Search results for: PATIENTS
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Engineering Challenges in the Design of Cochlear Implants
PublicationHearing aids such as cochlear implants have been used by both adults and children for a long time. In addition, cochlear implants are used by patients who have severe hearing loss either by birth or after an accident. This paper aims to investigate the engineering challenges bounding the design of cochlear implants and present its possible solution...
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COMPOSITE MATERIAL SELECTION FOR A PATIENT TRANSFER ASSIST DEVICE
PublicationLaminates - layered composites containing at least two elements (matrix and reinforcement) widely used in industry have also found their usage in medicine. Their main feature is the ability to modify the material in order to obtain the required properties. Depending on the needs, we can modify reinforcement, type of resin or the method of bonding substrates. Commonly used fibers are: carbon fiber, glass and aramid fibers; resins...
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Active Dynamic Infrared Thermal Imaging in Burn Depth Evaluation
PublicationThe aim of this study was to find the relationship between active dynamic thermography (ADT) with cold excitation and burn depth. This new modality of evaluation of burns seems to be an attractive proposal for quantitative classification, allowing proper choice of burn wound treatment: conservative or surgical, especially compared with static thermography. The work was an in vivo experiment on domestic pigs, and a small number...
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Antimicrobal and ostheointegration activity of bone cement contains nanometals
PublicationPurpose: One of the major problems in bone surgery are infections – especially thoseoccurring in the course of the operating on the patients with lowered immunity system,because they carry the danger of complications. In the Mechanical Department of TechnicalUniversity of Gdansk, there has been carried the research with the use of bone cement andmetal nanoparticles.Design/methodology/approach: The bone cement was used without supplement...
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Design and Evaluation of the Platform for Weight-Shifting Exercises with Compensatory Forces Monitoring
PublicationDetails of a platform for the rehabilitation of people with severe balance impairment are discussed in the paper. Based upon a commercially available static parapodium, modified to fit force sensors, this device is designed to give a new, safe tool to physiotherapists. It is designed for the patients who cannot maintain equilibrium during a bipedal stance and need to hold to or lean on something during the rehabilitation. Visual,...
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Genetic and Epigenetic Aspects of Atopic Dermatitis
PublicationAtopic dermatitis is a heterogeneous disease, in which the pathogenesis is associated with mutations in genes encoding epidermal structural proteins, barrier enzymes, and their inhibitors; the role of genes regulating innate and adaptive immune responses and environmental factors inducing the disease is also noted. Recent studies point to the key role of epigenetic changes in the development of the disease. Epigenetic modifications...
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Environmental exposure to cadmium in breast cancer – association with the Warburg effect and sensitivity to tamoxifen
PublicationThe association between cadmium and breast cancer remains unexplained due to inconsistent epidemiological data and unknown underlying mechanisms. This study aimed to assess the relationship between environmental exposure to cadmium and the Warburg effect in breast cancer and, thus, its possible interference with breast cancer treatment. The observational study in two groups of breast cancer patients indicated a positive correlation between...
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Treatment of Odontogenic Maxillary Sinusitis with the Use of Growth Factors in Advanced Platelet-Rich Fibrin for Immediate Closure of Oro-Antral Communication: A Case Report
PublicationChronic odontogenic maxillary sinusitis (COMS), a prolonged inflammation of the maxillary sinus lasting over 12 weeks, is often a result of periapical lesions, marginal periodontitis, and complications like oro-antral communication (OAC) and fistula (OAF). OAC, commonly emerging post-teeth extraction in the lateral maxilla, lacks documented treatments using advanced platelet-rich fibrin (A-PRF). This study evaluates A-PRF’s efficacy...
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Evaluation of Medical Staff Satisfaction for Workplace Architecture in Temporary COVID-19 Hospital: A Case Study in Gdańsk, Poland
PublicationThis article analyses the architecture that was used in the temporary AmberExpo hospital in Gdańsk, Poland which was installed during the COVID-19 pandemic. The construction of this type of facility is often based on experimental approaches, aimed at caring for patients suffering from an infectious disease in emergency conditions. In order to assess the level of employee satisfaction with the architectural and technical elements...
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Performance of a new commercial high-definition 3D patient specific quality assurance system for CyberKnife robotic radiotherapy and radiosurgery
PublicationConventional two dimensional and low-definition measurement techniques for dosimetric verification of radiotherapy treatment deliveries are no longer adequate in the era of hypofractionation and extremely high dose gradients. New quality assurance (QA) tools with 3D capability and high definition are urgently needed. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the performance of one of the first such commercial systems as applied...
