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Biomedical subjects

R Turk

Publications and source records attributed to R Turk.

51 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

Functional electrical stimulation as an orthotic means for the rehabilitation of paraplegic patients.

In rehabilitating paraplegic patients the restoration of locomotion is often planned to enable the disabled person to use the wheelchair as little as possible or eventually even to abandon it. This objective is more easily obtained in those with incomplete spinal lesions. Applied with the view of restoring locomotion are various types of orthoses, but in the present paper the authors deal with functional electrical stimulation (hereinafter FES) as a means of restoring locomotion, demonstrating the advantages of FES over the use of classical orthoses. The paper offers an outline of the methodology of FES in spinal neural lesions, discusses the criteria of patient selection, giving indications and contraindications. The authors conclude by stating their belief that this treatment represents a new way of rehabilitating spinal paralysed patients which will sooner or later become part of the routine rehabilitation of paraplegic patients.

Electric Stimulation Therapy↗
PubMed1983

The female paraplegic and mother-child relations.

This report deals with the problems of the rehabilitation of female paraplegics, including sexual intercourse; conception, delivery, progeny, and motherhood. Successful rehabilitation creates favourable conditions for female paraplegics to bear children. Team approach to the problems of pregnancy and delivery in paraplegia includes involvement of the gynaecologist, obstetrician and paediatrician. In Slovenia this work is entrusted to the Clinic for Gynaecology and to the Rehabilitation Institute in Ljubljana. While pregnancy in the paraplegic involves risk this does not also apply to the delivery. Complications during pregnancy or delivery do not differ from those occurring in healthy pregnant women or healthy women in labour. Usually, a paraplegic mother can meet the requirements of nursing, caring for and bringing up her children, thus there is no reason why a properly rehabilitated female paraplegic should not fulfil her life and happiness by becoming a mother.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

The use of a four-channel electrical stimulator as an ambulatory aid for paraplegic patients.

This article reports the use of electrical stimulation to provide paraplegic patients with complete lesions of the spinal cord the ability to rise from sitting to standing, to maintain a standing position, and to walk with a reciprocal gait. Four channels of electrical stimulation are sufficient for synthesis of a simple reciprocal gait pattern in these patients. During the double-stance phase, knee extensor muscles of both knees are stimulated, providing sufficient support for the body. Only one knee extensor muscle group is excited during the single-stance phase. The swing phase of the contralateral lower extremity is accomplished by eliciting the synergistic flexor muscle response through electrical stimulation of afferent nerves. The transition from the double-stance phase to the swing phase is controlled by two hand switches used by the therapist or built into the handles of the walking frame or crutches for use by the patient.

Electric Stimulation Therapy↗
PubMed1983

Gait restoration in paraplegic patients: a feasibility demonstration using multichannel surface electrode FES.

Recent advances in science have aided research toward the restoration of biped gait in paraplegic patients by means of functional electrical stimulation (FES). In this paper it is shown how FES-restrengthened muscles of paraplegic patients have been used for simple FES-assisted standing. Those experiments subsequently led to biped gait-initializing experiments and to simple forms of biped gait synthesis. The purpose of this paper is to show the feasibility of using FES for standing and for restoring biped gait in many paraplegic patients--to present the past achievements, focus on problems, and highlight directions for future research. The results of gait obtained in three complete spinal cord injured patients (out of a series of 17) are shown, using four to six channels of FES. It is also shown how preserved reflex mechanisms of the transected spinal cord can be incorporated and employed for obtaining improved function while at the same time simplifying the FES hardware. Of the three patients reported on in detail here, two patients have managed to walk in parallel bars while the third patient has mastered independent unassisted walking over shorter distances with the aid of a roller walker. The biomechanical and control problems of this last patient's gait are presented in detail.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

Standing-up of a healthy subject and a paraplegic patient.

The joint torques in hip, knee and ankle were measured during the standing-up of a healthy subject. Force plate and stroboscopic photography were used in the experiment. It has been observed that the time courses of particular joint torques depend on the kind of standing-up. On the basis of these results a standing-up procedure for paraplegic patients was proposed. With the use of electrical stimulation to both paralyzed knee extensors and through use of the arm support, a completely paraplegic patient was able to rise independently from the wheel-chair. The same dual-channel stimulation also provides knee locking during standing of spinal cord injured patients.

