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Research Environment (research + environment)
Selected AbstractsBreaking the Barriers in Bio ResearchIMAGING & MICROSCOPY (ELECTRONIC), Issue 1 2007STED Superresolution Microscopy More than 130 years ago, Ernst Abbe set up the law that far-field optical microscopes are limited in resolution to approximately half of the wavelength of light. Today, these limits have been broken by two new concepts of microscopy: 4Pi and STED (Stimulated Emission Depletion) microscopy. Both techniques are revolutionizing the biomedical research environment, by providing resolution beyond what is possible with best light microscopes today, while maintaining all advantages of structure-specific fluorescence tagging. The principles have been invented by Stefan Hell of the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in Goettingen, Germany, and are commercialized by Leica Microsystems CMS. While the Leica TCS 4Pi is already available, the Leica TCS STED system will be introduced to the market in 2007. [source] Lung Function Tests in Neonates and Infants with Chronic Lung Disease of Infancy: Functional Residual CapacityPEDIATRIC PULMONOLOGY, Issue 1 2006Georg Hülskamp MD Abstract This is the second paper in a review series that will summarize available data and discuss the potential role of lung function testing in infants and young children with acute neonatal respiratory disorders and chronic lung disease of infancy. The current paper addresses the expansive subject of measurements of lung volume using plethysmography and gas dilution/washout techniques. Following orientation of the reader to the subject area, we focus our comments on areas of inquiry proposed in the introductory paper to this series. The quality of the published literature is reviewed critically, and recommendations are provided to guide future investigation in this field. Measurements of lung volume are important both for assessing growth and development of lungs in health and disease, and for interpreting volume-dependent lung function parameters such as respiratory compliance, resistance, forced expiratory flows, and indices of gas-mixing efficiency. Acute neonatal lung disease is characterized by severely reduced functional residual capacity (FRC), with treatments aimed at securing optimal lung recruitment. While FRC may remain reduced in established chronic lung disease of infancy, more commonly it becomes normalized or even elevated due to hyperinflation, with or without gas-trapping, secondary to airway obstruction. Ideally, accurate and reliable bedside measurements of FRC would be feasible from birth, throughout all phases of postnatal care (including assisted ventilation), and during subsequent long-term follow-up. Although lung volume measurements in extremely preterm infants were described in a research environment, resolution of several issues is required before such investigations can be translated into routine clinical monitoring. Pediatr Pulmonol. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Study Designs and Evaluation Models for Emergency Department Public Health ResearchACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 11 2009Kerry B. Broderick MD Abstract Public health research requires sound design and thoughtful consideration of potential biases that may influence the validity of results. It also requires careful implementation of protocols and procedures that are likely to translate from the research environment to actual clinical practice. This article is the product of a breakout session from the 2009 Academic Emergency Medicine consensus conference entitled "Public Health in the ED: Screening, Surveillance, and Intervention" and serves to describe in detail aspects of performing emergency department (ED)-based public health research, while serving as a resource for current and future researchers. In doing so, the authors describe methodologic features of study design, participant selection and retention, and measurements and analyses pertinent to public health research. In addition, a number of recommendations related to research methods and future investigations related to public health work in the ED are provided. Public health investigators are poised to make substantial contributions to this important area of research, but this will only be accomplished by employing sound research methodology in the context of rigorous program evaluation. [source] Local institutional review board (IRB) review of a multicenter trial: Local costs without local contextANNALS OF NEUROLOGY, Issue 2 2010Bernard Ravina MD, MSCE Multicenter clinical research involves parallel Institutional Review Board (IRB) reviews based on the premise that local review reflects aspects of the research environment. We examined the costs and effects of local IRB review of the consent and protocol in a multicenter clinical trial in Parkinson disease. Seventy-six percent of changes to the consent reflected standard institutional language, with no substantive changes to the protocol. The costs of this process exceeded $100,000. These findings support initiatives by the Office of Human Research Protections (OHRP) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to facilitate centralized reviews. This may be an opportune time for the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) to adopt a central review model. ANN NEUROL 2010;67:258,260 [source] 4421: The fundamentals of visual acuity measurementACTA OPHTHALMOLOGICA, Issue 2010CM CHISHOLM Purpose To provide the background to the symposium on visual acuity and its measurement Methods The parameters employed to quantify visual performance will be defined. Commonly used measurement techniques ranging from traditional letter charts to psychophysical computer-based programmes, will be described and compared, with reference to the peer-reviewed literature in this area. The issues of accuracy and repeatability will be considered in the context of the clinical setting and scientific studies. Results Letter charts are most commonly employed to assess visual performance because of their ease of use for both the patient and assessor, but they suffer from design limitations. Psychophysical procedures are more flexible and can improve repeatability, but are time consuming and fatigue can start to play a part. Such techniques are generally more suited to the research environment. High contrast visual acuity measurement can give a misleading impression regarding the quality of vision. This is particularly the case for subjects with impaired optical quality relating to an increase in intraocular light scatter and/or increased higher order aberrations. Assessment in the contrast domain is essential to build up a fuller picture. Conclusion The assessment of visual quality requires an understanding of test design and limitations. The method used should be chosen to suit the aims of the work and partly depends on whether it is taking place in a clinical practice setting or as part of a research study. [source] Good urodynamic practices: Uroflowmetry, filling cystometry, and pressure-flow studies,,NEUROUROLOGY AND URODYNAMICS, Issue 3 2002Werner Schäfer Abstract This is the first report of the International Continence Society (ICS) on the development of comprehensive guidelines for Good Urodynamic Practice for the measurement, quality control, and documentation of urodynamic investigations in both clinical and research environments. This report focuses on the most common urodynamics examinations; uroflowmetry, pressure recording during filling cystometry, and combined pressure,flow studies. The basic aspects of good urodynamic practice are discussed and a strategy for urodynamic measurement, equipment set-up and configuration, signal testing, plausibility controls, pattern recognition, and artifact correction are proposed. The problems of data analysis are mentioned only when they are relevant in the judgment of data quality. In general, recommendations are made for one specific technique. This does not imply that this technique is the only one possible. Rather, it means that this technique is well-established, and gives good results when used with the suggested standards of good urodynamic practice. Neurourol. Urodynam. 21:261,274, 2002. © 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] | ||||||||||