The epicardial potential (EP)-targeted inverse problem of electrocardiography (ECG) has been widely investigated as it is demonstrated that EPs reflect underlying myocardial activity. It is a well-known ill-posed problem as small noises in input data may yield a highly unstable solution. Traditionally, L2-norm regularization methods have been proposed to solve ...

The variation of wind noise at hearing-aid microphones with wind speed, wind azimuth, and hearing-aid style was investigated. Comparisons were made across behind-the-ear (BTE) and completely-in-canal (CIC) devices, and between microphones within BTE devices. One CIC device and two BTE devices were placed on a Knowles Electronics Manikin for Acoustic ...

ABSTRACT: Severe community-acquired pneumonia is a major cause of admission to intensive care units and its mortality rates remain exceedingly high. In the search for adjunctive therapies, clinicians who were encouraged by available, though limited, evidence prescribed steroids in most patients with severe sepsis or septic shock, including those with ...

Two distinct views are evident in research on how rural communities in developing countries cope with extreme weather events brought by climate change: (i) that the resource-reliant poor are acutely vulnerable and need external assistance to prepare for such events, and (ii) that climate-related shocks can offer windows of opportunity ...

This paper quantifies the relationship between early retirement due to back problems and wealth, and contributes to a more complete picture of the full costs associated with back problems. The output data set of the microsimulation model Health&WealthMOD was analysed. Health&WealthMOD was specifically designed to measure the economic impacts of ...

Infidelity is an often cited problem for couples seeking therapy, but the research literature to date is very limited on couple therapy outcomes when infidelity is a problem. The current study is a secondary analysis of a community-based sample of couple therapy in Germany and Austria. Outcomes for 145 couples ...

Mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitor use is associated with numerous adverse events, including dermatologic and mucosal problems. Awareness of these complications, which clinically manifest across a severity spectrum from minor through severe and may occur at varied time points after initiation of sirolimus therapy, can be useful to clinicians in ...

Harm reduction therapy was originally developed as a nonabstinence-based method of treating people with drug and alcohol problems. In this article, we describe and apply the principles and practices of harm reduction therapy in community settings, places where people congregate for nontherapeutic reasons-street corners, community drop-in centers, needle exchanges, and ...

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) retinitis is the most common cause of vision loss in patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). CMV retinitis afflicted 25% to 42% of AIDS patients in the pre-highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) era, with most vision loss due to macula-involving retinitis or retinal detachment. The introduction of HAART ...

Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT), problem-solving therapy (PST), or treatment as usual (TAU) were compared in the management of suicide attempters. Participants completed the Beck Hopelessness Scale, Beck Scale for Suicidal Ideation, Social Problem-Solving Inventory, and Client Satisfaction Questionnaire at pre- and posttreatment. Both CBT and PST indicated significant improvements over ...

Under certain conditions, the Zoll M Series defibrillator multifunction cable (MFC) connector can be inserted upside down into the defibrillator's external paddles, preventing shock delivery and potentially delaying defibrillation. Performing the manufacturer-recommended routine shift checks, including checking for damaged cables and connectors, will aid in avoiding this problem during clinical ...

The purpose of this article is to consider the ways in which theory generation, and hence knowledge generation, in occupational therapy is a complex social process, and therefore carries (often hidden) responsibilities for those who are part of our epistemic community. An epistemic community is a knowledge-producing community, who apply ...

Phobia/panic disorder is common. It improves with exposure therapy, even when guided mainly by a computer self-help system such as FearFighter (FF), but such therapy must also demonstrate cost-effectiveness. This study compares the cost-effectiveness of FF with computed-aided relaxation and clinician-led exposure. Data were obtained on patients from a randomised ...

Treatment guidelines have recently become more definitive regarding the optimal timing for initiation of combination antiretroviral therapy (ART) in the setting of an acute AIDS-related opportunistic infection (OI). These recent changes reflect new data from a prospective, randomized study and several retrospective studies, all of which support earlier initiation of ...

Combining talk and textual data from a family therapy clinic, this paper examines six discourse strategies therapists employ during first sessions of therapy to reframe and ultimately substitute client accounts with a therapeutic version of the problem. These are: metalinguistic actions; institutional positioning; speaking for the client; speaking through the ...

This study examines Lisa, a successful case of emotion-focused therapy, using the assimilation model as a lens to view and understand her changes. The assimilation model construes problems as voices, or parts of the self, that are unwanted and kept separate from other voices in the community that constitute the ...

The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/ acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) pandemic has pervasive effects on culture, economics, policy, and human development. All organs can be affected by complications of HIV/AIDS, including the eye. When sufficient resources are available and widespread antiretroviral resistance does not exist, the four available classes of ...

