Biomedical subjects

Jurandir Nadal

Publications and source records attributed to Jurandir Nadal.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Anticipation mechanism in body sway control and effect of muscle fatigue.

The aim of this work is to quantify the occurrence of an anticipatory mechanism in the control of quiet standing by measuring the lag between the myoelectric activity of the lateral gastrocnemius muscle and the stabilometric signal, as well as to determine the influence of the muscle fatigue on this process. Stabilometric and electromyographic (EMG) signals were synchronously collected from 22 subjects. Gastrocnemius fatigue was induced by a sustained plantar flexed posture until muscle failure. The data acquisition lasted for 120 s before and after the induced fatigue. After mean removal, the root mean square values of the EMG (RMS-EMG) were calculated for each 20 ms period. The normalized cross-correlation function was estimated to find the time delay between RMS-EMG and stabilometric signals. Anticipation values up to 1.62 s were found both before and after fatigue conditions (p<0.05), indicating that this mechanism plays an important role in body sway control. The fatigue caused a significant increase in the latency between the myoelectric activity of the gastrocnemius muscle and the movements of the center of pressure (p<0.05).

Adult↗

PubMed2006

Spectral turbulence analysis of the signal-averaged electrocardiogram of the atrial activation as predictor of recurrence of idiopathic and persistent atrial fibrillation.

The frequency domain analysis of the P-wave signal-averaged ECG (P-SAECG) is able to identify patients at risk for lone atrial fibrillation (AF) after cardioversion to sinus rhythm. The terminal portion of the P-wave of right precordial leads on 12-lead ECG is associated with electrical abnormalities in the atria. The aim of this study was to assess the spectral turbulence analysis (STA) of the P-SAECG as a predictor of recurrence of idiopathic AF. STA was performed in 41 patients with 2 or more symptomatic episodes of idiopathic and persistent AF after successful electrical cardioversion and drug-free state (Group A), and in 25 control individuals during sinus rhythm (Group B), matched by age, gender, and P-wave duration. The orientation of the terminal portion (positive or negative) of the Z-lead was assessed as representing right precordial leads potentials. After 6 months follow-up, Group A was divided into two groups according to recurrence: G-A1--at least one recurrence (21 patients), and G-A2--no recurrence (20 patients). Fragmented electrical activity (FEA) was observed in 19 patients of G-A1 and in 2 of G-A2 (odds ratio = 85.5; p<<0.001). STA showed 90.5% sensitivity and 90.0% specificity for early recurrence of AF. After 12 months, no patients of G-A2 and 15 of G-A1 developed >3 episodes of persistent AF, being FEA observed in 13 (odds ratio = 14.6, p = 0.002). No episodes of AF were observed in Group B. Average time for recurrence of FEA positive patients (4.3 +/- 0.7 months) was significantly shorter than of G-A2 (7.4+/-0.7 months), and log-rank analysis revealed significant difference of event-free rate over time (p = 0.004). In a logistic regression model FEA, use of amiodarone and a positive terminal portion of the Z-lead of the P-SAECG were independent predictors of recurrence of idiopathic and persistent AF.

Amiodarone↗

PubMed2005

Transmissibility of helicopter vibration in the spines of pilots in flight.

INTRODUCTION: The high incidence of back pain in helicopter pilots (HP) has been attributed to vibration and the in-flight pilot's posture. Helicopter vibration has a peak power at frequencies around 5 Hz, which is within the range that the human upper body presents resonance frequency. This study investigates the transmissibility (TR) of helicopter vibration from the seat to the spine of HP, and the seat resultant vibration (RSV). METHODS: We monitored 12 male HP during flights lasting 2 h on average. Uniaxial accelerometers measured the vibration at the L3 and T1 spinae processes of the pilots, and the helicopter backrest. The vibration at the pilot's seat, measured by triaxial accelerometers, was taken as the reference for the estimation of transmissibility values (TR) to L3, T1, and backrest using the cross-spectral method. TR was considered only for the frequency presenting the maximum power along the seat Z acceleration, and RSV was calculated according to ISO 2631-1. RESULTS: The TR values found for T1 suggest the presence of resonance in the pilot's spine during flight. Most of the HP presented TR within the range reported in the literature, but two of them had higher values at T1. Five flights showed RSV within the "caution zone" for 4-8 h of daily exposure. CONCLUSION: Our findings indicate that cyclic compressive force due to helicopter vibration can potentially increase the load imposed on the spines of pilots during flight. This might explain the incidence of back pain and other injuries to the spines of these professionals.

