Biomedical subjects

L Gamberini

Publications and source records attributed to L Gamberini.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Survival among elderly Italian patients with dementia treated with atypical antipsychotics: observational study.

The objective was to compare survival in a population-based cohort of elderly demented patients with behavioural and psychological symptoms (BPSD) dispensed an atypical antipsychotic (AA) with that of a sample of demented patients not treated with AAs. An observational cohort study was carried out in the province of Modena, Italy (644,000 inhabitants) on a cohort of 294 patients with BPSD diagnosed by a dementia specialist and treated with an AA, and a cohort of 2020 demented adults not dispensed AAs. All patients were 65 years of age or older. Measured outcomes were death by any cause and death by cerebrovascular accident at the end of the study. After a median follow-up of one year, survival was not significantly different between patients treated and not treated with AAs (overall mortality rates: 0.52 vs. 0.55/1000 years/person, respectively; relative risk reduction 0.047, 95% confidence interval -0.251 to 0.286). Multivariate survival analysis showed that older age at entry, male gender, severe dementia and functional impairment were associated with a higher risk of death. Although our sample size does not allow the exclusion of small differences in the short term, age, gender and dementia severity but not treatment with AAs seem to influence survival among elderly demented patients.

Aged↗

PubMed2003

Responding to a fire emergency in a virtual environment: different patterns of action for different situations.

This paper presents an experimental study of participants' response to the sudden appearance of a fire emergency in a virtual environment (VE) and of the adaptivity of their response pattern. A VE has been built in which participants meet two situations: first an explorative navigation and afterwards a hurried escape from the unexpected outbreak of fire. Fire intensity and participants' distance from the exit at the outbreak of fire have been varied as well, to create different degrees of danger and different degrees of difficulty in the task of leaving the premises. Participants' action has been collected automatically for quantitative analysis by registering each individual activation of the interaction devices (a triple button joystick). In addition, the movements in both virtual and real environment of additional groups of participants have been videorecorded for qualitative analysis. Results show that the appearance of the fire emergency triggers important changes in the way people move in the VE, and that such changes are all adaptive responses to an emergency situation. In conclusion, people show recognition of a dangerous situation in a VE and readily produce adaptive responses, making the VE suitable for emergency simulations and for use as an effective training tool.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed2003

The VEPSY UPDATED Project: clinical rationale and technical approach.

More than 10 years ago, Tart (1990) described virtual reality (VR) as a technological model of consciousness offering intriguing possibilities for developing diagnostic, inductive, psychotherapeutic, and training techniques that can extend and supplement current ones. To exploit and understand this potential is the overall goal of the "Telemedicine and Portable Virtual Environment in Clinical Psychology"--VEPSY UPDATED--a European Community-funded research project (IST-2000-25323, www.cybertherapy.info). Particularly, its specific goal is the development of different PC-based virtual reality modules to be used in clinical assessment and treatment of social phobia, panic disorders, male sexual disorders, obesity, and eating disorders. The paper describes the clinical and technical rationale behind the clinical applications developed by the project. Moreover, the paper focuses its analysis on the possible role of VR in clinical psychology and how it can be used for therapeutic change.

Computer Simulation↗

PubMed2002

The VEPSY UPDATED project: technical and clinical rationale.

The emergence of new shared media, such as the Internet and virtual reality are changing the ways in which people relate, communicate, and live. Health care, and in particular clinical psychology, is one of the areas that could be most dramatically reshaped by these new technologies. To exploit and understand this potential is the overall goal of the "Telemedicine and Portable Virtual Environment in Clinical Psychology"--VEPSY UPDATED--an European Community funded research project (IST-2000-25323, http://www.vepsy.com) whose specific goal is the development of different PC based virtual reality modules to be used in clinical assessment and treatment. In particular the developed modules have been using to address the following pathologies: anxiety disorders; male impotence and premature ejaculation; obesity, bulimia and binge-eating disorders. The chapter details the general technical and clinical characteristics of the developed modules.

Diagnosis, Computer-Assisted↗

PubMed2001

Human navigation in electronic environments.