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Human subarachnoid space width oscillations in the resting state
PublicationAbnormal cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pulsatility has been implicated in patients suffering from various diseases, including multiple sclerosis and hypertension. CSF pulsatility results in subarachnoid space (SAS) width changes, which can be measured with near-infrared transillumination backscattering sounding (NIR-T/BSS). The aim of this study was to combine NIR-T/BSS and wavelet analysis methods to characterise the dynamics of the...
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Motility activity, slime production, biofilm formation and genetic typing by ERIC-PCR for Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains isolated from bovine and other sources (human and environment)
PublicationThe molecular-typing strategy, ERIC-PCR was used in an attempt to determine the genomic relationship of 28 P. aeruginosa strains isolated from faeces of healthy bovine, bovine mastitis and from faeces of hospital patients as well as from environment. ERIC-PCR fingerprinting revealed large molecular differentiation within this group of isolates. Twenty two out of 28 strains tested generated unique patterns of DNA bands and only...
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Full-field in vivo experimental study of the strains of a breathing human abdominal wall with intra-abdominal pressure variation
PublicationThe presented study aims to assess the mechanical behaviour of the anterior abdominal wall based on an in vivo experiment on humans. Full-field measurement of abdominal wall displacement during changes of intra-abdominal pressure is performed using a digital image correlation (DIC) system. Continuous measurement in time enables the observation of changes in the strain field during breathing. The understanding of the mechanical...
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Automatic Breath Analysis System Using Convolutional Neural Networks
PublicationDiseases related to the human respiratory system have always been a burden for the entire society. The situation has become particularly difficult now after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Even now, however, it is common for people to consult their doctor too late, after the disease has developed. To protect patients from severe disease, it is recommended that any symptoms disturbing the respiratory system be detected as...
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Automatic Breath Analysis System Using Convolutional Neural Networks
PublicationDiseases related to the human respiratory system have always been a burden for the entire society. The situation has become particularly difficult now after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Even now, however, it is not uncommon for people to consult their doctor too late, after the disease has developed. To protect patients from severe disease, it is recommended that any symptoms disturbing the respiratory system be detected...
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Regional resting state perfusion variability and delayed cerebrovascular uniform reactivity in subjects with chronic carotid artery stenosis
PublicationThe aim of this study was to assess regional perfusion at baseline and regional cerebrovascular resistance (CVR) to delayed acetazolamide challenge in subjects with chronic carotid artery stenosis.Sixteen patients (ten males) aged 70.94±7.71 with carotid artery stenosis ≥90% on the ipsilateral side and ≤50% on the contralateral side were enrolled into the study. In all patients, two computed tomography perfusion examinations were...
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Professional activity, gender and disease-related emotions: The impact on parents' experiences in caring for children with phenylketonuria
PublicationIntroduction: Clinical management of rare diseases often fails to acknowledge the challenges faced by caregivers.Whilst management of phenylketonuria (PKU) may not be considered as dire as other conditions, most studiesprimarily concentrate on clinical issues, dietary adherence, or the quality of life of the PKU patients, leavingcaregivers in the background. The aim of the study was to evaluate the psychosocial...
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H2AX phosphorylation, its role in DNA damage response and cancer therapy
PublicationDouble-strand breaks (DSBs) are the most deleterious DNA lesions, which, if left unrepaired, may have severe consequences for cell survival, as they lead to chromosome aberrations, genomic instability, or cell death. Various physical, chemical, and biological factors are involved in DSB induction. Cells respond to DNA damage by activating the so-called DNA damage response (DDR), a complex molecular mechanism developed to detect...
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The Use of Liquid Crystal Thermography in Selected Technical and Medical Applications—Recent Development
PublicationThermochromic liquid crystals (TLC) and true-colour digital image processing have been successfully used in non-intrusive technical, industrial and biomedical studies and applications. Thin coatings of TLC at surfaces are utilized to obtain detailed temperature distributions and heat transfer rates for steady or transient processes. Liquid crystals also can be used to make the temperature and velocity fields in liquids visible...
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PCR and real-time PCR assays to detect fungi of Alternaria alternata species
PublicationFungi of the Alternaria genus are mostly associated with allergic diseases. However, with a growing number of immunocompromised patients, these fungi, with A. alternata being the most prevalent one, are increasingly recognized as etiological agents of infections (phaeohyphomycoses) in humans. Nowadays, identification of Alternaria spp. requires their pure culture and is solely based on morphological criteria. Clinically, Alternaria...