OBJECTIVE: To review the evidence on the efficacy and safety of pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic therapies for smoking cessation. QUALITY OF EVIDENCE: MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews were searched for randomized controlled trials, meta-analyses, and systematic reviews (level I evidence) pertinent to pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic smoking cessation ...

We studied the influence of AIDS restriction genes (ARGs) CCR5-Delta32, CCR2-64I, SDF1-3'A, IL10-5'A, CX3CR1-V249I, CX3CR1-T280M, and MDR1-C3435T and haplotypes of the CCR5 P1 promoter and RANTES variants -403A, In1.1C, 3'222C, and -28G among HIV-1 infected patients on highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) in the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (MACS) and ...

Reviewing and summarizing the treatment of HIV disease and its complications is a daunting task. Writing a textbook incorporating the rapidly evolving treatments and management strategies is even more difficult. In this third edition of AIDS Therapy, the authors have combined the efforts of international experts to fulfill this goal. ...

War has negative connotations; nevertheless, this article aims to highlight some of the positive outcomes that have occurred in the fields of occupational therapy (OT) and hand therapy due to war and war-related injuries. From the military background of one of OT's founders, Thomas Kidner, to the valiant efforts of ...

The goal of Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT) is to deliver sufficient doses to tumors to kill them, but without causing irreparable damage to critical organs. This requirement can be formulated as a linear feasibility problem. The sequential (i.e., iteratively treating the constraints one after another in a cyclic fashion) algorithm ...

To assess the affordability of antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) and accessibility to treatment for opportunistic infections (OIs) among HIV-1 seropositive persons, we used semi-structured interviewer-administered questionnaires to interview 154 individuals seeking ARV treatment at the Daughter of Charity German Leprosy and Tuberculosis Centre in South-West Nigeria. The respondents' mean age was ...

In this paper, we study several interesting intensity map splitting (IMSp) problems that arise in Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT), a state-of-the-art radiation therapy technique for cancer treatments. In current clinical practice, a multi-leaf collimator (MLC) with a maximum leaf spread is used to deliver the prescribed intensity maps (IMs). However, ...

Recent studies in neurorehabilitation research show that success in aphasia therapy is linked to a high treatment frequency. Computer-aided therapy offers a solution to the dilemma of increasing therapy frequency while maintaining or reducing the load on therapists' resources. Until now it has, however, been unclear which patients can reasonably ...

To investigate changes in couple communication and potential mechanisms of change during treatment, 134 distressed couples, who were randomly assigned to either traditional or integrative behavioral couple therapy (TBCT; IBCT), were observed in relationship and personal problem discussions prior to and near the end of treatment. Analyses were conducted using ...

The goal of psoriasis therapy is shifting from an emphasis on the short-term management of severe outbreaks to the maintenance of continuous long-term control. Topical corticosteroids play an important role in all of the therapeutic strategies used. The Clobex Spray Community-Based Research Assessment (COBRA) trial involved 455 community dermatologists throughout ...

The aim of this study was to verify the relationship between habitual physical activity and body fat in HIV/AIDS subjects on highly active antiretroviral therapy. This was a cross-sectional study covering 169 men and 51 women. It was conducted at the AIDS Clinic of the School of Medicine, University of ...

This study investigated demand-withdraw communication among 68 severely distressed couples seeking therapy, 66 moderately distressed couples seeking therapy, and 48 nondistressed couples. Self-report and videotaped discussions replicated previous research, demonstrating that greater demand-withdraw during relationship problem discussions was associated with greater distress and that overall, wife-demand/husband-withdraw was greater than husband-demand/wife-withdraw. ...

Hyperthyroidism has been described after highly active antiretroviral therapy for AIDS and has been attributed to late onset immune reconstitution. The team reports a young Polynesian man with AIDS who responded to highly active antiretroviraltherapy. However, 15 months after initiation of antiretroviral therapy, he was hospitalized for hypokalemic thyrotoxic periodic ...

BACKGROUND: Psychoeducation and social problem-solving therapy are treatment components that work well in tandem for offenders with personality disorders, hence it is worthwhile to maintain and improve their effectiveness. AIM: The aim was to seek patients' views of these therapies to contribute to their development. METHOD: A Delphi survey was ...

Medical rationing of anti-retroviral therapies (ARVs) may conflict with the right to health, but rationing is nevertheless a reality in developing countries. In this article, which is based on a poster presentation at the conference, Stuart Rennie presents the preliminary findings of a study on community attitudes towards rationing ARVs ...

Externalization of problems as a component of narrative therapy has been well defined by such authors as Epston and White, and Freedman and Combs. This study reflects the voices and experiences of 17 participants who engaged in an innovative externalization exercise combining sculpture and journaling over a period of 4 ...

The main options for dual nucleoside (or nucleotide) analogue reverse transcriptase inhibitors (nRTIs) as a component of initial antiretroviral therapy regimens are tenofovir/emtricitabine, zidovudine/lamivudine, and abacavir/lamivudine as fixed-dose combinations. Resistance to nRTIs can limit usefulness of many of the drugs in the class. Investigation of triple nRTI regimens has shown ...