Ankle Joint↗
PubMed1980

Electrical stimulation providing functional use of paraplegic patient muscles.

The paper presents a short description of the field of electrical stimulation of skeletal muscles and a survey of the recent achievements in the functional electrical stimulation (FES) of paraplegic patients. The major emphasis is placed on the discussion of the basic problems concerning muscle fatigue, muscle retraining and patient selection. Muscle strengthening and exercising procedures using electrical stimulation are described. The obtained properties of retrained muscles with special regard to their fatiguing are clearly documented. The potential possibilities of using FES for performing functional tasks are discussed and the results of preliminary experiments are illustrated. The standing and primitive walking of patient, induced by electrically stimulated paralyzed muscles are presented. Finally, a proposal for an orthotic device using electrical stimulation is described, which enables a paraplegic patient to stand by means of support of his proper bones and muscle forces.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Red blood cell glycerol lysis and hematologic effects in occupational benzene exposure.

Forty-nine female workers in the shoemaking industry, exposed to a solvent mixture containing benzene and twenty-seven non-exposed controls, were investigated. Concentrations of benzene and toluene in the working atmosphere, as well as benzene and toluene in blood and phenols in pre- and post-shift urine as parameters of biological monitoring, were determined. In order to assess hematotoxic risk, a complete blood cell count with differential, hemoglobin, hematocrit, mean corpuscular volume, mean corpuscular hemoglobin, mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration, reticulocytes, serum iron, alkaline phosphatase in neutrophils and red blood cell glycerol lysis time were determined in all subjects. Benzene concentrations in the workplace atmosphere at the shoemaking factory ranged from 1.9 to 14.8 ppm (median = 5.9). Significant difference in benzene in blood (p = 0.005) and phenol in post-shift urine (p = 0.003) between exposed workers and controls confirmed exposure to benzene. Hemoglobin level (p = 0.02) and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (p = 0.0002) in the shoe workers were lower, and band neutrophils (p = 0.005) and mean corpuscular volume (p = 0.03) higher, than in controls. Red blood cell glycerol lysis time was significantly higher (p = 0.000001) in shoe workers (X +/- SD = 41.6 +/- 8.9) than in controls (X +/- SD = 31.1 +/- 6.5) and showed a significant correlation with exposure biomarkers. The results confirm that benzene exposure below 15 ppm may produce qualitative abnormalities, particularly macroerythrocytosis and increased red cell glycerol resistance, in the absence of an overt quantitative decrease in circulating blood cells. Increased resistance to the hemolytic action of glycerol is a potentially useful biological monitoring procedure in medical surveillance of benzene exposed workers. The results of this study suggest that potential threshold concentration for hematologic effects of benzene is lower than 15 ppm.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Immunologic and clinical definition of the rejection reaction in kidney transplantation].

In the evaluation of the immunological state of a kidney transplant there is no reliable diagnostic test. Therefore, several various tests should always be applied. The aim of this study was to define the type of immunological reaction (cellular or humoral) that causes the rejection of transplanted kidney. A group of 45 patients with a kidney transplant were tested 175 times, in various phases of the kidney transplant, starting on the day of transplantation up to several months posttransplant. Specific antibodies (SA) and specific cytotoxic lymphocytes (SCL) directed against donor cells in lymphocyte-mediated cytolysis tests in the presence of antibodies (ADLMC) or without them (LMC) were determined. LMC was significantly correlated with acute rejection (85%). In the phase of clinical quiscence of the kidney transplant LMC was positive in 4% of the cases. During the period of chronic rejection it was positive in 75% of the cases. ADLMC test is significantly correlated with chronic rejection (88%). In the period of acute rejection it was positive in 27% while in clinical quiscence in 11% of the cases. Twenty-two patients with non-immunological disorders of the kidney transplant were tested 62 times. LMC test was always negative, while ADLMC test was positive in 6.4% of the cases. These tests prove to be good parameters for defining immunological reaction. Thus, they can be of great importance in determining adequate immunosuppressive therapy. Negative results of tests in non-immunological disorders of graft function are highly significant.

Adolescent↗