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Inhibitory and antimicrobial activities of OGTI and HV-BBI peptides, fragments and analogs derived from amphibian skin
PublicationA series of linear and cyclic fragments and analogs of two peptides (OGTI and HV-BBI) isolated from skin secretions of frogs were synthesized by the solid-phase method. Their inhibitory activity against several serine proteinases: bovine beta-trypsin, bovine alpha-chymotypsin, human leukocyte elastase and cathepsin G from human neutrophils, was investigated together with evaluation of their antimicrobial activities against Gram-negative...
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Automatic assessment of the motor state of the Parkinson's disease patient --a case study
PublicationThis paper presents a novel methodology in which the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) data processed with a rule-based decision algorithm is used to predict the state of the Parkinson's Disease patients. The research was carried out to investigate whether the advancement of the Parkinson's Disease can be automatically assessed. For this purpose, past and current UPDRS data from 47 subjects were examined. The results...
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Persistent homology as a new method of the assessment of heart rate variability
PublicationHeart rate variability (hrv) is a physiological phenomenon of the variation in the length of the time interval between consecutive heartbeats. In many cases it could be an indicator of the development of pathological states. The classical approach to the analysis of hrv includes time domain methods and frequency domain methods. However, attempts are still being made to define new and more effective hrv assessment tools. Persistent...
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Pathogenesis of psoriasis in the “omic” era. Part II. Genetic, genomic and epigenetic changes in psoriasis
PublicationPsoriasis is a multifactorial disease in which genetic, environmental and epigenetic factors regulating gene expression play a key role. In the “genomic era”, genome-wide association studies together with target genotyping platforms performed in different ethnic populations have found more than 50 genetic susceptible markers associated with the risk of psoriasis which have been identified so far. Up till now, the strongest association...
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‘Acridines’ as New Horizons in Antifungal Treatment
PublicationFrequent fungal infections in immunocompromised patients and mortality due to invasive mycosis are important clinical problems. Opportunistic pathogenic Candida species remain one of the leading causes of systemic mycosis worldwide. The repertoire of antifungal chemotherapeutic agents is very limited. Although new antifungal drugs such as lanosterol 14α-demethylase and β-glucan synthase inhibitors have been introduced into clinical...
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Mild poikilocapnic hypoxia increases very low frequency haemoglobin oxygenation oscillations in prefrontal cortex
PublicationBackground: The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of mild cerebral hypoxia on haemoglobin oxygenation(HbO2), cerebrospinal fluid dynamics and cardiovascular physiology. To achieve this goal, four signals were recorded simultaneously: blood pressure, heart rate / electrocardiogram, HbO2 from right hemisphere and changes of subarachnoid space (SAS) width from left hemisphere. Signals were registered from 30 healthy,...
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Antimicrobial and Antiproliferative Coatings for Stents in Veterinary Medicine—State of the Art and Perspectives
PublicationMicrobial colonization in veterinary stents poses a significant and concerning issue in veterinary medicine. Over time, these pathogens, particularly bacteria, can colonize the stent surfaces, leading to various complications. Two weeks following the stent insertion procedure, the colonization becomes observable, with the aggressiveness of bacterial growth directly correlating with the duration of stent placement. Such microbial...
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Human memory enhancement through electrical stimulation in the temporal cortex
PublicationDirect electrical stimulation of the human brain can elicit sensory and motor perceptions as well as recall of memories. Stimulating higher order association areas of the lateral temporal cortex in particular was reported to activate visual and auditory memory representations of past experiences (Penfield and Perot, 1963). We hypothesized that this effect could be used to modulate memory processing. Recent attempts at memory enhancement...
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Novel liquid chromatography method based on linear weighted regression for the fast determination of isoprostane isomers in plasma samples using sensitive tandem mass spectrometry detection
PublicationA simple, fast, sensitive and accurate methodology based on a LLE followed by liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry for simultaneous determination of four regioisomers (8-iso prostaglandin F2α, 8-iso-15(R)-prostaglandin F2α, 11β-prostaglandin F2α, 15(R)-prostaglandin F2α) in routine analysis of human plasma samples was developed. Isoprostanes are stable products of arachidonic acid peroxidation and are regarded as the...
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Specialist Pavilion Hospitals Of West Prussia In The 19th Century – Evolution Of The Idea
PublicationThe size and shape of the largest pavilion hospitals established in West Prussia in the 19th century changed along with the advancing technical and medical knowledge, the progress of ideas regarding modern society, architectural patterns, and the needs for which the hospitals were built. Apart from the medical treatment section, there were administrative, social and technical facilities, all constituting parts of the complex. The...