Acceleration↗

PubMed2004

Assessing blood flow control through a bootstrap method.

In order to assess blood flow control, the relationship between blood pressure and blood flow can be modeled by linear filters. We present a bootstrap method, which allows the statistical analysis of an index of blood flow control that is obtained from constrained system identification using an established set of pre-defined filters.

Algorithms↗

PubMed2004

Back muscle EMG of helicopter pilots in flight: effects of fatigue, vibration, and posture.

INTRODUCTION: The high prevalence of low back pain in helicopter pilots has been attributed to back muscle fatigue due to a pilot's required posture and/or aircraft vibration. This study investigated the effect of posture and vibration on the surface electromyogram (EMG) of right and left erector spinae (ES) muscles of pilots and evaluated ES fatigue during flight. METHODS: There were 12 male pilots who were monitored during helicopter flights lasting an average of 2 h. Prior to the flight, a maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) of ES was performed and the EMG was recorded. Vibration was measured at the pilot's seat through a triaxial accelerometer. The effect of posture on EMG was tested by comparing four characteristics of left and right EMG expressed as % MVC. Effect of Z vibration on EMG was investigated by coherence function and through correlation between coherently averaged EMG and Z for the frequencies of the main rotor of the helicopter (1R) and its first harmonic (2R). Fatigue was investigated through median frequencies (MF) of the EMG power spectra. RESULTS: No effect of posture on EMG was found for any parameter (p > 0.05). Data from one pilot suggested an effect of 1R on EMG, but statistical tests revealed this not to be significant (p > 0.05) for any pilot. No fatigue was evidenced by linear regression of MF. CONCLUSION: While the scientific literature contains the hypothesis that low back pain in helicopter pilots is mainly due to muscle fatigue caused by posture and/or vibration, the present study did not lend support to this hypothesis.

Acceleration↗

PubMed2003

Reduction of electromyographic noise in the signal-averaged electrocardiogram by spectral decomposition.

This paper proposes a technique to improve the quality of high-resolution electrocardiogram by weighting the coherent average of beats by a function of the energy of the corrupting myoelectric noise, prior to subsequent detection of ventricular late potentials. The results obtained with 20 patients indicate the method requires fewer beats than conventional nonweighted average to achieve the same noise level.

Algorithms↗

PubMed2002

Analysis of the prevalence of ventricular late potentials in the late phase of myocardial infarction based on the site of infarction.

OBJECTIVE: The initial site of myocardial infarction (MI) may influence the prevalence of ventricular late potentials (VLP), high-frequency signals, due to the time course of ventricular activation. The prevalence of VLP in a period of more than 2 years after acute MI was assessed focusing on the initially injured wall. METHODS: The prevalence of VLP in a late phase after MI (median of 924 days) in anterior/antero-septal and inferior/infero-dorsal wall lesion was analyzed using signal-averaged electrocardiogram in time domain. The diagnostic performance of the filters employed for analysis on was tested at high-pass cut-off frequencies of 25 Hz, 40 Hz and 80 Hz. RESULTS: The duration of the ventricular activation and its terminal portion were larger in inferior than anterior infarction, at high-pass cut-off frequencies of 40 Hz and 80 Hz. In patients with ventricular tachycardia, these differences were more remarked. The prevalence of ventricular late potentials was three times greater in inferior than anterior infarction. CONCLUSION: Late after myocardial infarction, the prevalence and the duration of ventricular late potentials are greater in lesions of inferior/infero-dorsal than anterior/antero-septal wall confirming their temporal process, reflecting their high-frequency content.

Action Potentials↗