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Thesis (M.Tech.: Chiropractic)- Dept. of Chiropractic, Durban Institute of Technology, 2006. 88 leaves. / Myofascial pain syndrome is the second most common reason patients seek the help of health care workers. It costs billions of dollars each year in lost revenue due to loss of productivity and other costs. The treatment of myofascial pain syndrome has been extensively researched and it appears that dry needling and medicinal injections of trigger points are some of the most effective modalities. However, an unwanted side effect common to both these therapies is post-needling soreness. Despite being mentioned in passing by many authors, very little detail is available regarding post-needling soreness. It is unclear whether post-needling soreness arises from the trigger point itself, or whether the tissue damage caused by the needle insertion is responsible. Therefore, this study was aimed at investigating whether dry needling muscle tissue in asymptomatic subjects (i.e. subjects not suffering from myofascial pain syndrome) resulted in post-needling soreness. Two different dry needling techniques were also compared with a placebo group in order to determine which technique resulted in the least post-needling soreness. This study was designed as a prospective, randomised, placebo controlled experimental investigation. Sixty subjects were randomly allocated into three equal groups. Group one received the single needle insertion technique and the second group received the fanning dry needling technique. The last group formed the control group and the subjects were treated using the Park Sham Device (placebo needles). All the subjects were between the ages of 18 and 50 and were required to be asymptomatic in the low back region.

Submitted in fulfilment of the Master's Degree in Clinical Technology, Durban University of Technology, 2010. / Introduction: The aim of this study was to establish the most reliable standard method for monitoring endotracheal tube cuff pressure in an intensive care unit. Methodology: The study was conducted at King Edward VIII Hospital ICU on adult patients undergoing prolonged intubation of more than 24 hours. Consent was obtained from the patient’s next of kin. The patient’s Pcuff for this study was recorded in two ways simultaneously for a period of 12 hours during the day. The principal investigator recorded the Pcuff thrice during the study period using the Posey cufflator®. Continuous recording was done using a pressure transducer connected to the Nihon Kohden BSM®. Factors causing changes in Pcuff were also documented. Results: Thirty-five critically ill adult patients were enrolled into the study. Nineteen (54.3%) of the subjects were male. Seventeen out of 35 subjects were studied for the entire 720 minute period. The mean time of study of the group was 667 minutes with the lowest period being 135 minutes for one patient. The group mean ± Standard deviation (SD) was 26.6 8.7 with a 95% confidence index of 9.2 – 44.0 and the median value was 25 for continuous readings. For the entire group, 13% of the time was spent in the low pressure range (< 20 cmH2O), while 23% was spent in the high pressure (> 30 cmH2O). A mean of 64% of the time was spent in the normal pressure range. Overall, the most frequently encountered events that caused pressure changes were body movement, coughing, head movement and suctioning accounting for 26.2%, 20.1%, 19.2% and 9.4% respectively. For intermittent readings, the mean ± SD of all patients for T0 was 25.3 ± 6.9; for T6 25.9 ± 8.7 and for T12 24.8 ± 3.8. The overall mean ± SD for all readings was 25.6 ± 7.1. For the entire group, 12% of the time was spent in the low pressure range (< 20 cmH2O), while 5% was spent in the high pressure (> 30 cmH2O). A mean of 83% of the time was spent in the normal pressure range. The correlation between intermittent pressure and the continuous reading at the same time was r = 0.87. iii Discussion: Continuous monitoring of Pcuff indicated that the endotracheal cuff pressure varies extensively during mechanical ventilation in critically ill patients, such variation being noted both between patients and within an individual patient. In an attempt to compare intermittent and continuous monitoring of endotracheal cuff pressures, a good correlation between the two measurements was demonstrated. However, the variations in pressures noted for an individual patient would not have been detected if endotracheal cuff pressures were monitored intermittently. Hence, with continuous monitoring the pressure changes may be detected early. Conclusion: Continuous monitoring of cuff pressure during mechanical ventilation in intensive care units is thus recommended for all patients. If intermittent monitoring is performed, it should be more frequently than eight-hourly. It is recommended that a pressure range of 20-30 cmH2O still be used as the normal range. The role of self adjusting pressure devices, although needing further exploration, holds much promise. / DUT Postgraduate Development Services.

A dissertation submitted in partial compliance with the requirements for the Masters Degree in Technology: Chiropractic, Durban Institute of Technology, 2006. / Myofascial pain syndrome is the second most common reason patients seek the help of health care workers. It costs billions of dollars each year in lost revenue due to loss of productivity and other costs. The treatment of myofascial pain syndrome has been extensively researched and it appears that dry needling and medicinal injections of trigger points are some of the most effective modalities. However, an unwanted side effect common to both these therapies is post-needling soreness. Despite being mentioned in passing by many authors, very little detail is available regarding post-needling soreness. It is unclear whether post-needling soreness arises from the trigger point itself, or whether the tissue damage caused by the needle insertion is responsible. Therefore, this study was aimed at investigating whether dry needling muscle tissue in asymptomatic subjects (i.e. subjects not suffering from myofascial pain syndrome) resulted in post-needling soreness. Two different dry needling techniques were also compared with a placebo group in order to determine which technique resulted in the least post-needling soreness. This study was designed as a prospective, randomised, placebo controlled experimental investigation. Sixty subjects were randomly allocated into three equal groups. Group one received the single needle insertion technique and the second group received the fanning dry needling technique. The last group formed the control group and the subjects were treated using the Park Sham Device (placebo needles). All the subjects were between the ages of 18 and 50 and were required to be asymptomatic in the low back region. / M