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A comparative analysis of phenotypic and genotypic methods for the determination of the biofilm-forming abilities of Staphylococcus epidermidis
PublicationThe collection of 146 Staphylococcus epidermidis strains isolated from the nasopharynx of lung cancer patients has been studied for the ability of slime secretion and biofilm formation using the Congo red agar (CRA) test and the microtiter plate (MtP) method, respectively. The prevalence of the icaAD and the aap genes was also analyzed. Some isolates (35.6%) were biofilm positive by the MtP method, while 58.9% of isolates exhibited...
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Detection of propofol concentrations in blood by Raman spectroscopy
PublicationIn this paper we present a proof-of-concept of a Raman spectroscopy-based approach for measuring the content of propofol, a common anesthesia drug, in whole human blood, and plasma, which is intended for use during clinical procedures. This method utilizes the Raman spectroscopy as a chemically–sensitive method for qualitative detection of the presence of a drug and a quantitative determination of its concentration. A number of...
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A Computationally Efficient Model for Predicting Successful Memory Encoding Using Machine-Learning-based EEG Channel Selection
PublicationComputational cost is an important consideration for memory encoding prediction models that use data from dozens of implanted electrodes. We propose a method to reduce computational expense by selecting a subset of all the electrodes to build the prediction model. The electrodes were selected based on their likelihood of measuring brain activity useful for predicting memory encoding better than chance (in terms of AUC). A logistic...
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Damage Detection Strategies in Structural Health Monitoring of Overhead Power Transmission System
PublicationOverhead power transmission lines, their supporting towers, insulators and other elements create a highly distributed system that is vulnerable to damage. Typical damage scenarios cover cracking of foundation, breakage of insulators, loosening of rivets, as well as cracking and breakage of lines. Such scenarios may result from various factors: groundings, lightning strikes, floods, earthquakes, aeolian vibrations, conductors galloping,...
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Detection of Toxoplasma gondii in meat - available techniques
PublicationToxoplasma gondii, which belongs to the phylum Apicomplexa, is an absolute intercellular parasite that infects a wide range of hosts, including warm-blooded animals and humans. An infection with this parasite causes toxoplasmosis, which in most cases remains latent. However, this disease is a major threat to immunocompromised people and pregnant women. In extreme cases, it can damage nervous system or case fatal abortion. Infected...
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Behaviour of orthotropic surgical implant in hernia repair due to the material orientation and abdomen surface deformation
Publicationrelation to the different range of typical deformations observed in different directions and zones of abdomen surface due to the patients’ life activities, has a significant influence on the extreme junction forces in the mesh–tissue connections and hence the repair persistence. The finite element model of the orthotropic implant was developed, and the junction forces in the connections of tissue and mesh were studied. The kinematical...
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A comparative analysis of phenotypic and genotypic methods for the determination of the biofilm-forming abilities of Staphylococcus epidermidis
PublicationThe collection of 146 Staphylococcus epidermidis strains isolated from the nasopharynx of lung cancer patients has been studied for the ability of slime secretion and biofilm formation using the Congo red agar (CRA) test and the microtiter plate (MtP) method, respectively. The prevalence of the icaAD and the aap genes was also analyzed. Some isolates (35.6%) were biofilm positive by the MtP method, while 58.9% of isolates exhibited...
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Borrelia burgdorferi BmpA-BBK32 and BmpA-BBA64: New Recombinant Chimeric Proteins with Potential Diagnostic Value
PublicationCurrently, the diagnosis of Lyme disease is based mostly on two-tiered serologic testing. In the new generation of immunoenzymatic assays, antigens comprise whole-cell lysates of members of the Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato (s.l.) species complex, with the addition of selected recombinant proteins. Due to the high diversity of members of the B. burgdorferi s.l. genospecies and the low degree of conservation among the amino acid...
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The Optical Coherence Tomography and Raman Spectroscopy for Sensing of the Bone Demineralization Process
PublicationThe presented research was intended to seek new optical methods to investigate the demineralization process of bones. Optical examination of the bone condition could facilitate clinical trials and improve the safety of patients. The authors used a set of complementary methods: polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography (PS-OCT) and Raman spectroscopy. Chicken bone samples were used in this research. To stimulate in laboratory...
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Classification of submandibular salivary stones based on ultrastructural studies
PublicationIntroduction: Sialolithiasis remains a clinical problem with unclear etiopathogenesis, lack of prevention methods, and only surgical treatment. Materials and methods: An ultrastructure examination of submandibular sialoliths obtained from patients with chronic sialolithiasis was conducted using a scanning electron microscope and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Results: Based on the results, we divided sialoliths into three types:...
