Jun 2024A new algorithm, Yolov8n-FADS, has been proposed with the aim of improving the accuracy of miners' helmet detection algorithms in complex underground environments. By...
A new algorithm, Yolov8n-FADS, has been proposed with the aim of improving the accuracy of miners' helmet detection algorithms in complex underground environments. By replacing the head part with Attentional Sequence Fusion (ASF) and introducing the P2 detection layer, the ASF-P2 structure is able to comprehensively extract the global and local feature information of the image, and the improvement in the backbone part is able to capture the spatially sparsely distributed features more efficiently, which improves the model's ability to perceive complex patterns. The improved detection head, SEAMHead by the SEAM module, can handle occlusion more effectively. The Focal Loss module can improve the model's ability to detect rare target categories by adjusting the weights of positive and negative samples. This study shows that compared with the original model, the improved model has 29% memory compression, a 36.7% reduction in the amount of parameters, and a 4.9% improvement in the detection accuracy, which can effectively improve the detection accuracy of underground helmet wearers, reduce the workload of underground video surveillance personnel, and improve the monitoring efficiency.
PubMed: 38931551
DOI: 10.3390/s24123767