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Power deposition in ferromagnetic implants of cylindrical and spherical shape from an externally applied uniform time harmonic radio-frequency magnetic field has been investigated by means of quasi-static analysis. Inductive heating efficiency is related to the relative permeability and temperature dependence of permeability can be exploited to limit the maximum temperature rise to the desired value by proper choice of Curie point of ferromagnetic material. It is found that theoretically calculated power absorption versus orientation of the cylindrical implant with the direction of magnetic field is in good agreement with the experimental results. The parametric studies are based on a two-dimensional finite difference model for calculating temperature distribution in perfused tissues due to induction heating of an array of implants. An approximate analytical model was developed for a large regular array of implants in perfused tissues. The results of the analytical model are compared with those of the numerical model. (Abstract shortened with permission of author.)

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The purpose of this study was to understand the meaning of change through therapeutic enactment in psychodrama. Existential and hermeneutic phenomenology conducted from the perspective of a dialectic between storied narrative and thematic analysis was used to investigate the essential meaning of the experience. Eight co-researchers who had experienced significant change through therapeutic enactment in psychodrama were interviewed in depth. Transcripts from these interviews were transposed into narrative form in order to straighten the story of change through enactment in a before, during, and after sequence. These eight individual narratives were validated by the co-researchers. An independent reviewer checked each narrative against the original transcript, video tapes of the enactments, and comments of each co-researcher for trustworthiness. Each validated narrative provided a rich description of the lived experience of change through therapeutic enactment. In addition, fifty-nine (59) essential themes were formulated from the individual narratives: Fourteen (14) in the planning stage, twenty-four (24) in the enactive stage, and twenty-one (21) in the reflective, or integrative stage, of the enactment process. These themes were then woven into a common story representing the pattern and meaning of change through therapeutic enactment for this group of co-researchers. Finally, notations made during the transposing of the transcripts into personal narratives, formulation of the essential themes, and construction of the common story were used to develop a theoretical story of change through therapeutic enactment, as a final level of hermeneutic interpretation. This theoretical story was then presented in summary form as a thematic sequence of multi-modal change processes representing a model of change through therapeutic enactment. The results of this study suggested numerous theoretical and technical implications. Foremost among theoretical implications was the suggestion that Tomkins (1992) script theory of affect may best illuminate the effects and processes of psychodrama and enactment. This study also had implications for interactional theories of development, contemporary psychoanalytic theories of interpersonal functioning, theories of moral development, theories of dream functioning, and ethological theories of myth and ritual. The results of this study also suggested a number of additional qualitative and comparative outcome studies for future research.

Energy modulated electron therapy (EMET) is a promising treatment modality that has the fundamental capabilities to enhance the treatment planning and delivery of superficially located targets. Although it offers advantages over x-ray intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), EMET has not been widely implemented to the same level of accuracy, automation, and clinical routine as its x-ray counterpart. This lack of implementation is attributed to the absence of a remotely automated beam shaping system as well as the deficiency in dosimetric accuracy of clinical electron pencil beam algorithms in the presence of beam modifiers and tissue heterogeneities. In this study, we present a novel technique for treatment planning and delivery of EMET. The delivery is achieved using a prototype of an automated "few leaf electron collimator" (FLEC). It consists of four copper leaves driven by stepper motors which are synchronized with the x-ray jaws in order to form a series of collimated rectangular openings or "fieldlets". Based on Monte Carlo studies, the FLEC has been designed to serve as an accessory tool to the current accelerator equipment. The FLEC was constructed and its operation was fully automated and integrated with the accelerator through an in-house assembled control unit. The control unit is a portable computer system accompanied with customized software that delivers EMET plans after acquiring them from the optimization station. EMET plans are produced based on dose volume constraints that employ Monte Carlo pre-generated and patient-specific kernels which are utilized by an in-house developed optimization algorithm. The structure of the optimization software is demonstrated. Using Monte Carlo techniques to calculate dose allows for accurate modeling of the collimation system as well as the patient heterogeneous geometry and take into account their impact on optimization. The Monte Carlo calculations were validated by comparing them against output measurements with an ionization chamber. Comparisons with measurements using nearly energy-independent radiochromic films were performed to confirm the Monte Carlo calculation accuracy for 1-D and 2-D dose distributions. We investigated the clinical significance of EMET on cancer sites that are inherently difficult to plan with IMRT. Several parameters were used to analyze treatment plans where they show that EMET provides significant overall improvements over IMRT.

Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Health in compliance with the requirements for a Master's Degree in Technology: Chiropractic at Durban Institute of Technology, 2005 / Due to sustained partial neck flexion when operating a computer terminal for prolonged periods and by holding a stooped posture being proposed aetiologies for hypertonic posterior cervical muscles and subsequent mechanical neck pain, subjects for this research study were chosen according to their occupation and had to sit at a desk for more the three hours and less than eight hours a day. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation combined with heat therapy as opposed to proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation combined with cryotherapy in the treatment of mechanical neck pain caused by hypertonic posterior cervical muscles. This was a comparative, randomised, clinical trial consisting of two groups. Group A received proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) combined with heat therapy as their treatment protocol. Group B received proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation combined with cryotherapy as their treatment protocol. Each group consisted of thirty people between the ages of 25 and 50 who were randomly allocated to their respective groups. It was hypothesized that the analgesic properties related to cryotherapy would result in the treatment group that received PNF stretching combined with cryotherapy yielding better results in terms of objective clinical findings. It was also hypothesized that the therapeutic effects of heat therapy would result in the treatment group receiving PNF stretching combined with heat therapy would yield better results in terms of subjective clinical findings and it is hypothesized that there is an association between the subjective and objective clinical findings between the cryotherapy and the heat therapy groups. The treatment regimen consisted of each participant receiving three treatments over a period of one week and then a one-week follow-up consultation. Subjective data monitored consisted of the Numerical Pain Rating Scale –101 (NRS-101) and the CMCC Neck Disability index. Objective data was collected using the Cervical Range of Motion goniometer (CROM) and the Algometer. At the end of all treatment protocols, statistical (quantitative) analysis was performed to determine whether one treatment protocol was more effective than the other. The analysis of the data collected showed that for all outcomes measured, either of the two treatments was effective overall. Trends suggested optimum treatments were dependent on the age of the patient. Age groups of 46-50 years old, 41-45 years old and the 31-35 years old responded best and improved the most with heat intervention, while age group of 36-40 years old responded best to the cryotherapy intervention. For the youngest age group of 25-30 years old, it did not make a difference whether they received heat therapy or cryotherapy as an intervention. It would seem that the older the patient the more effective the application of heat therapy as a result of the effect of heat therapy on the collagen and elastin fibers within the muscle and its fascia which allowed for increased and sustained improvement of the majority of the age groups represented in this study. Conversely it would seem that the cryotherapy group had only immediate and unsustained effects in the long term, which suggests that the cryotherapy had only a pain relieving function that allowed for the improvement of patients in the study, which when removed resulted in regression to the initial clinical syndrome severity. Most of the outcomes did not show a statistically significant interaction between time, age group and treatment group. The study was underpowered at the age group level, with only 12 subjects per age group. Further studies with a larger sample size in each of the age groups are needed in order to determine whether age is a definitive factor in one treatment being preferred over the other.

The purpose of this study was to determine if exposure to humor media improves mood states of older adults. The humor media consisted of four thirty minute videos. Ten subjects from a retirement community in East Central Indiana participated in the study. A control group and experimental group were assigned by the Activities Director of the retirement community. Each participant was administered the Profile of Mood States for the pretest and posttest measurement. The Profile of Mood States lists sixty-five adjectives and participants ranked on a scale of 0 to 4 how much they felt that mood within the past week. Members of the experimental group participated in fifteen minute interviews after the completion of the intervention.Total mood score means for the experimental group indicated an increase in positive mood from the pretest to the post-test. Total Mood Score means for the control group showed either no change or a decrease in positive mood. Because the sample size was very small,no statistical test of significance could be executed to test the null hypothesis. Based upon the qualitative interviews and the simple analysis of quantitative data humor media appears to have positive effects on the subjects in nursing homes and retirement communities. However, this intervention deserves further investigation with a larger sample that would allow for more rigorous statistical analysis. / Fisher Institute for Wellness

Access to abstract restricted until May 2016 / Access to thesis restricted until May 2016 / Department of Biology

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