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The New Klebsiella pneumoniae ST152 Variants with Hypermucoviscous Phenotype Isolated from Renal Transplant Recipients with Asymptomatic Bacteriuria-Genetic Characteristics by WGS.
PublicationKlebsiella pneumoniae (Kp) is one of the most important etiological factors of urinary tract infections in renal transplant (RTx) recipients. We described the antimicrobial susceptibility phenotypes and genomic features of two hypermucoviscous (HM) Kp isolates recovered from RTx recipients with asymptomatic bacteriuria (ABU). Using whole genome sequencing (WGS) data, we showed that the strains belong to the ST152 lineage with the...
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Forewarned Is Forearmed: Machine Learning Algorithms for the Prediction of Catheter-Induced Coronary and Aortic Injuries
PublicationCatheter-induced dissections (CID) of coronary arteries and/or the aorta are among the most dangerous complications of percutaneous coronary procedures, yet the data on their risk factors are anecdotal. Logistic regression and five more advanced machine learning techniques were applied to determine the most significant predictors of dissection. Model performance comparison and feature importance ranking were evaluated. We identified...
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Network oscillations modulate interictal epileptiform spike rate during human memory
PublicationEleven patients being evaluated with intracranial electroencephalography for medically resistant temporal lobe epilepsy participated in a visual recognition memory task. Interictal epileptiform spikes were manually marked and their rate of occurrence compared between baseline and three 2 s periods spanning a 6 s viewing period. During successful, but not unsuccessful, encoding of the images there was a significant reduction in...
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Electrical Stimulation Modulates High Gamma Activity and Human Memory Performance
PublicationDirect electrical stimulation of the brain has emerged as a powerful treatment for multiple neurological diseases, and as a potential technique to enhance human cognition. Despite its application in a range of brain disorders, it remains unclear how stimulation of discrete brain areas affects memory performance and the underlying electrophysiological activities. Here, we investigated the effect of direct electrical stimulation...
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Multimodal human-computer interfaces based on advanced video and audio analysis
PublicationMultimodal interfaces development history is reviewed briefly in the introduction. Examples of applications of multimodal interfaces to education software and for the disabled people are presented, including interactive electronic whiteboard based on video image analysis, application for controlling computers with mouth gestures and the audio interface for speech stretching for hearing impaired and stuttering people. The Smart...
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Ergonomic Aspects of Transport of Patient through the Operating Theatre
PublicationOne of the most crucial decisions to be made while designing and re-modernizing an operating theatre is selecting a method of transporting the patient through the hospital’s spatial arrangement. This decision, while irrelevant at first thought, implies numerous project and functional consequences. Designing an operating theatre within a hospital is related to numerous specialist requirements with an aim of minimizing the risk of...
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Poszukiwanie nowych leków immunosupresyjnych (Quest for new immunosuppressive drugs)
PublicationTransplantology is getting more and more important in medicine. Development of surgical techniques and immunosuppressive treatment enabled to establish successful transplantations with various organs and tissues. However, allografts are recognized as foreign tissues and stimulate rejection, i.e. a strong immunological response which, if not stopped, results in complete destruction of the transplanted tissue. In order to prevent...
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Application of the Electronic Nose Technique to Differentiation between Model Mixtures with COPD Markers
PublicationABSTRACT The paper presents the potential of an electronic nose technique in the field of fast diagnostics of patients suspected of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). The investigations were performed using a simple electronic nose prototype equipped with a set of six semiconductor sensors manufactured by FIGARO Co. They were aimed at verification of a possibility of differentiation between model reference mixtures with...
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A new assay for the simultaneous identification and differentiation of Klebsiella oxytoca strains.
PublicationKlebsiella oxytoca is the second most frequently identified species of Klebsiella isolated from hospitalized patients. Klebsiella spp. is difficult to identify using conventional methods and is often misclassified in clinical microbiology laboratories. K. oxytoca is responsible for an increasing number of multi-resistant infections in hospitals because of insufficient detection and identification. In this study, we propose a new...
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Multimodal human-computer interfaces based on advanced video and audio analysis
PublicationMultimodal interfaces development history is reviewed briefly in the introduction. Some applications of multimodal interfaces to education software for disabled people are presented. One of them, the LipMouse is a novel, vision-based human-computer interface that tracks user’s lip movements and detect lips gestures. A new approach to diagnosing Parkinson’s disease is also shown. The progression of the disease can be measured employing...