The problem of human navigation in electronic environments is central to the debate on human experience with new technologies. The studies carried out, in particular in environmental psychology, offer a starting point for a better understanding of the origin of cognitive difficulties and the problems that can occur when moving in new habitats. A project aimed at improving the usability of these environments and their compatibility with human beings cannot fail to include a wide-ranging ergonomic examination that considers the multiple cognitive and cultural aspects implied. This study considers hypermedial and three-dimensional interactive graphic environments. We describe some weak points encountered during user navigation and we examine certain improvements made by research in the sector. Lastly, a hybrid system that combines these two different types of systems was created and discussed. This system, called Percepta, offers users the possibility of adopting cognitive systems for human navigation that are already effective in the real world and permits the planning of efficient strategies for navigation, taking account of the initial pre-established aims and the continuous reprocessing that occurs during navigation. Future research lines will analyze qualitative and quantitative aspects of this software to produce an accurate final assessment.

Behavior↗

PubMed2001

The VEPSY updated project: virtual reality in clinical psychology.

Many of us grew up with the naive assumption that couches are the best used therapeutic tools in psychotherapy. But tools for psychotherapy are evolving in a much more complex environment than a designer's chaise lounge. In particular, virtual reality (VR) devices have the potential for appearing soon in many consulting rooms. The use of VR in medicine is not a novelty. Applications of virtual environments for health care have been developed in the following areas: surgical procedures (remote surgery or telepresence, augmented or enhanced surgery, and planning and simulation of procedures before surgery); preventive medicine and patient education; medical education and training; visualization of massive medical databases; and architectural design for health care facilities. However, there is a growing recognition that VR can play an important role in clinical psychology, too. To exploit and understand this potential is the main goal of the Telemedicine and Portable Virtual Environment in Clinical Psychology--VEPSY Updated--a European Community-funded research project (IST-2000-25323, http://www.vepsy.com). The project will provide innovative tools-telemedicine and portable-for the treatment of patients, clinical trials to verify their viability, and action plans for dissemination of its results to an extended audience-potential users and influential groups. The project will also develop different personal computer (PC)-based virtual reality modules to be used in clinical assessment and treatment. In particular, the developed modules will address the following pathologies: anxiety disorders; male impotence and premature ejaculation; and obesity, bulimia, and binge-eating disorders.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

Virtual reality in telemedicine.

Virtual reality (VR) can be considered as the leading edge of a general evolution of present communication interfaces involving the television, computer, and telephone. The main characteristic of this evolution is the full immersion of the human sensorimotor channels into a vivid and global communication experience. Because telemedicine principally focuses on transmitting medical information, VR has the potential to enhance this function. Particularly, VR can be used in telemedicine as an advanced communication interface, which enables a more intuitive mode of interacting with information, and as a flexible environment that enhances the feeling of physical presence during the interaction. In this article, the state of the art in VR-based telemedicine applications is described. This technology is now used in remote or augmented surgery as well as surgical training, which are critically dependent on eye-hand coordination. Recently, however, different researchers have tried to use virtual environments in medical visualization and for assessment and rehabilitation in neuropsychology. This article also discusses technological, ergonomical, and human factor issues, and specific guidelines are presented for expanding the use of VR in telemedicine.

Ergonomics↗

PubMed2000

Virtual reality as telemedicine tool: technology, ergonomics and actual applications.

This paper surveys the state of the art in telemedicine applications of virtual environments (VEs) and related technologies for health care. The possible use of VEs as telemedicine tool has attracted much interest in medicine. Actually this technology is commonly used in remote or augmented surgery, and surgical training, which are critically dependent upon eye-hand coordination. Recently, however, different researchers have tried to use VEs in anatomic learning and for the assessment and rehabilitation in neuro-psychology. To date, such applications have improved the quality of health care, and later they will lead to substantial cost savings. Tools that respond to the needs of present VE systems are being refined or developed. However, the possible use of VEs in telemedicine is not linked to the solution of technical problems only. In fact telemedicine is not simply a technology but a complex process whose successful exploitation needs significant attention to ergonomics, human factors and organizational changes in the structure of the relevant health service.

Ergonomics↗

PubMed2000

Net ergonomics: information retrieval in health care domains.

The explosion of Internet-based socio-cultural subcontexts and the possibility, horizontally distributed, of handling information on the Net, are transforming information retrieval in a key topic for psychosocial research. However, describing and analyzing how a huge and complex topic can be discussed in the Net and how people's behaviors and attitudes can be influenced by this discussion, is a very complicated task. The aim of this chapter, is both to point out the limits of traditional approaches to the analysis of information retrieval in complex Internet-based domains, and to propose some advice for a cultural approach to the Net. In particular, starting from the analysis of a specific health care domain--drug abuse--the chapter will try to identify some guidelines for the study of these issues.

Drug Information Services↗