Thesis (B.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering; and, (B.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mathematics, 1982. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ENGINEERING / Includes bibliographical references and index. / by Richard J. Tello. / B.S.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 1981. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ENGINEERING. / Vita. / Bibliography: leaves 410-424. / by Paul Scott Schluter. / Ph.D.

Thesis (B.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, 1980. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ENGINEERING. / Includes bibliographical references. / by Martin Raymond Prince. / B.S.

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, 1982. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ENGINEERING. / Includes bibliographical references. / by Martin Raymond Prince. / M.S.

Orientador: Wilza Carla Spiri / Coorientador: Silvana Andréa Molina Lima / Banca: Cláudia Helena Bronzatto Luppi / Banca: Andréa Bernardes / Resumo: O gerenciamento de custos proporciona condições adequadas às instituições hospitalares para análise dos processos administrativos e assistenciais na busca do equilíbrio entre a oferta de serviços, disponibilidade de recursos financeiros, atendimento a critérios de qualidade e incorporação tecnológica. Considerando-se a importância do CME para a qualidade da assistência, torna-se essencial a reflexão sobre os custos que incidem sobre os processos desenvolvidos, bem como as análises econômicas, a fim de balizar o planejamento e a tomada de decisão por parte do enfermeiro gestor. Sendo assim buscou-se no custeio baseado em atividades (custeio ABC) uma ferramenta eficiente para auxiliar o Enfermeiro gestor do CME no processo de tomada de decisão e também na prática gerencial baseada em evidências. Objetivos: Aplicar o sistema de custeio baseado em atividades no CME de um hospital público avaliando sua eficiência para uma prática gerencial baseada em evidências e também aferir o custo do CME pelo sistema de custeio por absorção comparando o método de custeio por absorção e o custeio baseado em atividades, descrevendo vantagens e desvantagens encontradas e seu apoio ao processo de tomada de decisão. Metodologia: Pesquisa aplicada, descritiva, tipo estudo de caso tendo a aplicação do custeio ABC dividido em quatro etapas. Resultados: Custo unitário médio de R$ 5,33 (US$2,85) por artigo médico-hospitalar processado aferido pelo custeio por absorção. Foram identificadas 25 atividades decorrentes de sete subprocessos, produzindo cinco objetos de custo, sendo o subprocesso Preparo e a atividade montagem e rotulação dos artigos os maiores consumidores de recurso (66,1 e 37,4 %, respectivamente). O custo da esterilização de cada artigo foi de R$ 6,05 (US$ 3,23) e da desinfecção foi de R$ 3,03 (US$ 1,62). Foi preponderante para o estudo a existência prévia do custeio por absorção na unidade, fornecendo ... / Abstract: Cost management provides adequate conditions to hospitals for analysis of administrative and assistance processes in finding the balance between the provision of services, availability of financial resources, service quality criteria and the incorporation of technology. Considering the importance of Sterile Processing Department for the quality of care, it is essential to reflect on the costs imposed on the processes developed and the economic analyzes in order to guide the planning and decision making by the nurse manager. Therefore we found in activity-based costing (ABC) an effective tool to assist the nurse manager of Sterile Processing Department in the process of decision-making and also in management practice based on evidence. Objectives: Apply the ABC in Sterile Processing Department at public hospital evaluating their efficiency to a management practice based on evidence and also evaluate the cost of the Sterile Processing Department by comparing the absorption costing method and ABC, describing advantages and disadvantages encountered and their support for the process of decision making. Methodology: Applied research, descriptive, case study with application of ABC costing divided into four stages. Results: Average unit cost of (R$ 5.33/$. 2.85) per article physician-hospital sued measured by absorption costing. We identified 25 activities under seven sub processes, producing five cost objects, and the sub process preparation and the activity assembly and labeling of articles the largest resource consumers (66.1 and 37.4%, respectively). The cost of sterilization of each article was (R$ 6.05/$ 3.23) and disinfection was (R$ 3.03/$ 1.62). It was predominant in the study prior existence of absorption costing unit, providing information absolutely essential to the implementation of ABC. The management practice should rely on Sterile Processing Department on ABC as a source of evidence in ... / Mestre

Biopotential amplifiers and DC amplifiers in general play an important role in neurophysiological research and modern medical practice. This thesis investigates the application of recent semi-conductor technology to the design of a high-performance amplifier for EEG, EKG, and EMG. This amplifier can also be used with low-level transducers. In particular, the performance of a BJT OP AMP version is compared with that of an amplifier utilizing FET OP AMPS.Ball State UniversityMuncie, IN 47306