This study examined the relationship between HIV serostatus disclosure and adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART). The study was conducted with 215 HIV-seropositive patients who demonstrated poor adherence (<80%) and who were in serodiscordant relationships. Participants completed self-report measures regarding HIV serostatus disclosure and reasons for missing ART doses, as well ...

The reduction of neutrophils apoptosis is one of the main non-virological effects of protease inhibitor (PI) therapy. We explore here whether this may be due to the cross-inhibition of calpain, an important non-virological target of PI in vitro. We found that the high basal level of neutrophils apoptosis in AIDS ...

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the potential impact of antiretroviral therapy on the heterosexual spread of HIV-1 infection and AIDS mortality in resource-limited settings. METHODS: A mathematic model of HIV-1 disease progression and transmission was used to assess epidemiologic outcomes under different scenarios of antiretroviral therapy, including implementation of World Health Organization ...

Constructive relationships between clinicians and patients being treated for HIV/AIDS are critical to treatment success. Trust, caring, and expertise have all been cited as important components of such relationships. As-yet unexamined, however, is the impact of the urgency patients sense in their clinicians concerning proper adherence to antiretroviral medications. Qualitative ...

This paper reports on the criterion validity of the Occupational Therapy Adult Perceptual Screening Test (OT-APST) including concurrent criterion validity and its sensitivity and specificity. The performance of 208 people following stroke on the OT-APST and a reference tool (either the Loewenstein Occupational Therapy Cognitive Assessment (LOTCA) or the LOTCA--Geriatric ...

A limited number of clinical studies have examined the effect of poststroke rehabilitation with robotic devices on hemiparetic arm function. We systematically reviewed the literature to assess the effect of robot-aided therapy on stroke patients' upper-limb motor control and functional abilities. Eight clinical trials were identified and reviewed. For four ...

Highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART) has revolutionized the treatment and prognosis of HIV disease and AIDS in those who can take advantage of the treatment. There are currently 20 different anti-retroviral drugs in 4 different classes that are used in specific combinations. Suppression of HIV replication and immune reconstitution are ...

QUESTION: What is the lifetime and current prevalence of thumb problems in Australian physiotherapists and what are the factors associated with thumb problems? DESIGN: Survey of a random cross-section of physiotherapists. PARTICIPANTS: 1562(approximately 10% of the total) registered Australian physiotherapists. OUTCOME MEASURES: General questions covered demographic information, area of practice, ...

This article reviews the physiology of penile erection, the components of erectile function, and the pathophysiology of erectile dysfunction. The molecular and clinical under-standing of erectile function continues to gain ground at a particularly fast rate. Advances in gene discovery have aided greatly in working knowledge of smooth muscle relaxation/contraction ...

Fluoroquinolone antibiotic therapy is a recognized but poorly understood cause for Achilles tendinopathy. We report here a patient who developed bilateral partial Achilles tendon tears as a result of fluoroquinolone therapy. Ultrasound and MRI were both useful in identifying and distinguishing between Achilles tendinosis and tendon rupture. The current published ...

Coagulation problems are very common in intensive care patients. It is important to recognize potential problems, perform a rapid assessment, and start therapy. The author reviews general clinical and laboratory approaches to diagnosis and treatment of the bleeding patient and to correction of coagulopathies. This review outlines a set of ...

Lymphoedema is a problem frequently encountered by professionals working in palliative care. This article reviews the evidence on the magnitude of the problem of lymphoedema in the general population and provides evidence on specific high risk groups within it. Prevalence is a good indicator of the burden of disease for ...

Observational studies provide evidence that breast cancer risk is increased with long-term oral use of postmenopausal estrogen replacement therapy (ET). Various large cohort studies have shown that the addition of a progestogen in combined hormone replacement therapy (EPT) increases this risk further. Prospective, randomized controlled trials have confirmed this for ...

Many clients in Hong Kong with developmental disabilities stay in mental hospitals because of mental disorders and behavioural problems. There is a need to identify strategies that promote psychological well-being and reduce problem behaviours in this group of clients. This study evaluates the impact of multisensory therapy on participants' emotional ...

The introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy in 1995 dramatically decreased AIDS-related events and deaths rates; however, the enthusiasm among the medical and social community was soon limited by the growing incidence of various side-effects that often greatly limited patients' quality of life. The second problem caused by such a ...

NRTIs are cornerstones of antiretroviral therapy and perhaps the most important drugs developed for AIDS treatment. Judicious use of NRTIs in the fight against HIV infection has afforded significant clinical advances in AIDS treatment. Nonetheless, it is axiomatic to expect side effects from NRTIs as well. A principal toxicity of ...